[Marxism] "Nature" study: Atlantic heat conveyer shutting down

[robert montgomery <ilyenkova@xxxxxxxxx>]

Abstract from Nature, the preeminent journal of Science:
Editor's Summary
1 December 2005

Atlantic Ocean trends

>The circulation across the 25° N latitude line in the Atlantic Ocean
between Africa and the Bahamas has become the benchmark for estimating
the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation, an important
component of global ocean transport that carries warm upper waters
into far northern latitudes via the Gulf Stream and returns cold deep
waters south across the Equator. Its heat transport contributes to the
moderate climate of maritime and continental Europe. A new
hydrographic section across 25° N was taken in 2004, and comparison
with measurements from 1957, 1981, 1992 and 1998 reveals a slowing of
almost a third between 1957 and 2004. This means that more Gulf Stream
waters are now recirculating southwards at mid-ocean depths, and that
southward transport of cold lower North Atlantic Deep Water has
halved. Some climate models suggest that the anthropogenic increase in
atmospheric CO2 will result in a slowdown of the Atlantic overturning
circulation, so this latest finding will add fuel to the debate on
climate change.<

Basically, what this means is that Arctic ice is melting at a rate
that the Atlantic currents that warm Europe have been reduced by 30
percent. The scenario makes it clear that if the Atlantic heat
conveyor shuts down, Northern Europe goes into a deep freeze and will
need gobs more imported energy to stay warm. Significantly, the
Economist, magazine, the periodical voice of British capitalism has
responded to this report in its 1 December issue by acknowledging the
reality of climate change science.
RM

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