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posted by on Sunday April 02 2017, @04:28PM   Printer-friendly
from the visit-the-scenic-algae-blooms-of-Antartica dept.

When spring arrives in the Arctic, both snow and sea ice melt, forming melt ponds on the surface of the sea ice. Every year, as global warming increases, there are more and larger melt ponds.

Melt ponds provide more light and heat for the ice and the underlying water, but now it turns out that they may also have a more direct and potentially important influence on life in the Arctic waters.

Mats of algae and bacteria can evolve in the melt ponds, which can provide food for marine creatures. This is the conclusion of researchers in the periodical, Polar Biology.

More information:
Heidi Louise Sørensen et al. Nutrient availability limits biological production in Arctic sea ice melt ponds, Polar Biology (2017). DOI: 10.1007/s00300-017-2082-7


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  • (Score: 1) by khallow on Monday April 03 2017, @05:21AM

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Monday April 03 2017, @05:21AM (#488121) Journal

    My initial thought is that you aren't considering alternative factors, and Jim White probably did not specify or account for the full system. The excess heat in the atmosphere is being absorbed by all the glaciers and arctic ice. I haven't done the math myself but the 20m sea rise predictions seem pretty far fetched, but as I said I haven't done the math.

    White probably didn't account for most of the northern ice sheet being missing.