There is a way of seeing the ocean currents as the local — the current that flows past the coast, the tide that moves the shore. The seeing is the near, and it is the narrow.
The ocean currents are the climate’s conveyor. The great currents carry the heat around the planet, the nutrients that feed the life and the weather that the land receives. The currents are the engine of the climate, and the engine is showing signs of strain.
The conveyor of the heat
The currents carry the heat, and the carrying is the distribution.
The warm current that moves the heat from the equator toward the poles and the cold that returns it — the currents carry the heat around the planet, and the carrying is the distribution. The distribution is the climate’s balance: the land that is warm and the land that is cool are shaped by the carried heat. The currents are the climate’s conveyor, and the conveyor is the balance.
This is why the heat matters: it is the distribution, and the distribution is the balance.
The nutrient of the currents
The currents carry the nutrients, and the carrying is the feeding.
The upwelling that brings the nutrient from the depth, the current that carries it to the coast and the life that feeds on it — the currents carry the nutrients, and the carrying is the feeding. The fishing that the world depends on is fed by the currents, and the feeding is the dependence. The currents are the ocean’s nutrient conveyor, and the conveyor is the food.
This is why the nutrients matter: they are the feeding, and the feeding is the food.
The weather of the currents
The currents shape the weather, and the shaping is the land’s experience.
The current that warms the coast, the current that cools the land and the current that steers the storm — the currents shape the weather of the land, and the shaping is the experience. The weather that the land receives is the currents’ work, and the work is the climate’s face. The currents are the weather’s shaper, and the shaper is the experience.
This is why the weather matters: it is the experience, and the experience is the climate.
The engine of the system
The currents are the system’s engine, and the engine is the movement.
The great circulation that moves the water, the heat and the nutrient around the planet — the currents are the system’s engine, and the engine is the movement. The movement is the ocean’s circulation, and the circulation is the climate’s machinery. The currents are the engine that drives the whole, and the whole is the climate.
This is why the engine matters: it is the movement, and the movement is the machinery.
The strain on the engine
The engine is showing the strain, and the strain is the signal.
The warming that slows the circulation, the fresh water that changes the density and the current that weakens — the engine is showing the strain, and the strain is the signal. The signal is the warning: the conveyor that slows is the climate that shifts, and the shifting is the consequence. The strain is the engine’s condition, and the condition is the warning.
This is why the strain matters: it is the signal, and the signal is the warning.
The consequence of the slowing
The slowing would carry the consequence, and the consequence is the disruption.
The circulation that slows would shift the weather, weaken the nutrient and rearrange the climate — the consequence is the disruption, and the disruption is the risk. The risk is the land’s experience: the winter that is harsher, the summer that is hotter and the food that is thinner. The consequence is the strain’s result, and the result is the risk.
This is why the consequence matters: it is the risk, and the risk is the land’s experience.
The honest conclusion
The ocean currents that carry the climate are the planet’s engine, and the engine is showing the strain.
The conveyor of the heat, the nutrients, the weather, the engine, the strain and the consequence — the currents are the climate’s conveyor, and the conveyor is the engine.
The currents carry the heat, feed the life and shape the weather. The engine is the movement, and the movement is the machinery. The strain is the signal, and the consequence is the risk. The ocean currents are the climate’s engine, and the engine is under the strain of the warming. The currents that carry the climate are the currents that must be watched — the signal read, the risk known and the engine kept. The ocean’s currents are the climate’s conveyor, and the conveyor is the planet’s condition.