Phytoplankton May Warm Arctic Waters as Climate Change Warms Temperatures

Phytoplankton may remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis, but they may also be spurring warming. Scientists have found that phytoplankton is potentially a key driver of Arctic warming under greenhouse warming.

When the Arctic sea ice melts due to warming temperatures, the ocean surface albedo decreases. This reduces the amount of solar energy reflected back from the earth and ultimately results in a warmer ocean surface. Phytoplankton growth is subject to factors such as temperature, light and nutrients, which means that an explosive growth of phytoplankton follows when melting brings nutrients into the water and when there is more sunlight due to less ice.

When phytoplankton absorb solar radiation, though, they have the potential to raise sea surface temperature even further. In fact, scientists found that the additional positive feedback in the Arctic can amplify Arctic warming by as much as 20 percent.

"We believe that, given the inseparable connection of the Arctic and global climate, the positive feedback in Arctic warming triggered by phytoplankton and their biological heating is a crucial factor that must be taken into consideration when project future climate changes," said Jong-Seong Kug, one of the lead authors of the new study, in a news release.

While phytoplankton can pull carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, it appears that the species also may causing temperatures to warm. This is important to keep in mind when projecting future temperatures for sensitive locations, such as the Arctic.

The findings are published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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