Sea ice skylights formed by warming Arctic temperatures increasingly allow enough sunlight into the waters below to spur phytoplankton blooms, new research suggests. Harvard University oceanographer Christopher Horvat and colleagues created a computer simulation of sea ice conditions from 1986 through 2015. Warming temperatures have thinned the ice, and increased the prevalence of meltwater pools on top of the ice that allow more light to pass through than bare or snow-covered ice. A boost in phytoplankton could alter marine food webs as well as soak up more planet-warming carbon dioxide from the environment.
If the phytoplankton could potentially soak more CO2, the arctic could be a sink for the increasing CO2. But the problem remains that the melting arctic ice is a result of global warming, a sort of negative feedback loop.
If the phytoplankton could potentially soak more CO2, the arctic could be a sink for the increasing CO2. But the problem remains that the melting arctic ice is a result of global warming, a sort of negative feedback loop.