Greenland ice melt reshapes Arctic seafloor and threatens Atlantic current

Researchers have found that Greenland's glaciers are now shedding four times more icebergs than they did 25 years ago, with the number of icebergs in the Fram Strait having quadrupled since 2000. The surge in iceberg traffic transports rocks and sediment to the deep ocean, creating new rocky habitats and altering the structure of deep‑sea ecosystems. The changes also raise navigation risks for ships using emerging Arctic routes.

At the same time, scientists have detected a growing "cold blob" of surface water near Greenland in the North Atlantic. The anomaly is interpreted as a sign that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is slowing. As Laifang Li noted, "the cold blob can disturb the atmospheric jet stream and storm activities, so it has implications for extreme weather events in North America and Europe." Stefan Rahmstorf added that, "the data show it is caused by the ocean." A further weakening of the AMOC could push the system toward a tipping point by the 2040s, potentially reshaping climate patterns across the Northern Hemisphere.