Reply #101: Is It Fascism Yet makes a minor mistake

[davekriss]

The Gulf Stream is driven by the Artic pump: Cold, dense water sinks to the ocean floor, spreading southward miles below the surface where it does no harm. Warm waters from the south rush in to fill the space above the descending cold water. This "pump", along with the rotation of the earth, results in the circulation of the warmth-giving Gulf Stream.

Now here's the problem: The gulf stream is warming up. It is contributing to the rapid melting of the Artic ice cap. The melting water is decreasing the salinity of the water rushing to the bottom under the warmer water coming up from the south. As salinity decreases, so does density, so the density gradient between warm and cold is diminishing and thus so is the force of the "pump". Theory holds that the "pump" could cease, warm and cold simply blend, and thus the Stream stop streaming.

What happens if the Stream stops streaming? The warmth-giving heat pump is turned off for Northern Europe, and it descends into a new ice age. The frigid temperatures in turn spread across the upper hemisphere and we have glaciers in London, northern France, NYC, Chicago. Not a pretty picture.

There are intelligence agencies that believe this risk is much greater than that from terrorism, world war, and all other calamities combined. A paper was written a year ago and leaked with some media attention. Anyone recall? It was written by the grandaddy of the intelligence agencies and directs a group that sits atop the CIA, DIA, and other agencies. I'll try to find it and edit this post with the link...

(IIFY: I did not see, above, where you pointed out the paradox -- warming leading to freezing -- hope this helps.)