Atlantic circulation change still uncertain

K. Halimeda Kilbourne; Alan D. Wanamaker; Paola Moffa-Sanchez; David J. Reynolds; Daniel E. Amrhein; Paul G. Butler; Marlos Goes; Malte Jansen; Christopher M. Little; Madelyn Jean Mette; Eduardo Moreno-Chamarro; Pablo Ortega; Bette L. Otto-Bliesner; Thomas Rossby; James Scourse; Nina M. Whitney

doi:10.1038/s41561-022-00896-4

Atlantic circulation change still uncertain

Nature Geoscience

By: K. Halimeda Kilbourne, Alan D. Wanamaker, Paola Moffa-Sanchez, David J. Reynolds, Daniel E. Amrhein, Paul G. Butler, Marlos Goes, Malte Jansen, Christopher M. Little, Madelyn Jean Mette, Eduardo Moreno-Chamarro, Pablo Ortega, Bette L. Otto-Bliesner, Thomas Rossby, James Scourse, and Nina M. Whitney

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-022-00896-4

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Abstract

Deep oceanic overturning circulation in the Atlantic (Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC)) is projected to decrease in the future in response to anthropogenic warming. Caesar et al.¹ argue that an AMOC slowdown started in the nineteenth century and intensified during the mid-twentieth century. Although the argument and selected evidence proposed have some merits, we find that their conclusions might be different if a more complete array of data available in the North Atlantic region is considered. We argue that the strength of AMOC over recent centuries is still poorly constrained and the expected slowdown may not have started yet.

Recently, Moffa-Sánchez et al.² compiled a comprehensive set of palaeoclimate proxy data from the North Atlantic and Arctic regions using objective criteria to identify high-quality datasets of ocean conditions that span the past two millennia (Fig. 1). Although no direct (singular) proxy for AMOC exists, the palaeoceanographic proxy data compiled by Moffa-Sánchez et al.² highlight the spatial and temporal complexities of the ocean state in modern times and the recent past. When all the available proxy records potentially related to AMOC variability and twentieth century observational datasets are considered, the time history of the AMOC system becomes less certain. In contrast, selecting only a subset of proxy records that share similar trends, as performed by Caesar et al.¹, provides an incomplete perspective on AMOC changes through time.

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Additional publication details
Publication type	Article
Publication Subtype	Journal Article
Title	Atlantic circulation change still uncertain
Series title	Nature Geoscience
DOI	10.1038/s41561-022-00896-4
Volume	15
Year Published	2022
Language	English
Publisher	Nature
Contributing office(s)	St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center
Description	3 p.
First page	165
Last page	167
Country	Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Ireland, Morocco, Norway, Scotland, Wales
Other Geospatial	Atlantic Ocean
Google Analytic Metrics	Metrics page