The white surface reflects far more sunlight back to space than ocean water does. The influence of sea ice on the Earth is not just regional it’s global. The ice itself is habitat for animals such as seals, Arctic foxes, polar bears, and penguins. When ice freezes, the underlying water gets saltier and sinks, mixing the water column and bringing nutrients to the surface. As the ice melts, it exposes ocean water to sunlight, spurring photosynthesis in phytoplankton. When the ice melts in the summer, it releases nutrients into the water, stimulating the growth of phytoplankton, the center of the marine food web. Sea ice also plays a fundamental role in polar ecosystems. As a result, the weather over ice-covered areas tends to be colder and drier than it would be without ice. Sea ice also creates an insulating cap across the ocean surface, which reduces evaporation and heat loss to the atmosphere. The sea ice layer also restricts wind and wave action near coastlines, lessening coastal erosion and protecting ice shelves. This cold, salty water is dense and can sink to the ocean floor, where it flows back toward the equator. ![]() ![]() As ice crystals form at the ocean surface, they expel salt, which increases the salinity of the underlying waters.
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