“If the Gulf Stream strengthens, you can think of that sort of sweeping the water away from the coast more rapidly and that tends to suppress sea level,” said Ben Kirtman, professor of Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. “So a strong Gulf Stream is a good thing. And if the Gulf Stream weakens, just the opposite happens. It’s not sweeping away the water as much, and so sea level rises. If the Gulf Stream weakens, it will exacerbate sea level rise.”