Links between climate tipping elements: A story of ice, overturning and trade winds

Within the earth system several tipping elements exist. It is important to understand the links between these tipping elements, as a critical transition in one element could lead to tipping of another. Here, we study the links between some of these tipping elements in CMIP6 data. The starting point is the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), whose collapse would have world-wide impacts and for which nearly all climate models show a decrease in the strength. In the Northern Hemisphere it would induce wide-spread cooling, impacting both sea-ice and the Greenland Ice Sheet (GIS). The corresponding changes in the global distribution of heat impact the atmospheric circulation. Where the response of the trade winds in the Atlantic is still relatively similar between models, this is not the case for the Pacific resulting in large uncertainty in the El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) response.

To understand the effect of the AMOC on ENSO and other tipping elements, we consider the effect it has on the physical processes involved. For example, to study the effect of the AMOC on ENSO we consider its effect on the Pacific trade winds and other physically relevant variables. This aids in better understanding the consequences of an AMOC collapse and the potential for tipping cascades.