A slowdown of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) under global warming could have significant ramifications for Atlantic Ocean heat transport, Arctic sea ice extent and regional North Atlantic climate. However, the potential far-reaching effects, such as teleconnections to the tropical Pacific and Indian Ocean as well as to Antarctic climate, remain unclear. Using a global climate model, this study found a AMOC collapse would drive a complex rearrangement of the global atmospheric circulation that affects all latitudes, from the tropics to the polar circulation of both hemispheres. These findings have important implications for understanding the global climate response to ongoing greenhouse gas increases.
Read more: Orihuela-Pinto, B., England, M.H., & Taschetto, A.S. (2022). Interbasin and interhemispheric impacts of a collapsed Atlantic Overturning Circulation. Nature Climate Change, 12, 558-565. doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-022-01380-y