Could this ocean bacteria be our answer to global warming?

With global warming on the rise, we have long needed to find a way to fight the effects that climate change is having on our planet. Researchers have discovered a bacteria that could be doing just that.

Miniscule ocean bacteria have been found to contribute to the regulation and stability of the planet’s atmosphere by helping to form clouds.

The study conducted by scientists at the University of East Anglia in England and Oregon State University, found that the tiny bacteria named Pelagibacterales, works by producing huge amounts of dimethyl sulfide which contributes greatly to the environment.

Dimethyl sulfide was long thought of as just waste from marine and freshwater algae but it was found to contribute to the formation of clouds which do a great job of reflecting incident solar radiation back into space and therefore lowering global temperatures.

Jonathan Todd, a biologist at University of East Anglia involved in the study, said that the bacteria was surprisingly abundant in our oceans.

“These types of ocean bacteria are among the most abundant organisms on Earth — comprising up to half a million microbial cells found in every teaspoon of seawater. We studied it at a molecular genetic level to discover exactly how it generates a gas called dimethyl sulfide, which is known for stimulating cloud formation.”

“The dimethyl sulfide gas it produces may have a role in regulating the climate by increasing cloud droplets that in turn reduce the amount of sunlight hitting the ocean’s surface.”

The discovery is exciting for scientists finding ways to combat the climate change crisis and the researchers involved in the study are hopeful that these tiny bacteria can be factored in to the latest climate models.

The study was published in the journal Nature Microbiology.