Daniels Family Sustainable Energy Foundation

The Gulf Stream, like most ocean currents, is powered by two engines: differences in temperature and salinity between different parts of the ocean. Icebergs that break off of ice sheets are made of freshwater, so their melting affects both engines and disrupts the normal cycle that made the current run strong for centuries. The Gulf Stream pulls water away from the US East coast, while also redistributing heat. If the current weakens, the height of tides increases.

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Sea-level rise from a weaker Gulf Stream may occur faster than the rise due to ice sheets melting in Greenland and Antarctica, but its rate and the complexity of the problem make it less easily predictable. 

The Gulf Stream, like most ocean currents, is powered by two engines: differences in temperature and salinity between different parts of the ocean. Icebergs that break off of ice sheets are made of freshwater, so their melting affects both engines and disrupts the normal cycle that made the current run strong for centuries. The Gulf Stream pulls water away from the US East coast, while also redistributing heat. If the current weakens, the height of tides increases.

​

Sea-level rise from a weaker Gulf Stream may occur faster than the rise due to ice sheets melting in Greenland and Antarctica, but its rate and the complexity of the problem make it less easily predictable.