\n<\/p>\n
Broadwell brought back algae samples to a lab at the University of Bristol’s Cabot Institute for the Environment, for detailed analysis of its DNA alongside other samples from the Arctic and the Alps.<\/p>\n
“These landscapes are changing fast, and arctic and alpine glaciers might be some of the first habitats lost completely to climate change,” she said.<\/p>\n
“The research uncovered a surprisingly rich and habitat-specific diversity of both snow and glacier algal species. <\/p>\n
“Notably, we found red snow algae dominating the ice cap, where Ancylonema glacier algae would normally be expected to prevail.”<\/p>\n
While these algal blooms absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis, they also pose a major threat to the region’s delicate balance.<\/p>\n
The expansion of plant life darkens the snow and ice, reducing its reflectivity and causing the surrounding area to warm up, triggering ice and snow melt.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n