Tag: plankton

Tiny Plankton Drive Processes in the Ocean That Capture Twice as Much Carbon as Scientists Thought

May 21, 2020 By Ken Buesseler The Conversation
The ocean plays a major role in the global carbon cycle. The driving force comes from tiny plankton that produce organic carbon through photosynthesis, like plants on land. When plankton die or are consumed, a set of processes known as the biological carbon pump carries sinking particles of carbon from the surface to the deep ocean in a process known as marine snowfall. Naturalist and writer Rachel Carson called it the “most stupendous snowfall on Earth.”