Earth's oceans are growing darker, threatening marine life worldwide: study
Oceans around the globe have become darker over the last two decades, leaving researchers fearful for their marine inhabitants, according to a new study.
Professor Thomas Davies of the University of Plymouth said in a study published in the Global Change Biology journal there is growing concern for the marine ecosystem.
Satellite data from NASA's Ocean Color Web data portal showed 21% of the planet's oceans had darkened between 2003 and 2022.
According to Davies, the majority of marine life lives in the photic zones of the ocean, which is where sufficient light penetrates to stimulate photobiological processes.
The photic zone, which is 200 meters deep, is where global nutrients and carbon budgets sustain the planetary fish markets.
This is the area where light reaches marine life that lives closer to the surface of the ocean.
These ocean inhabitants rely on both the moonlight and sunlight for hunting, mating, reproduction and other important milestones.
The upper level of the ocean is where microscopic organisms and different types of plankton live.
With the oceans beginning to darken, it will cause creatures that rely on light to begin moving closer to the surface, potentially creating a cramped living space.
Using satellite data and an algorithm-derived measure of the attenuation of light in seawater, Davis was able to measure how deep each photic zone was around the world.
Among the darker oceans, 9% of their photic zones were 50 meters more shallow, and 3% of the oceans' photic zones were 100 meters more shallow.
The reasoning behind the darkening of oceans far offshore is less clear.
Global warming and changes in ocean currents are thought to be involved in this phenomenon, according to the study.
Despite an overall darkening, about 10% of oceans, or 37 million square kilometers, have become lighter over the past 20 years, the study found.
It also found that most coastal areas have seen an increase in light. However, the study found that this does not translate into a net reduction in photic zone depth near shorelines.
Davies predicts the implications of ocean darkening could be severe for marine food webs, global fisheries and carbon and nutrient budgets.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Medscape
28 minutes ago
- Medscape
Thousands Missing Out on Life-Saving Heart Treatments
MANCHESTER — Thousands of people in the United Kingdom with advanced heart failure are not being referred for potentially life-saving treatments, a leading heart transplantation expert said at the British Cardiovascular Society Annual Conference 2025. Owais Dar Owais Dar, a consultant cardiologist at Harefield Hospital, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London, described a 'systemic failure' in delivering transplants and left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) to eligible patients in the UK. This failure was leading to a 'deadly delay' in care, he said. Presenting data from a National Advanced Heart Failure Audit, Dar estimated that 10,000 adults under 65 who could be eligible for a heart transplant or LVAD therapy had not been referred to specialist services. Furthermore, 130,000 adults with advanced heart failure were living with palliative care needs. 'If this was a cancer, we would be furious about this,' said Dar, who is also an honorary senior lecturer at King's College London. 'We've got young people here who are not accessing [these therapies].' Dar noted wide variation in referral patterns. Even in regions with the highest rates of referral, the numbers fell short of what was needed. 'Generally, within the UK and Ireland, we're just not thinking about transplant or LVAD therapy as even an option,' he said. Specialist Services at Risk of Being Overwhelmed Geraint Jenkins, a consultant cardiologist at Morriston Hospital in Swansea, Wales, told Medscape News UK : 'The majority of the patients these days — because medical therapy is so good — get better.' He observed that half of patients with an ejection fraction under 30% regain nearly normal heart function within a year, 'and they don't get anywhere near a transplant centre'. Jenkins warned that current referral criteria were 'lax' and, if followed, could overwhelm specialist services. 'We've got thousands of patients with ICDs [implantable cardioverter defibrillators], and the number of patients having ICD shocks every month is quite substantial,' he said. 'If they all went to Harefield for assessment, that would swamp their services.' Jenkins stressed the importance of identifying the right patients at the right time, which meant finding the 'sweet spot' for patient referral. 'That's what we're not doing well,' he said. LVADs Offer Alternative Solution Separately, Dar told Medscape News UK that while there may not be enough hearts to match presumed demand, modern LVADs were 'almost as good' an alternative. LVADs are mechanical pumps that support circulation in patients with severely weakened hearts. They can be used for long-term support or as a bridge to transplant. Theoretically there were 'unlimited amounts of LVADs', Dar said. As these were 'off-the shelf' items, the waiting time should be shorter than for an appropriate organ donation. Many patients already had access to other advanced treatments like ICDs and cardiac resynchronisation therapies (CRTs), he added. 'The only option they have is an operation that can allow them to live another 8 years.' He emphasised the benefits for younger patients: 'That's giving them back quality life, where they can work again, exercise and do things again – going from being bed bound and possibly dying within a year.' High Mortality in Advanced Heart Failure Dar said advanced heart failure carries significant mortality risk. One-year mortality is around 40% using European Society of Cardiology (ESC) criteria, and 20% with American Heart Association benchmarks. Based on US data, around 14% of a population of around 60,000 met ESC criteria for advanced heart failure, with 5% 'within transplantable age' from 18 to 65, said Dar. Extrapolated to the UK with a total population of 68 million, one million would have a diagnosis of heart failure, 140,000 would have advanced disease, 50,000 would be under 65, and 10,000 eligible for transplantation or LVAD therapy. A 'feeling that we were not getting enough referrals' had led Dar and other transplant physicians across the UK and Ireland to form a working group to look into the issue. The aim was to create a heatmap of referrals that had been made to heart transplant and LVAD centres and assess inequality and equity of care. Audit Exposes Regional Inequalities The working group audited four months of referral data, including 416 patients with a median age of 52. Most were men (67%) and White (73%), with a non-ischaemic cause of heart failure (55%). In 44% of outpatient referrals and 17% of inpatient referrals, patients were considered 'too well' for transplant or LVAD. Respectively, 29% and 39% had contraindications to either option, with 19% and 31% progressing towards a transplant or device fitting. High body mass index was a key exclusion factor, alongside liver or kidney failure, diabetes-related organ damage, or smoking. The audit found significant regional variation – a 'postcode lottery' in access. 'There are large areas, particularly in Wales and the Northeast of England, that are simply not referring patients with advanced heart failure – for transplant or LVAD therapy,' Dar noted. Even areas around specialist transplant centres were not referring patients, he added. Calls for a National Referral Pathway 'It's affirmed what we suspected,' Dar told Medscape News UK . 'So, I think the idea now is to speak to NHS England and colleagues to try and address this inequality and raise awareness of it to see how we can improve things.' One approach, he suggested, might be to create a national pathway that sets out how quickly someone with suspected advanced heart failure was seen by a specialist team. Jenkins observed that travelling to specialist centres could be a problem for many patients living in more rural areas who could face long journeys. He suggested that specialists could perhaps hold monthly clinics withing existing heart failure centres. Whatever the reason for the lack of referrals, Dar said it was clear that more needed to be done: 'We're failing these patients. Speak to your local transplant centres about your patients and just have that conversation early on.' D ar and Jenkins declared no relevant financial relationships
Yahoo
42 minutes ago
- Yahoo
NASA Langley workforce slashed by 40% in Trump budget plan
NASA Langley Research Center will lose funding for several projects and cut its workforce by 672 civil servants under the Trump administration's proposal to slash about $163 billion in federal spending next fiscal year. The White House budget proposal is a starting point, and ultimately Congress must approve it. But the technical supplement to the proposed budget released on Friday includes new details about how the administration would seek to reduce federal spending levels. NASA's budget would be slashed by roughly a quarter — from $24.8 billion down to $18.8 billion — and would lay off nearly a third of its workforce — more than 5,500 people across its 10 staffed centers. The technical supplement said centers will use cross-mission retraining opportunities and offer buyouts to meet the staffing requests. For NASA Langley, that includes a staffing cut from 1,730 people to 1,058. NASA Langley spokesperson Brittny McGraw said Langley doesn't have any additional context for how the cuts would work. 'At this point, there are no decisions that have been made going forward about what things could look like,' McGraw said. Another major shift proposed for Langley would be in its Aerosciences Evaluation and Test Capabilities. NASA currently operates 12 wind tunnels and propulsion test facilities, seven of which reside at Langley. The proposed budget would replace an 84-year-old vertical spin tunnel with a new flight dynamics research facility at Langley. However, there's a catch. The proposed budget slashes Aerosciences funding by more than $40 million and will put up to five unspecified wind tunnels in 'stand by' mode with minimal maintenance. Aerosciences isn't the only program being hit with cuts to meet the budget request. NASA's science programs across the board are set to be gutted to meet the new goals. Science funding is seeing its funding cut from $7.3 billion to $3.9 billion. That includes: Earth Science research funding cut by $240 million. Earth systematic missions, which study the planet's biology, having its budget more than halved. The Sentinel-6 project, which studies sea levels, cut from roughly $51 million to $8 million. The GRACE-Continuity project, which tracks glaciers and water movement, cut from more than $132 million to roughly $42 million Aperture Radar, which provides detailed imaging of Earth, chopped to roughly a third of its budget. That's bad news for a research center with a significant science directorate, according to U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott. Scott, the Democratic Congress member who represents the Hampton area where Langley sits, said Langley is an integral part of NASA's scientific research to understand the planet, and cutting its funding will have real consequences. The White House seeks sharp spending cuts in Trump's 2026 budget plan Say cheese: Cameras built at NASA Langley are landing on moon's surface Sunday NASA and Jefferson Lab fuel inventions and the regional economy, leaders say Youngkin says current Jefferson Lab management contract will be extended during rebid process 'Much of this work is being done in Hampton Roads at NASA Langley,' Scott said in a statement. 'The cuts to NASA's funding and staff proposed by the Trump Administration will put the United States behind in our pursuit to advance science and protect our communities from threats like climate change and sea level rise.' Sen. Tim Kaine, Virginia Democrat, added in a statement the loss of jobs will have a particularly devastating impact on the Hampton Roads community. 'These proposed cuts, if the House and Senate pass them, would destroy NASA as we know it, and have a devastating impact on the region's community and economy,' Kaine said. Those proposed cuts are a 'full-out assault on science,' according to Sen. Mark Warner, who said Wednesday that NASA Langley has been an integral part of building a culture of scientific innovation in Hampton Roads and the country. Now, Warner said that culture is in jeopardy. 'That trickles through the economy, especially when we're talking about this many folks laid off at NASA Langley, that has been our premier aerospace research facility in the country,' the Virginia Democrat said. 'Many of those future scientists, you can make a lot more money working at a tech company, but they come and work for NASA because of the mission. Well, that mission is being undermined. That's going to hurt Hampton Roads' ability to be a research community.' Devlin Epding, 757-510-4037,
Associated Press
2 hours ago
- Associated Press
How poo may one day help save endangered species from extinction
The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiased news in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. More than half the world's population sees AP journalism every day.
