A vital system of Atlantic Ocean currents is weakening and closer to collapse than thought, new studies find | CNN

The critical system of ocean currents which loops around the Atlantic Ocean is weakening and could be far closer to collapse than previously thought, according to two new studies — an event which would have catastrophic impacts on the planet’s weather and climate. The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, known as the AMOC, functions like a vast conveyor belt, transporting heat, salt and freshwater through the ocean and influencing climate, weather and sea levels around the planet. A growing body of research suggests it’s weakening as human-driven global warming disrupts its delicate balance of heat and salinity, with one study even predicting it could collapse as soon as next decade. But the AMOC is complex and has only been continuously monitored since 2004. Climate models generally agree it’s on course to weaken this century, but there is a huge amount of uncertainty about the extent of its decline. The stakes are incredibly high; an AMOC collapse, which last happened roughly 12,000 years ago, would cause chaos. It would push Europe into a winter deep freeze, accelerate sea level rise along the East Coast of the US and drive prolonged droughts across a swath of Af