Even the color of the seas is changing due to global warming, and this is nothing but a result of deeper ecological transformations. Although our eyes do not perceive it at first glance, color in the last twenty years ocean has changed significantly And according to a study published NatureThis change is a result of human-induced climate change.
The study, led by scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the UK’s National Oceanographic Center, states: This change was detected in 56% of the world’s oceansan extension larger than the total terrestrial surface of the planet.
The article states that regions of tropical oceans near the equator are becoming greener, and that this is the case. shows that surface ecosystems are also changingBecause the color of the ocean is a “true” reflection of the state of organisms and materials in its waters.
Researchers still can’t say exactly how marine ecosystems are changing, but they’re sure it’s due to climate change.
“For years I’ve been running simulations that show these changes in the color of the ocean are going to occur. It’s no longer surprising to see what’s going on, it’s terrifyingStephanie Dutkiewicz, co-author of the study and scientific researcher at MIT, confirmed this in statements compiled by Efe.
changes in plankton
The color of the ocean reflects what is in the upper layers: azure waters reflect little lifeand greener waters indicate the presence of ecosystems, namely phytoplankton, plant-like microbes abundant in the upper layers of the ocean.
Phytoplankton is the foundation of the marine food web that supports increasingly complex organisms, from krill to fish, seabirds and mammals, and is also a powerful muscle in the ocean’s ability to capture and store carbon dioxide.
That’s why scientists have spent decades tracking phytoplankton on the ocean surface and observing from space how these important communities are responding to climate change.
“The color of the oceans has changed because this reflects changes in plankton communities. this will affect anything that feeds on plankton”.
“These changes will also change how much carbon the ocean absorbs, because Different plankton species have different abilities to do this.. So we hope people take this seriously. Models alone do not predict these changes. Now we can see that and the ocean is changing,” said Dutkiewicz.
The prediction has come true
Cael and his team analyzed ocean color measurements made by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Aqua satellite. Watching the color of the ocean for 21 years and that it measures at seven visible wavelengths.
And that’s it, Although much of the ocean appears blue to our eyes, the true color may contain a mixture of lighter wavelengths.from blue to green and even red.
Cael performed a statistical analysis using a combination of seven ocean colors measured by satellite between 2002 and 2022. He first looked at how much the seven colors changed from one region to another in one year, and then extended the analysis to twenty years.
The analysis revealed a clear trend, above the normal annual variability.
To see if the trend is on climate changeHe returned to Dutkiewicz’s 2019 model, which simulates the Earth’s oceans in two scenarios: one with added greenhouse gases and the other without greenhouse gases.
The greenhouse gas model predicted that within 20 years a significant trend would emerge, causing changes in the color of the oceans in about 50 percent of the world’s surface oceans (exactly what Cael found in his analysis of real-world satellite data). .
Reference work: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06321-z
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