Introduction

Today’s blog discusses Ocean Oxygen, Phytoplankton, the range of ocean oxygen, oxygen synthesis, and ocean oxygen generation.

During the primitive earth period, there was no oxygen on the planet, which was 400 plus million years ago. The earth’s atmosphere is entirely made up of nitrogen and carbon dioxide. But water is present in a huge amount, due to lack of Oxygen there is no plant growth seen on the land. Many evolutionary scientists called this complete formulation as Earth’s Primordial Soup. Then the question arose how do we breathe Oxygen today? From where does this Oxygen come on the planet? Who creates this Oxygen and how? So, the answer to all the questions is an OCEAN. Yes, the ocean is the only largest source behind the preparation of Oxygen during earth’s evolution and development. During the primitive period, the earth’s atmosphere is full of Heat, Water, and other gases except Oxygen. Rain forests and some other minor sources are also included in creating about one-third, 28% of the earth’s Oxygen.

71% of the earth’s surface is covered with water, and 96.5 % is held by the salt water of oceans. What do you think about how much Oxygen does the sea produces? You might be surprised; about 50 to 80 % of the earth’s Oxygen originated from the oceans. The Oxygen we inhale today, and live is due to the ocean oxygen supply. The exact amount of ocean oxygen is difficult to calculate because of its high dynamicity.  

Ocean Oxygen Generation

As we discussed, more than 50% of the earth’s Oxygen originated from the ocean. But who did this synthesis? How much Oxygen is in ocean water? The one in all answer is the Phytoplankton. Yes, Phytoplankton is the creator of this Ocean Oxygen. Many Phytoplankton like algae, fungi, cyanobacteria, mollusks, etc., are the Oxygen synthesizers via photosynthesis. During the primitive earth period, the sunlight is highly concentrated with high ultraviolet radiation. These marine organisms started their work since from the primitive earth. Today’s oxygen full environment is the result of that work. The initial Oxygen prepared is used to prepare the protective Ozone layer around the planet to rescue it from the high radiation ultraviolet rays.

Carbon dioxide is already present in the atmosphere during photosynthesis. Plants use this carbon form with sunlight and convert it into sugar that organisms can use for energy gain. The byproduct of the photosynthesis reaction is the Oxygen that we inhale. Like drifting plants and some photosynthesizing bacteria, the oceanic planktons play a significant role in this process.

Though plants and photosynthesizing organisms produce 50 % of earth’s Oxygen, almost the same amount of Oxygen they consume for their survival in the marine environment. Then how much ocean oxygen concentration is supplied to the atmosphere? Satellite imagery is one of the methods to calculate the oxygen concentration, but it can not depict the whole story. During survival, both plants and animals use Oxygen for breathing. Similarly, marine animals also use Oxygen for cellular respiration and a large amount in the decomposition process. But some dead organisms do not get decomposed and settle down at the bottom with a tiny bit of Oxygen. That small amount of Oxygen has stayed in the air and the same we Breath with.

Importance of Phytoplankton in Oxygen Synthesis

Phyto means plant-like and planktons, meaning tiny organisms. These are the photosynthesizing marine organisms that are prominent suppliers of Ocean Oxygen. They Are the primary food source for many food chains and develop a base for the marine food web. Nowadays, saving Phytoplankton is one of the major concerns related to the health of marine organisms. Decreasing pollution, using less energy, stop destroying marine habitats are some basic things that we can do to reduce the loss of Phytoplankton.

According to Dr. Sylvia A. Earle, a national geographic explorer. A marine photosynthesizing bacterium called Prochlorococcus provides a large amount of Oxygen, around one in every five breaths we take. Prochlorococcus is the smallest photosynthesizing bacterium on earth that alone can produce 20% of Oxygen in our entire biosphere. This is higher than the percent of Oxygen created by all the tropical rainforests on the earth. The size of Prochlorococcus is as small as that millions can fit in a single drop of water.

Phytoplankton is not only a single species but also a large group of small organisms like fungi, algae, mollusks, bacteria, crustaceans, and many more. Their small size and ability to sustain against the flow of the ocean and drift make them different from the other marine organisms. Marine ecosystem balance is maintained by non-other than the Phytoplankton. They play a major role in oxygen synthesis and control carbon sequestration.

Range of Ocean Oxygen

We are well aware of how the ocean generates Oxygen and who is responsible for that. Phytoplankton is the leader of the whole procedure. But do you know not the entire ocean produces Oxygen. Yes, it depends on the reach of sunlight in the ocean water. Sunlight triggers the process of photosynthesis in the Phytoplankton and other photosynthesizing organisms. Only the top 200 meters, which is around 650 feet in the ocean, is the range of sunlight approximately from which the Oxygen generates. This range is decided by the location of all the photosynthesizing organism that creates the photic zone. The photic zone is an active area where all the photosynthesizing Phytoplankton is present.

Similarly, like dead terrestrial plants, dead marine plants and organisms also go through decomposition. And decomposition urges a huge amount of Oxygen. That lowers the oxygen level of that particular area and creates an area of very low Oxygen; that is, the hypoxia condition results in the formation of a dead zone.

During photosynthesis, as the level of Oxygen increases, the carbon dioxide levels gradually decrease. So today, the air we breathe is composed of 78% of nitrogen, 21%of Oxygen, and the rest is the common gases. So it will not be an odd term for oceans to call The Breath of Ecosystem.

Today increasing pollution, overuse of fossils, bad wastewater harvesting, and many humanly made catastrophes create havoc in the marine world. Even the ozone layer is also depleting. It is the time to awake and save our environment and the Breath of our ecosystem.