Gulf Stream at risk of collapse as Earth warms, study warns

This colder water gradually moves southward several kilometres deep, before warmer ocean temperatures eventually pull it to the surface and the process begins again

The Gulf Stream is part of the AMOC and makes western Europe significantly warmer than it would otherwise be. Picture: PA

The ocean current responsible for western Europe’s temperate climate could be at risk of collapse due to global warming, according to new research.

Scientists at Germany’s Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research found the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) could have reached a point of “almost complete loss of stability” over the last century.