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Antarctica: Climate change accelerates ring current scinexx 29.11.2021

The Antarctic Circumpolar Current runs around Antarctica, separating it from the warmer Southern Ocean. © NASA/ Scientific Visualization Studio

The Antarctic Circumpolar Current runs around Antarctica, separating it from the warmer Southern Ocean. © NASA/ Scientific Visualization Studio

Excerpt:

Antarctica: Climate change accelerates ring current

Contrary to earlier assumptions, circumpolar current also reacts to warming

Measurable consequences: Climate change is now also affecting the Antarctic Circumpolar Current– the ring current that separates Antarctica from the Southern Ocean. Measurements show that this current has become significantly faster and narrower since 1993. Although the circumpolar current was previously considered to be primarily influenced by the wind, the warming of the Southern Ocean is to blame for this acceleration, as the researchers report in the scientific journal „Nature Climate Change“ report.

The Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) is the only ocean current that circumnavigates the entire globe. With a transport volume of 100 to 150 million cubic meters of water per second, it moves more water than any other ocean circulation, and it plays a crucial role in Earth's climate.

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