As climate change continues, parts of the Earth system such as ice sheets, frozen soils, or the Amazon rainforest could shift—some quickly, some slowly—after crossing key thresholds or tipping points.
Atlantic Ocean
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Diapycnal Mixing and the Atlantic Ocean Overturning Circulation
Quantitative observation-based estimates highlight the contribution of diapycnal mixing to the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, water mass formation, and tracer transfers and pathways.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Scotland’s Last Glaciers Cause a Shift in an Old Paradigm
Cosmogenic geochronology of Scotland’s vanished glaciers indicates that the paradigm of weakened North Atlantic currents causing a rapid regional cooling is no longer valid.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Gulf Stream Closes the Valve of the Labrador Current
Virtual particles released in the Labrador Current revealed that the westward penetration of the current into the shelf seas is inhibited by warm core rings emanating from the Gulf Stream.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Predicting Flood Conditions in the Next Few Years
Multiyear flood predictions are possible for watersheds in which the magnitude and frequency of flooding can be related to an atmospheric pressure see-saw in the North Atlantic region.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Linking African Winds to Atlantic Storms
Simulations suggest that waves in the atmosphere above northern Africa influence the intensity, timing, and location of formation of Atlantic tropical cyclones.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Respiration Quotient Variability and Ocean Oxygen Levels
Respiration quotients in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans reflect different water temperature, nutrient stress and phytoplankton community structure, important for regional carbon and oxygen cycling.
Posted inNews
Salt Spray May Stifle Lightning over the Sea
New research suggests that sea-salt aerosols seed large raindrops that starve clouds of water needed to make lightning. But not all scientists are convinced it’s simply about salt spray.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
When Winds and Currents Align, Ocean Mixing Goes Deep
Slantwise convection in the Irminger Sea off Greenland appears to mix ocean water to deeper depths than previously thought, representing an important contribution to Atlantic overturning.