Meanings
AMOC1
- abbreviationacronymgeographyAcronym of Atlantic meridional overturning circulation.
An AMOC shutdown would be a global catastrophe, causing accelerated sea level rise on the US East Coast, plunging Europe into a winter deep freeze and shifting the monsoon in Africa, driving prolonged droughts.
2026 June 12, Laura Paddison, “A mysterious ‘cold blob’ in the ocean has puzzled scientists. A new study says it’s an ominous sign”, in CNN1 more example
The AMOC is thus a poster child for the idea of climatic “tipping points”—of hard-to-predict thresholds in Earth’s climate system that, once crossed, have rapid, cascading effects far beyond the corner of the globe where they occur.
2021 March 2, Moises Velasquez-Manoff, Jeremy White, “In the Atlantic Ocean, Subtle Shifts Hint at Dramatic Dangers”, in The New York Times, →ISSN
Amoc2
- Alternative letter-case form of AMOC.
1 more example
The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (Amoc) is a major part of the global climate system and was already known to be at its weakest for 1,600 years as a result of the climate crisis. Scientists spotted warning signs of a tipping point in 2021 and know that the Amoc has collapsed in the Earth’s past.
2026 April 15, Damian Carrington, “Critical Atlantic current significantly more likely to collapse than thought”, in The Guardian, →ISSN
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
AMOC. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/AMOC
“AMOC.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/AMOC. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “AMOC,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/AMOC.
Source: AMOC on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.