Amoc collapse could change Europe’s climate 10x faster than expected. We aren’t ready
The system of ocean current that moves heat in the Atlantic Ocean plays a key role in regulating climate. Today’s monitoring of it may be discontinuedImagine we detect a large asteroid heading straight for Earth. We are able to intervene and prevent disaster, but instead we cut the funding needed to track it. A few million dollars, it was argued, was too expensive to have a chance to save society.While this scenario isn’t real, the metaphor is alarmingly accurate. In Europe, we spend €1bn to mon
Amoc collapse could change Europe’s climate 10x faster than expected. We aren’t ready
Overview
The system of ocean current that moves heat in the Atlantic Ocean plays a key role in regulating climate. Today’s monitoring of it may be discontinued
Imagine we detect a large asteroid heading straight for Earth. We are able to intervene and prevent disaster, but instead we cut the funding needed to track it. A few million dollars, it was argued, was too expensive to have a chance to save society.
Details
While this scenario isn’t real, the metaphor is alarmingly accurate. In Europe, we spend €1bn to monitor space for asteroids, even if the actual risk of a civilisation-ending asteroid strike is close to zero.
Continue reading...Source
Originally published at www.theguardian.com.
