Research published on 29 April in Science Advances links a cluster of violent eruptions 12,900 to 11,700 years ago to the Younger Dryas cooling.
Lead author Lucien Nana Yobo said volcanic sunlight-blocking altered North Atlantic temperature and salinity, weakening the circulation and cooling the Northern Hemisphere by several degrees.
The study says the AMOC did not fully collapse then, but highlights its sensitivity as scientists warn human-caused climate change could now weaken or even collapse the system.
Ancient volcanoes once shut down a vital ocean current. Is humanity's CO2 now pushing the same catastrophic button?
The Gulf Stream is shifting north. Is this the final warning before the Atlantic's vital 'conveyor belt' collapses?