IS THIS THE TIPPING POINT WHICH WILL CHANGE MINDS ?

The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (Amoc), drives warm water north, which cools and evaporates as it moves, becoming saltier and denser. This causes it to sink and head south before it is pulled to the surface and warmed again, repeating the cycle. The Amoc is part of the ‘Great Ocean Conveyor Belt’ However, as global warming has led to the melting of ice in the northern hemisphere, particularly from the Greenland ice sheet, the volume of freshwater in the Atlantic has increased. In addition, the overall temperature of the ocean has also increased, further disrupting the cycle. A new study suggests the current could collapse much sooner than previously thought – triggering severe climate impacts across the globe. Many studies have shown the Amoc will likely weaken in future, with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicting it could collapse next century. However, a new study suggests a full or partial collapse is ‘most likely’ to happen this century, and as early as 2025. It describes a general weakening of the current as it approaches a tipping point. The collapse of the Amoc would have a disastrous effect for everyone on Earth, scientists have said, as within a few decades it would cause temperatures to plunge across the northern hemisphere and shift rainfall patterns southward, starving places like the UK of the freshwater needed for drinking and agriculture.