Why scientists are counting tiny Antarctic krill from Space

Scientists say that the subtle differences in the color of seawater will enable them to count them smaller – but severely important – Antarctic marine organisms.

The goal of new research efforts is Antarctic Krill, which is only one of the most abundant and important animals on the planet only inch inch and planet.

Sea wildlife – including whales, penguins, seals and sebirds – all feed on these low organisms.

However, protection scientists are worried that fishing and climate change can negatively affect them and say we need new methods to monitor organisms.

“Antarctic Krill is superhero of the southern Ocean,” said Rod Downey, the chief polar advisor at the Wildlife Charity WWF-UK.

“They are small, unseeded heroes who maintain incredible maritime life, but they are put at risk from climate change and unstable fishing.”

Researchers of the University of Streetclide, WWF and British Antarctic Survey (BAS), are developing a new way to use satellites to find out how many creepers are in the sea around Antarctica.

The key is in the subtle difference of how light seawater absorbs – it depends on how many krills are floating in it.

Dr. of the University of Stratchlide. Kat McCarri, just returned from a trip to Antarctica, where he caught the craill to measure the effect.

“We start with sea water, then we add to a krill and take a measurement [of how much light the water absorbs]”she explained.” Then we add another cill and take another measurement. ,

Researchers say how the density of the cill changes the color of the sea.

There are food for some of the largest animals on the Krill planet – including giant whales which are thousands of kilometers away, in Antarctica, to feed them.

They are also the foundation of a healthy ocean – part of a virtuous cycle: whale krills, eating krill microscopic plants that live in sea ice, and those plants absorb planet -wise carbon as they grow. When the whale poop (in huge amounts), which fertilizes planetary-cooling sea plants.

However, as the temperature of the ocean rises with global warming, protection scientists are worried that this cycle can be interrupted, and that the cill may be insecure.

Mr. Downey said: “We need to immediately follow fisheries and protect the cill houses within a network of marinely protected areas.

,[This project could] Give us a new equipment to help monitor and safety of this important species. ,