Iceland Sounds Alarm: AMOC Collapse as National Security Threat

Iceland has declared the potential collapse of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) a national security threat. This ocean current system helps moderate European winters. Its failure could lead to severe climate impacts including a mini ice age and altered rainfall patterns, affecting millions globally.

Iceland's government has identified the potential collapse of a major Atlantic Ocean current system, known as the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), as a national security issue. The country's climate minister, Johann Pall Johannsson, emphasized that this marks the first time a climate-related phenomenon has been recognized as an existential threat by Iceland's National Security Council.

The AMOC plays a crucial role in moderating Europe's winters by transporting warm water from the tropics northward. However, the increasing meltwater from Greenland's ice sheet could disrupt its flow, raising concerns of a modern-day ice age with severe cold and increased snow across Northern Europe. Iceland is actively coordinating a response and assessing necessary policies for disaster preparedness.

The potential collapse of AMOC could also have global repercussions, with subsistence farming regions in Africa, India, and South America facing destabilized rainfall patterns. While some European nations remain cautiously optimistic about an abrupt collapse, scientists warn of an underestimation of risks, highlighting the urgency for immediate research and preparedness measures.

(With inputs from agencies.)