Climate change is turning parts of Antarctica green

&Tab;&Tab;<div class&equals;"wpcnt">&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;<div class&equals;"wpa">&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;<span class&equals;"wpa-about">Advertisements<&sol;span>&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;<div class&equals;"u top&lowbar;amp">&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;<amp-ad width&equals;"300" height&equals;"265"&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab; type&equals;"pubmine"&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab; data-siteid&equals;"111265417"&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab; data-section&equals;"1">&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;<&sol;amp-ad>&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;<&sol;div>&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;<&sol;div>&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;<&sol;div><p>Global warming is causing parts of Antarctica to turn green&comma; scientists have said&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>New research suggests warming temperatures due to climate change are causing summer ice to melt in the coastal areas of the frozen continent&comma; revealing blooms of algae that can be seen from space&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Scientists from the University of Cambridge and British Antarctic Survey believe this so-called <i>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;green snow”<&sol;i> is likely to spread as temperatures continue to rise&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The findings&comma; published in the journal Nature Communications&comma; indicate the growth of these single-cell life-forms are also being influenced by birds and mammals inhabiting the region&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Dr Matt Davey from the University of Cambridge’s Department of Plant Sciences&comma; who led the study&comma; said&colon; <i>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;This is a significant advance in our understanding of land-based life on Antarctica&comma; and how it might change in the coming years as the climate warms&period;<&sol;i><&sol;p>&NewLine;<figure id&equals;"attachment&lowbar;155682" aria-describedby&equals;"caption-attachment-155682" style&equals;"width&colon; 600px" class&equals;"wp-caption aligncenter"><img class&equals;"size-full wp-image-155682" src&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;londonglossy&period;com&sol;wp-content&sol;uploads&sol;2020&sol;05&sol;926931CE-DCFF-41CD-8626-1F668B2452F2&period;jpeg" alt&equals;"Antarctica is growing algae due to climate change" width&equals;"600" height&equals;"800" &sol;><figcaption id&equals;"caption-attachment-155682" class&equals;"wp-caption-text">Green snow algae at Rothera Point in the Antarctica &lpar;Matt Davey&sol;University of Cambridge&rpar;<&sol;figcaption><&sol;figure>&NewLine;<p>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;Snow algae are a key component of the continent’s ability to capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis&period;”<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The researchers mapped the ecosystem of the microscopic algae on the Antarctic peninsula&comma; combining satellite data with on-the-ground observations over two summers&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Blooms of green snow algae were found to grow in the warmer regions of the continent&comma; where average temperatures are just above 0C during the summer months&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Mr Davey said&colon; <i>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;We identified 1&comma;679 separate blooms of green algae on the snow surface&comma; which together covered an area of 1&period;9 square km&comma; equating to a carbon sink of around 479 tonnes per year&period;”<&sol;i><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The team found the distribution of green snow to be influenced by marine birds and mammals&comma; whose excrement acts as <i>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;a highly nutritious natural fertiliser”<&sol;i> for the microscopic algae&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Over 60&percnt; of blooms were found within five kilometres of a penguin colony&comma; the researchers said&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Snow algae was also spotted growing near the nesting sites of other birds&comma; including skuas&comma; and areas where seals come ashore&comma; they added&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Andrew Gray&comma; lead author of the paper&comma; and a researcher at the University of Cambridge and NERC Field Spectroscopy Facility in Edinburgh&comma; said&colon; <i>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;As Antarctica warms&comma; we predict the overall mass of snow algae will increase&comma; as the spread to higher ground will significantly outweigh the loss of small island patches of algae&period;”<&sol;i><&sol;p>&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;<div style&equals;"padding-bottom&colon;15px&semi;" class&equals;"wordads-tag" data-slot-type&equals;"belowpost">&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;<div id&equals;"atatags-dynamic-belowpost-68ed121637079">&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;<script type&equals;"text&sol;javascript">&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;window&period;getAdSnippetCallback &equals; function &lpar;&rpar; &lbrace;&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;if &lpar; false &equals;&equals;&equals; 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