# Life on Earth has Just Changed - The North Atlantic Current is Gone **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 21, 2010, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507 "2010-09-21T04:03:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Saltire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saltire/32/553_2.png) [@Saltire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saltire)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/41 "2010-09-21T21:33:55Z")
Isn’t it also true that the Gulf Stream, named because it was believed to originate from the warm water of the Gulf of Mexico, is no longer believed to have any direct connection with that Gulf, being instead a whole-Atlantic sort of phenomenon? Doesn’t seem like an oil spill and some dispersants in a backwater of the Atlantic would have such an immediate effect on the physics of the whole ocean. ---
**Author:** ![Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superfluous_Parentheses)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/42 "2010-09-21T22:41:22Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > It’s nice to know that the Gulf Stream is so fragile that it could be stopped so easily. Because that means I can now put into place my insidious plan to stop the Earth’s ocean currents **Mr. Burns** : Since the beginning of time, man has yearned to destroy the sun. I shall do the next best thing: block it out. ---
**Author:** ![rbroome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2010, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/43 "2010-09-22T00:16:50Z")
> [@Libre](#): > > Can anyone make a reasonably convincing argument against this article: > > [http://www.infiniteunknown.net/2010/09/14/life-on-this-earth-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/](http://www.infiniteunknown.net/2010/09/14/life-on-this-earth-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/) > > For what it’s worth, I located these previous gulf stream velocity images: [http://rads.tudelft.nl/gulfstream/gif/](http://rads.tudelft.nl/gulfstream/gif/) > > Thanks, > > Libre look at the bright side. Now that we have the internet these crazies are inside typing instead of outside loudly warning everyone that the end of the world is coming. Agreed about the dearth of BS detectors on the internet though. ---
**Author:** ![rbroome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2010, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/44 "2010-09-22T00:21:46Z")
> [@Saltire](#): > > Isn’t it also true that the Gulf Stream, named because it was believed to originate from the warm water of the Gulf of Mexico, is no longer believed to have any direct connection with that Gulf, being instead a whole-Atlantic sort of phenomenon? > > Doesn’t seem like an oil spill and some dispersants in a backwater of the Atlantic would have such an immediate effect on the physics of the whole ocean. The physics aren’t changing. And no, the Loop current still flows around to the Florida Straights and the Florida current makes the turn and heads north. The Gulf stream flows past the mid-atlantic states and on out into the North Atlantic. As you can perhaps guess, while the names change, but the same water moves right along. 🙂 And the general Atlantic circulation still makes it’s contribution to the western boundary current. The physics are constant and the water will still flow. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2010, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/45 "2010-09-22T15:58:47Z")
That said, I have seen writings by competent climatologists that suggest that it is _possible_ that one effect of global warming could be the disappearance of the Gulf Stream. The result would make Northern Europe like Northern Canada, not exactly uninhabitable, but very difficult. But this is all very tentative and for the future. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2010, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/46 "2010-09-22T17:59:58Z")
Thank goodness. The thread title worried me, but it turns out it’s only a crank. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507.md?page=2)