{
  "id": 93828,
  "title": "Geological evidence questions the role of Agulhas Leakage in Atlantic Ocean circulation",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/03/geological-evidence-questions-the-role-of-agulhas-leakage-in-atlantic",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-08-03T16:00:06.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Phys.org",
    "slug": "phys-org",
    "url": "https://phys.org/news/2026-08-geological-evidence-role-agulhas-leakage.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Scientists have discovered that the influence of warm Indian Ocean water flowing into the Atlantic Ocean, known as Agulhas Leakage, may not be as crucial as previously thought in controlling the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). The AMOC, a key driver of Earth's climate, carries warm surface water northward and cold, dense water southward. Traditionally, Agulhas Leakage was believed to supply salt that aids in the formation of deep waters in the North Atlantic, thus supporting the AMOC. However, new geological evidence from the late Pliocene period, between 3.6 and 2.6 million years ago, challenges this conventional understanding. Researchers from the Netherlands, the U.S., China, and the U.K. analyzed sediment cores from the Agulhas Plateau, located off the coast of South Africa, and combined their findings with temperature records from the Gulf of Mexico and other regions. Their study revealed that during a cooler period with a weakened Agulhas Leakage, the AMOC not only remained strong but actually intensified, contradicting the long-held belief that reduced salt transport would weaken the AMOC. The findings suggest that the relationship between Agulhas Leakage and the AMOC is more complex and varies with different climate states and ocean conditions. While the study does not predict the AMOC's response to current or future warming, it emphasizes the need to consider both salt supply and local processes governing deep-water formation in the North Atlantic when assessing the AMOC's behavior.",
  "summary": "For decades, scientists have asserted that the leakage of warm, salty Indian Ocean water south of South Africa into the Atlantic is a major contributor to the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), a component of the global ocean conveyor system.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}