The Gulf Stream may collapse – scientists see early signs

Scientists have long warned that the Gulf Stream may be on the verge of collapse.

In a new report published in Science Advances researchers have been able to see early warning signs of just that – and what disastrous consequences it can have.

The Gulf Stream is part of a system of ocean currents known as the AMOC (Atlantic Meridional Overturning Current), which is crucial for the entire world’s climate.

If the AMOC shuts down, it could cause temperatures in Europe to drop by up to 30 degrees in 100 years.

And in the southern hemisphere, temperatures can instead rise sharply during the same time period.

– No realistic adaptation methods can handle such rapid changes, the researchers write CNN.

– We are heading towards that. It’s pretty scary. We must take climate change much more seriously, says the report’s lead author René van Westen.