{"id":63225,"date":"2025-10-21T18:15:26","date_gmt":"2025-10-21T18:15:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/melting-arctic-ice-could-strengthen-marine-life-study"},"modified":"2025-10-21T19:05:08","modified_gmt":"2025-10-21T19:05:08","slug":"melting-arctic-ice-could-strengthen-marine-life-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/melting-arctic-ice-could-strengthen-marine-life-study","title":{"rendered":"Melting Arctic ice could strengthen marine life: Study"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Lesotho. <\/strong><\/span>A new study led by the University of Copenhagen has revealed a surprising upside to the melting of Arctic sea ice.<\/p>\n

The melting process could strengthen the Arctic Ocean\u2019s food chain by increasing levels of nitrogen — a nutrient vital for marine life, the Eurasian Review reported.<\/p>\n

For the first time, an international team of researchers has discovered that a process known as nitrogen fixation, a chemical reaction in which certain bacteria convert nitrogen gas into ammonium, occurs beneath Arctic sea ice and even in the central parts of the ocean. Ammonium is a form of nitrogen that supports the growth of algae, which form the foundation of the marine ecosystem.<\/p>\n

\u201cUntil now, it was believed that nitrogen fixation could not take place under the sea ice because it was assumed that the living conditions for the organisms that perform nitrogen fixation were too poor. We were wrong,\u201d said lead author Lisa W. von Friesen, former PhD student at the Department of Biology.<\/p>\n

According to the study, the bacteria responsible for nitrogen fixation in the Arctic Ocean are not cyanobacteria, which dominate the process in warmer regions, but entirely different types of non-cyanobacterial species. The highest fixation rates were measured along the ice edges, where melting occurs most rapidly. As global warming causes sea ice to retreat, the melting zones are expected to expand, creating more favorable conditions for nitrogen fixation.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn other words, the amount of available nitrogen in the Arctic Ocean has likely been underestimated, both today and for future projections,\u201d said von Friesen. \u201cThis could mean that the potential for algae production has also been underestimated as climate change continues to reduce the sea ice cover.\u201d<\/p>\n

The findings could have significant implications for the global carbon cycle. Algae absorb carbon dioxide (CO2 ) during photosynthesis; therefore, an increase in algae production could enhance the Arctic Ocean\u2019s capacity to absorb carbon.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf algae production increases, the Arctic Ocean will absorb more CO2 because more CO2 will be bound in algae biomass,\u201d said senior author professor Lasse Riemann. \u201cBut biological systems are very complex, so it is hard to make firm predictions, because other mechanisms may pull in the opposite direction.\u201d<\/p>\n

Researchers emphasized that nitrogen fixation should be incorporated into future climate and ecosystem models.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do not yet know whether the net effect will be beneficial for the climate,\u201d said Riemann. \u201cBut it is clear that we should include an important process such as nitrogen fixation in the equation when we try to predict what will happen to the Arctic Ocean in the coming decades as sea ice declines.\u201d<\/p>\n

The discovery shows that the rapidly changing Arctic can still surprise scientists and serves as a reminder that nature\u2019s adaptability may continue to reshape the balance between life and climate, even in the planet\u2019s far north.<\/p>\n

Source: Anadolu Ajans\u0131<\/b><\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Lesotho<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Lesotho. A new study led by the University of Copenhagen has revealed a surprising upside to the melting of Arctic sea ice. The melting process could strengthen the Arctic Ocean\u2019s food chain by increasing levels of nitrogen — a nutrient vital for marine life, the Eurasian Review reported. For the first time, an […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":63224,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,6],"tags":[6714,6715,245,6713],"class_list":["post-63225","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-files","tag-algae","tag-arctic-melting","tag-lesotho","tag-nitrogen-fixation"],"yoast_head":"\nMelting Arctic ice could strengthen marine life: Study - Lesotho<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A new study led by the University of Copenhagen has revealed a surprising upside to the melting of Arctic sea ice. 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