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Marine Snow's Stickiness Influences Carbon Storage in Oceans
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What Happened?
Research reveals that the stickiness of marine snow significantly affects how much carbon it transports to the ocean's depths. Stickier particles can carry over six times more carbon than less viscous ones.
Key points
- Marine snow consists of organic debris, including waste and dead organisms.
- It removes over 10 gigatons of carbon from surface waters annually.
- Only about 2 gigatons of this carbon reach depths for long-term storage.
- The viscosity of marine snow affects bacterial breakdown and carbon transport.
- Stickier marine snow can transport over six times more carbon to the deep ocean.
- The research utilized advanced imaging techniques to study bacterial interactions.
Key insights
- The findings could influence future research on carbon cycling in various ecosystems.
- Understanding marine snow may lead to better strategies for carbon sequestration.
- The research highlights the complex interactions between bacteria and organic materials.
Why it matters
Understanding marine snow's role in carbon storage could help address climate change.
Source
Science Daily
