A new study conducted by researchers Monica Wilhelmus and John Dabiri at the California Institute of Technology have shown that the migration patterns of Artemia salina, or "sea monkeys," may have an effect on ocean circulation patterns.
A previous study conducted by Dabiri, published in 2009, showed that the movement of small creatures like jellyfish could have a significant impact on hydrodynamics.
"Now, these new lab experiments show that similar effects can occur in organisms that are much smaller but also more numerous - and therefore potentially more impactful in regions of the ocean important for climate," Dabiri said in a press release.
The researchers were able to observe the hydrodynamic influence of swimming brine shrimp by using lasers to coax their movements. A horizontal green laser was used to lure them to the surface, while a vertical blue laser encouraged them to focus their path along a central column, according to the release.
A high-speed camera equipped with an invisible red laser allowed scientists to measure the shrimp's movement and the swirl of the water.
"It's almost a laser light show," Dabiri said. "Those particles light up like a starry night."
The scientists were then able to scale up their measurements by creating a model to better understand how a school of zooplankton numbering in the billions might influence ocean currents.
Results showed a collective force stronger than if scientists were to multiply an individual organism's effects on the water surrounding them.
The collective movements of tiny swimming animals could be contributing to approximately 1 trillion watts of power to the ocean, Dabiri said. This is comparable to the combined effect from the winds and tides, which contribute an estimated 2 trillion watts, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Skepticism remains from physical oceanographers however, who would have to take this new and unknown phenomenon into account when creating models of ocean dynamics.
"How do they simulate, in computer models, things that are very small but have a very big effect?" Dabiri said. "I think until they're convinced that there's something that needs to be simulated, they would rather not have to answer that question."
Dabiri hopes to someday study these effects in the ocean itself by perhaps taking a laser system out to sea. He doesn't have any plans to start changing the world's currents, however.
"We want to be mindful of not getting too far ahead of ourselves, in toying with the real ocean," Dabiri said.
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