O=C=O<p>Loss of sea ice alters the colors of light in the ocean</p><p>The disappearance of sea ice in polar regions due to <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/GlobalWarming" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>GlobalWarming</span></a> not only increases the amount of light entering the <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/ocean" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>ocean</span></a>, but also changes its <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/color" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>color</span></a>. These changes have far-reaching consequences for <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/photosynthetic" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>photosynthetic</span></a> organisms such as ice <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/algae" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>algae</span></a> and <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/phytoplankton" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>phytoplankton</span></a>.</p><p>That is the conclusion of new research published in Nature Communications, led by marine biologists Monika Soja-Woźniak and Jef Huisman from the Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED) at the University of Amsterdam.</p><p>The international research team, which also included physical chemist Sander Woutersen (HIMS/UvA) and collaborators from the <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/Netherlands" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Netherlands</span></a> and <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/Denmark" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Denmark</span></a>, investigated how the loss of <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/SeaIce" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>SeaIce</span></a> alters the underwater light <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/environment" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>environment</span></a>. Sea ice and <a href="https://climatejustice.social/tags/seawater" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>seawater</span></a> differ fundamentally in how they transmit light. Sea ice strongly scatters light and reflects much of it, while allowing only a small amount to penetrate.</p><p>Yet, this limited amount of light still contains almost the full range of visible wavelengths. In contrast, seawater absorbs red and green light, while blue light penetrates deep into the water column. This is what gives the ocean its blue color. </p><p><a href="https://phys.org/news/2025-05-loss-sea-ice-ocean.html" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">phys.org/news/2025-05-loss-sea</span><span class="invisible">-ice-ocean.html</span></a></p>