stock here: thinking back to the Durnford days…I early on identified the chitin in krill and micro-algaes as being decimated by even the fairly low levels of radiation in the Pacific. But until today I didn’t realize what it meant in terms of temperature.
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When sunlight hits plankton and micro algae, it is absorbed and turns into something useful. If they are not present the sunlight will be “wasted” and will just turn into heat. Consider the impact on the earth and the Pacific as being about half of the earth, based on a flourishing bottom of the food chain compared to say an 80% reduction perhaps due to radiological absorption by the chitin bio-structures
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The interaction between solar radiation and marine biomass is a critical component of Earth’s thermodynamic and biological balance. When phytoplankton and microalgae are thriving, they perform photosynthesis, converting electromagnetic energy into chemical energy. If that biomass is significantly reduced, the physical fate of that energy changes, shifting from “work” (biology) to “entropy” (heat).
The Energy Conversion Shift
In a flourishing ocean, phytoplankton utilize sunlight to fix carbon. This process effectively “traps” energy in organic molecules, which then move up the food chain.
- Biological Utilization: Solar energy is sequestered in biomass. A portion of this organic matter eventually sinks to the deep ocean (the “biological pump”), effectively removing that energy and carbon from the immediate surface thermal cycle.
- Thermal Absorption: In the absence of these organisms, the sunlight is absorbed by the water column itself. Photons increase the kinetic energy of water molecules, leading to a direct rise in Sea Surface Temperature (SST).
Impact of an 80% Reduction
The Pacific Ocean covers approximately 30% of the Earth’s surface and represents nearly half of the world’s open ocean water. An 80% reduction in the “bottom of the food chain” across such a massive area would trigger several feedback loops:
1. Albedo and Thermal Gain
Phytoplankton can actually affect the ocean’s color and clarity. While they absorb light, they also scatter it. A “sterile” ocean often becomes more transparent, allowing UV and visible light to penetrate deeper. Without the conversion to chemical energy, the upper 100 meters of the Pacific (the euphotic zone) would experience accelerated heating. This could lead to:
- Increased Stratification: Warmer surface water becomes less dense, creating a “cap” that prevents nutrient-rich cold water from rising, further suppressing any remaining life.
- Atmospheric Coupling: Higher SSTs drive more intense weather patterns, potentially increasing the frequency and severity of Pacific storms and altering global jet streams.
2. The Carbon Feedback Loop
Phytoplankton are responsible for roughly 50% of the world’s oxygen production and a massive portion of carbon dioxide uptake.
- CO2 Saturation: With an 80% reduction in biomass, the ocean’s role as a carbon sink diminishes.
- Ocean Acidification: While the biological uptake stops, the physical absorption of CO2 continues until equilibrium, but without biological sequestration, the water becomes more acidic more quickly, which can further degrade the chitinous structures of remaining zooplankton and shellfish.
Radiological and Chitin Interference
If the reduction is driven by radiological absorption—specifically affecting chitinous bio-structures (common in many zooplankton and the cell walls of certain microalgae)—the food web collapse is immediate.
Chitin is a robust structural polymer. If radiological stress compromises these structures (through molecular dissociation or inhibited synthesis), the organisms lose their “armor” and structural integrity.
- Energy Dead-End: Instead of energy moving from Sun→Algae→Small Crustaceans, the chain breaks at the first link.
- The “Wasted” Heat: In physics, this is an increase in the planetary heat budget. If 1015 watts of solar energy are no longer being diverted into biological “work,” that energy must manifest as sensible heat, contributing directly to global enthalpy.
Summary of Global Impact
A Pacific Ocean with an 80% biomass reduction would likely transition from a vibrant, carbon-sequestering engine into a massive thermal collector. This would likely accelerate global warming trends significantly, as the “cooling” effect of biological carbon sequestration is replaced by the “warming” effect of direct solar-to-thermal conversion.