Slashdot Mirror
Gulf Stream Slowdown in Progress?
peacefinder writes "Researchers report that one process which drives the Gulf Stream is slowing down. As that current is part of the global oceanic heat conveyor which keeps parts of Europe and North America warmer than would be expected for their latitudes, such a slowdown might lead to abrupt climate change."
A TV program a while back highlighted research investigating just why huge indigenous populations of Central America mysteriously disappeared around 800.
Lakebed sediment cores suggested a fairly severe multi-year drought around that time that was linked (through that Atlantic conveyor) to some severe winters in northern Europe. That drought was thought to disrupt agriculture that those cultures relied upon.
"Provided by the management for your protection."
Welcome to the anthropocene.
mt
Here on the Canadian West Coast global warming has been great. Winters are getting milder and milder and we've have had some great summers in the last few years.
The only downsides have been a few pesky forest fires, and annual water restrictions.
As usual, this will only become an issue once the majority of people make the connection between climate change, its origins, and the resulting unpleasantness. (Starvation, war for dwindling resources, mad max, etc.)
Actually, the grandparent expresses the perfect environmentalist viewpoint. The fundamental philosophy of the most vocal group of "environmentalists" is that I should treat the planet (or something) as being more important than human life. That's the single point that it all comes back to, even if not everyone who makes that argument knows that they are.
I've been thinking about this as well. But maybe it isn't going far enough to say that humanity is taking the earth into a new geological era. A better, be it more speculative, suggestion is that humanity actually has it in their power to usher in a new eon.
My reasoning for this is that eons are defined by whatever principal force that affects the earth most profoundly changes. A short list:
The Hadean(4550 mya - 3800 mya), where the earth was cooling and life was impossible.
The Archaean(3800 mya - 2500 mya), where life originates.
The Proterozoic(2500 mya - 570 mya), where single-celled life proliferates and evolves into forms that permanently changes the makeup of the atmosphere, and thus instills on the world a regulation feedback loop.
The Phanerozoic(570 mya - present day), where advanced life makes it's entry and further increases the level of control life has on its environment.
So my question is, since the passing of eons basically describe the amount of control and impact life has on its environment, isn't the speed and sophistication of humanity's effect on the environment so profound that we should be entering the Anthropean eon?
- Global warming adds more pure water to the sea in the North Atlantic
- Gulf stream slows
- Slower Gulf stream cools the temperatures
Sounds to me like a natural thermostat.Also a lower temperature sea will increase the likelyhood of dissolving the extra CO2 into the seawater.
Most of this kind of research (models) are focused on extrapolation in this case the time-frame (using a couple of years +-100 to predict too much 800 or more and using limited knowledge gained from other sources such as core samples).
And I'm not trying too discredit the sciences of core samples etc. It is just that their findings are still being refined too.
Models are a great tool to research complex behaviour. But those that use their findings blindly as fact are bound to be humiliated.