<p>Europe plunged into a deep freeze. Life as we know it upended. The 2004 film ‘The Day After Tomorrow’ gave a generation of terrified journalists an impossible task: how do you communicate the counter intuitive threat of dramatically colder winters caused by global warming? <a href="https://davidshukman.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">David Shukman</a> was one of them.</p><br><p>This week, Tom Rivett-Carnac is joined by the veteran BBC Science Editor and author of the upcoming ‘The Response’, to explore the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, or AMOC: the vast system of currents that helps regulate weather, rainfall and temperature across the Atlantic and far beyond. Recent research suggests it may be weakening faster than previously understood - with potentially profound consequences for food systems, ecosystems and global stability.</p><br><p>They speak with <a href="https://www.pik-potsdam.de/members/huiskamp" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dr Willem Huiskamp</a> of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, who explains what AMOC does, and what a much weaker system could mean in practice. Then Tom and David reflect on the harder questions. How do we communicate a risk this vast and uncertain without paralysing people or losing them entirely? Are we socially and politically prepared for -50C winters in parts of Europe? And are we even capable of responding to a threat that may unfold over decades rather than across news cycles and political terms?&nbsp;</p><br><p>Learn More:</p><p>🌊 Discover more about the <a href="https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/amoc.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation</a> and why scientists are watching it closely&nbsp;</p><p>🔎 Read the <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adx4298" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">latest paper</a> referenced in this episode, which projects an approximate 50% weakening of AMOC by the end of the century</p><p><strong>📘 </strong>Check out David’s book, <a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/469146/the-response-by-shukman-david/9781529144284" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Response</a>, which will be published by Witness Books on 7th May</p><br><p>🎤 Leave us your voice notes and questions for upcoming episodes on<a href="https://www.speakpipe.com/OutrageandOptimism" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> SpeakPipe</a></p><br><p>Join the conversation:</p><p>Instagram<a href="https://www.instagram.com/outrageoptimism/?hl=en" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> @outrageoptimism</a> LinkedIn<a href="https://uk.linkedin.com/company/outrageoptimism" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> @outrageoptimism</a></p><p>Or get in touch with us<a href="https://www.globaloptimism.com/contact?hsLang=en" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> via this form</a>.</p><br><p>Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks</p><p>Edited by: Miles Martignoni&nbsp;</p><p>Planning: Caitlin Hanrahan&nbsp;</p><p>Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford</p><br><p><em>This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.</em></p><br><p><br></p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>