null

Environment

Melting ice caps may slow negative effects of global warming

by The Daily Eye Team May 27 2014, 11:47 am Estimated Reading Time: 0 mins, 50 secs

Huge amounts of dissolved iron being released into the oceans from melting ice sheets may cancel out some of the negative effects of global warming, a new study has claimed. A newly-discovered source of oceanic bio-available iron could have a major impact on our understanding of marine food chains and global warming, researchers said. The team found that summer melt-waters from ice sheets are rich in iron, which will have important implications on phytoplankton growth. It is well known that bio-available iron boosts phytoplankton growth in many of Earth's oceans. In turn phytoplankton capture carbon - thus buffering the effects of global warming, researchers said. The plankton also feed into the bottom of the oceanic food chain, thus providing a food source for marine animals. The team, comprising researchers from the Universities of Bristol, Leeds, Edinburgh and the National Oceanography Centre, collected melt-water discharged from the 600 .Square km Leverett Glacier in Greenland over the summer of 2012, which was subsequently tested for bio-available iron content.

Click Here To Read More