title: Ocean circulation and climate during the past 120,000 years.
abstract: Oceans cover more than two-thirds of our blue planet. The waters move in a global circulation system, driven by subtle density differences and transporting huge amounts of heat. Ocean circulation is thus an active and highly nonlinear player in the global climate game. Increasingly clear evidence implicates ocean circulation in abrupt and dramatic climate shifts, such as sudden temperature changes in Greenland on the order of 5-10 degrees C and massive surges of icebergs into the North Atlantic Ocean --events that have occurred repeatedly during the last glacial cycle.
authors.affiliation: Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, PO Box 601203, 14412 Potsdam, Germany.
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rahmstorf
mesh_terms: D002980:Climate; D007053:Ice; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D012623:Seawater / Q000032:analysis*; D013696:Temperature; D013997:Time Factors; D014872:Water Movements
chemical_list: D007053:Ice