circulation
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Earth
Long-term records reveal the impact of climate change on atmospheric circulation
The global map shows global cloud cover on July 11, 2005, based primarily on observations from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor aboard the NASA Terra satellite. Patterns in cloud cover reveal large-scale atmospheric circulation. Credit: NASA How climate change affects thermodynamic signals such as atmospheric temperature is relatively well understood. However, its influence on atmospheric circulation is more…
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Earth
Climate models suggest Greenland’s snowmelt slows Atlantic circulation
Schematic diagram of the experiment. Credit: Qiyun Ma and Patrick Scholz Using climate models, a team of German and Chinese climate scientists has found evidence that freshwater input into the Irminger Basin will have the greatest impact on the Atlantic Meridional Circulation (AMOC) in the coming years. Their paper is published in the journal Science Advances. The AMOC is the…
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Earth
Models suggest snowmelt from Greenland and the Arctic is weakening ocean circulation and accelerating warming southward.
The addition of melt water to the North Atlantic causes local cooling in the subpolar North Atlantic and warming in the South Atlantic. Credit: Nature Geoscience (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41561-024-01568-1 The vast network of ocean currents known as the “global ocean conveyor belt” is slowing down. This is a problem because this critical system redistributes heat around the world, influencing both…
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Earth
Melting Arctic sea ice could affect global ocean circulation, research warns
Melting sea ice can cause temperatures to drop. Credit: Karine Nigar Aarskog / UiT Norwegian Arctic University A warming climate in the polar regions could significantly disrupt ocean circulation patterns, a new study shows. Scientists have discovered that in the distant past, melting Arctic sea ice may have increased the flow of freshwater into the Nordic Seas, significantly impacting ocean…
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Earth
Cooling: Slowing ocean circulation could limit Arctic temperature rise
A map depicting the direction in which the AMOC transports warm water from the tropics to high latitudes. Credit: R. Currie, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution/Science/USGCRP The Arctic is warming three to four times faster than the global average. But new research suggests that slowing major ocean currents could reduce projected Arctic warming by up to 2C by the end of…
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