Melting glaciers could cause a collapse on earth in a few decades.
Source: Juan BARRETO / AFP / Profimedia
In a few decades, it is not known exactly when, melting glaciers could block the Gulf Stream (the system of currents that brings heat to the northern hemisphere), writes “Daily Mail”. The authors of this study are from the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands and could not specify when the “collapse” would occur.
“We’re getting close to collapse, but we’re not sure how close we are“, said the lead author Rene van Westen, climate scientist and oceanographer from the University of Utrecht.
Many people compare this time predicament with the cult film “The Day After Tomorrow” from 2004, in which humanity enters a great storm that brings an ice age to the planet. Van Westen said it is difficult to predict exactly what will happen in a few decades.
“It also depends on the rate of climate change we are causing as humanityRene van Vesten added.
What is the Gulf Stream and what is its role?
The Gulf Stream is part of a much larger system of currents, officially called the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, or AMOC. Described as an ‘ocean conveyor belt’, it transports warm water near the ocean’s surface northwards – from the tropics to the Northern Hemisphere.
When the warm water reaches the North Atlantic (around Europe and Great Britain, and the East Coast of the USA), it releases heat and freezes. As this ice forms, the salt remains in the ocean water.
(WORLD)