‘Cold spot’ goes against the mid-Atlantic warming trend

South of Greenland and Iceland, a large area of ​​ocean water is experiencing strange phenomena. While most of the ocean warmed, this body of water cooled. This spot, called the “cold spot” or “warming hole”, has dropped nearly a degree Celsius since 1900.

Scientists have long debated whether the cold spot formed from heat loss from the ocean surface due to changing winds and clouds, or was a signal that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), an important ocean circulation system, was weakening. New research published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters leaning towards the second option, affirming that this is a worrying sign that the world is approaching a serious climate crisis.

Smithsonian explains, the AMOC acts like a water conveyor belt, transporting warm, salty surface water from the tropics to the North Atlantic, where it cools, becomes denser and sinks. This is the main reason why Europe has a relatively mild climate, despite its high latitude. The cold water then returns south, carrying essential nutrients for marine life.

The cold spot is the recipient of most of the heat transported by the AMOC. In the new study, to better understand what’s happening here, the team of experts combined actual ocean temperature data from instruments and satellites with climate models. They found that the cooling in the cold spot occurred not only on the surface but also in the deep sea, where atmospheric factors such as wind and clouds have a much weaker influence.

Professor of physics and oceanography Stefan Rahmstorf from the University of Potsdam (Germany), the study author, concluded that the change in the AMOC is promoting the cooling of the cold spot. He added that there is other evidence that the AMOC is weakening, with some studies even rating this ocean current system at its weakest state in about 1,000 years.

David Thornally, professor of climate and ocean science from the University of London (UK), commented that the new study adds evidence of a link between cold spots and the weakening of the AMOC, but cautioned that the actual data is limited and the current data set should be considered only a relatively good estimate rather than a perfect reflection. He told CNN: “I don’t think the new study will be the final word on this issue.”

Theo Live ScienceAMOC weakens due to global warming. The collapse of this ocean current system could bring catastrophic consequences. Water levels along the East Coast of the United States will rise, temperatures in Europe will decrease, and rain patterns will change, causing drought in Europe and Africa. Scientists are trying to research and propose ideas to prevent AMOC from collapsing, including building an 82 km long Bering Strai