The Alarming Slowdown of Ocean Currents.
Ocean currents, which make up 40% of the total volume of the deep oceans and transport heat, oxygen, carbon, and nutrients around the planet, are slowing down due to climate change. This could speed up climate change and reduce the productivity of fisheries. The global ocean conveyor belts play a key role in shaping climate, and the Antarctic is the most powerful engine of this overturning circulation, but it is in trouble. The volume of cold, salty, oxygen-rich water descending to the ocean floor has declined by 28% between 1994 and 2017.