The Reading / Listening - Ocean Currents - Level 4

The system of ocean currents that maintains our temperate weather could collapse. The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), which brings heat from the Caribbean to the north Atlantic, could fail within 50 years. It has been weakening for decades due to global warming. The northern Atlantic is the only global region that is cooling. Experts now believe the chance of AMOC crossing the tipping point this century has increased from 10 to 50 per cent.

Meteorologists say the failure of AMOC would have "devastating and irreversible impacts, which will affect the entire world for centuries". It would negatively disrupt weather and the lives of hundreds of millions of people. Temperatures in the U.K. could become 15°C lower. Colder weather could "potentially threaten the viability of agriculture" in Europe. Tropical monsoons could shift south, causing drought, famine, climate refugees and geopolitical tensions.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Ocean Currents - Level 5 or  Ocean Currents - Level 6

Sources
  • https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/oct/23/we-dont-know-where-the-tipping-point-is-climate-expert-on-potential-collapse-of-atlantic-circulation
  • https://www.livescience.com/planet-earth/rivers-oceans/we-dont-really-consider-it-low-probability-anymore-collapse-of-key-atlantic-current-could-have-catastrophic-impacts-says-oceanographer-stefan-rahmstorf
  • https://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/other/the-gulf-stream-is-on-the-verge-of-collapsing-climate-scientists-warn/ar-AA1sLW3Z


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. The system of ocean
  2. temperate
  3. heat from the
  4. fail within
  5. It has been weakening
  6. the only global region
  7. the chance of AMOC crossing
  8. increased from
 
  1. for decades
  2. Caribbean
  3. the tipping point
  4. 10 to 50 per cent
  5. 50 years
  6. currents
  7. that is cooling
  8. weather

Paragraph 2

  1. devastating and irreversible
  2. affect the entire world
  3. Temperatures in the U.K. could
  4. threaten the viability
  5. tropical
  6. shift south,
  7. climate
  8. geopolitical
  1. refugees
  2. impacts
  3. causing drought
  4. for centuries
  5. tensions
  6. of agriculture
  7. become 15°C lower
  8. monsoons

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

The (1) ________________________________________________ currents that maintains our temperate (2) ________________________________________________. The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), which brings heat from the Caribbean to the north Atlantic, (3) ________________________________________________ 50 years. It has been weakening (4) ________________________________________________ to global warming. The northern Atlantic is the only global region                                                   (5) ________________________________________________. Experts now believe the chance of AMOC crossing the (6) ________________________________________________ century has increased from 10 to 50 per cent.

Meteorologists say (7) ________________________________________________ AMOC would have "devastating (8) ________________________________________________, which will affect the entire world for centuries". It (9) ________________________________________________ weather and the lives of hundreds of millions of people. Temperatures in the U.K. could become 15°C lower. Colder weather could "potentially (10) ________________________________________________ of agriculture" in Europe. (11) ________________________________________________ shift south, causing (12) ________________________________________________ refugees and geopolitical tensions.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Thesystemofoceancurrentsthatmaintainsourtemperateweathercoul
dcollapse.TheAtlanticMeridionalOverturningCirculation(AMOC),whi
chbringsheatfromtheCaribbeantothenorthAtlantic,couldfailwithin5
0years.Ithasbeenweakeningfordecadesduetoglobalwarming.Theno
rthernAtlanticistheonlyglobalregionthatiscooling.Expertsnowbeliev
ethechanceofAMOCcrossingthetippingpointthiscenturyhasincrease
dfrom10to50percent.MeteorologistssaythefailureofAMOCwouldhav
e"devastatingandirreversibleimpacts,whichwillaffecttheentireworld
forcenturies".Itwouldnegativelydisruptweatherandthelivesofhundr
edsofmillionsofpeople.TemperaturesintheU.K.couldbecome15°Clo
wer.Colderweathercould"potentiallythreatentheviabilityofagricultu
re"inEurope.Tropicalmonsoonscouldshiftsouth,causingdrought,fam
ine,climaterefugeesandgeopoliticaltensions.

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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