What is Carbon seep in Antarctica? What is the level of Methane trapped in polar ice? What is the Importance of Antarctic Ice?

By Srirangam Sriram, Sriram's IAS, New Delhi.

1. Scientists have made an alarming discovery about the floor of the Ross Sea in Antarctica. It has an active methane leak – the first to be found in Antarctica – and the microbial communities that usually feed on the gas are not growing quickly enough.
2. Antarctica is thought to contain up to a quarter of the planet’s marine methane – a greenhouse gas far more potent than carbon dioxide. Some scientists are concerned that as the region continues to warm, dormant methane deposits trapped beneath age-old ice could escape into the atmosphere, triggering rapid and irreversible climate change.

What is the level of Methane trapped in polar ice?

1. In the Arctic, NASA highlighted the future climate warming potential of methane in melting permafrost. Using aerial infrared imaging, scientists mapped millions of methane hotspots across the vast region.
2. In the Ross Sea study, it took between one and five years for the microorganisms to respond to the methane leak and form a “sediment filter”. And even with a microbial population in place, methane continued to escape into the ocean.
3. The researchers say they remain uncertain about the origin of the methane leak. The catalyst may not have been climate change because the Ross Sea area has not warmed significantly.

What is the Importance of Antarctic Ice?

1. White sea ice reflects the sun’s rays, preventing heat being absorbed by dark water, which helps slow ocean warming.
2. Sea ice also provides a habitat for seals that feed on nutritious krill and is a breeding ground for penguins and other wildlife.

Published date : 11 Nov 2020 03:02PM