Phytoplankton Bloom

Credit: Credit: Jeff Schmaltz; MODIS team; NASA, Posted on: Monday, 26 January 2004, 06:00 CST Download full size image

Gorgeous clouds of blue and green phytoplankton float in the waters of the southern Atlantic Ocean off the coast of southern Argentina, shown here in this true-color Terra MODIS image. The phytoplankton's green color comes from chlorophyll, which makes use of sunlight to metabolize nutrients in the water. The chalky blue color is a mixture of the concentration of the phytoplankton, the blueness of the water itself, and could also come from the type of phytoplankton present. A certain type of phytoplankton, called coccolithophores, produce calcite that create colors similar to these. For more information about phytoplankton and coccolithophores, please visit the Earth Observatory. This image was acquired on January 7, 2004.

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