American scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts have discovered new changes in the Gulf Stream ocean current. The study was published in the scientific journal magazine Nature Climate Change.
The Gulf Stream remains an integral part of the global climate system, carrying warm waters from the Caribbean to the East Coast of the United States. This powerful current flowing along the coast and then across the Atlantic Ocean influences weather patterns and storms, transporting heat from the tropics to higher latitudes as part of what is called the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation.
Oceanographers have found that over the past 20 years, the Gulf Stream has been warming faster than the entire global ocean and is also shifting towards the shore. According to their data, the water in the stream has warmed by an average of 1 °C over the last two decades.
The team also found that the Gulf Stream moves closer to the coast by an average of five kilometers per decade. This means that the Gulf Stream is slowly approaching the northeastern continental shelf of the United States.
Previous scientists discovered Convincing signs of the weakening of the Gulf Stream.