Increased risk of near term global warming due to a recent AMOC weakening

Rémy Bonnet (), Didier Swingedouw, Guillaume Gastineau, Olivier Boucher, Julie Deshayes, Frédéric Hourdin, Juliette Mignot, Jérôme Servonnat and Adriana Sima
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Rémy Bonnet: Sorbonne Université/CNRS
Didier Swingedouw: Université de Bordeaux/CNRS
Guillaume Gastineau: Sorbonne Université/CNRS/IRD/MNHN
Olivier Boucher: Sorbonne Université/CNRS
Julie Deshayes: Sorbonne Université/CNRS/IRD/MNHN
Frédéric Hourdin: Sorbonne Université/CNRS/Ecole Normale Supérieure/Ecole Polytechnique
Juliette Mignot: Sorbonne Université/CNRS/IRD/MNHN
Jérôme Servonnat: Institut Pierre-Simon Laplace, CEA/CNRS/UVSQ
Adriana Sima: Sorbonne Université/CNRS/Ecole Normale Supérieure/Ecole Polytechnique

Nature Communications, 2021, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-9

Abstract: Abstract Some of the new generation CMIP6 models are characterised by a strong temperature increase in response to increasing greenhouse gases concentration1. At first glance, these models seem less consistent with the temperature warming observed over the last decades. Here, we investigate this issue through the prism of low-frequency internal variability by comparing with observations an ensemble of 32 historical simulations performed with the IPSL-CM6A-LR model, characterized by a rather large climate sensitivity. We show that members with the smallest rates of global warming over the past 6-7 decades are also those with a large internally-driven weakening of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). This subset of members also matches several AMOC observational fingerprints, which are in line with such a weakening. This suggests that internal variability from the Atlantic Ocean may have dampened the magnitude of global warming over the historical era. Taking into account this AMOC weakening over the past decades means that it will be harder to avoid crossing the 2 °C warming threshold.

Date: 2021
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-26370-0

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