Weather & Science
The Color of the Ocean Is Changing, and Scientists Blame Global Warming
A satellite measured recent shifts in ocean color that have turned waters near the Equator greener and indicate changes in marine ecosystems.
Photographer: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
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More than half of the world’s ocean has changed colors in the past 20 years, a phenomenon that is likely driven by climate change, according to a study published Wednesday in the journal Nature.
The study, which analyzes decades’ worth of satellite data, found that 56% of the global ocean — a territory larger than the total land area on Earth — experienced color change between 2002 and 2022. While the researchers didn’t identify an overall pattern, tropical ocean regions near the Equator seem to have become steadily greener over time.