Is greening of Antarctica due to climate change good for the planet?

Antarctica was a place that was thought to be far removed from the effects of warming of the earth is now showing signs to the contrary. An article in smithsonianmag.com mentions that with the temperatures rising in the region, two native plant species are proliferating.

The green cover on the continent from 2009 to 2019 has accelerated more than what it had in the last 50 years. This is complimented with the rise in air temperatures rising and decrease in seal population.

Published recently in peer-reviewed scientific review Current Biology, the study highlights how warming of climate is increasingly impacting polar ecosystems.

Talking to Gizmodo, the study’s lead author and an ecologist at the University of Insubria, Nicoletta Cannone, remarked: "Antarctica is acting as a canary in a coal mine.”

Also read: Climate change enables Gentoo Penguins to expand their habitat in the Antarctica

The continent has two native flowering plant species. These are Antarctic hair grass (Deschampsia Antarctica), and Antarctic pearlwort (Colobanthus quitensis) and these are capable of holding up against the chilly temperature of the snow-covered region and also carry photosynthesis when the thermometer shows below zero reading.

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