Images
April 27, 2025 - Bloom off Long Island
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A patch of clear sky revealed swirls of blue and green in the Atlantic Ocean off of Long Island, New York, on April 24, 2025. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired this true-color image on that same day.
The bright colors marked a floating colony of phytoplankton— microscopic, plant-like organisms that live in these waters year-round. Usually, their numbers are low enough that they can’t be seen, but when conditions are favorable, the organisms can reproduce explosively to create massive “blooms” that can easily be seen from space.
Closer to the shore, green and tan tones mark sediment that appears to have washed into the Atlantic, likely by strong winds and rain from recent stormy weather. Sediment appears tan when it is very near the surface. When it sinks, the reflectance changes and so does the color. As sediment becomes submerged, it typically starts to look green and then may even show some blue before it sinks deep enough to not be seen from satellite imagery.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Aqua
Date Acquired: 4/24/2025
Resolutions:
1km (167.5 KB), 500m (447.4 KB), 250m (937.1 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
A patch of clear sky revealed swirls of blue and green in the Atlantic Ocean off of Long Island, New York, on April 24, 2025. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired this true-color image on that same day.
The bright colors marked a floating colony of phytoplankton— microscopic, plant-like organisms that live in these waters year-round. Usually, their numbers are low enough that they can’t be seen, but when conditions are favorable, the organisms can reproduce explosively to create massive “blooms” that can easily be seen from space.
Closer to the shore, green and tan tones mark sediment that appears to have washed into the Atlantic, likely by strong winds and rain from recent stormy weather. Sediment appears tan when it is very near the surface. When it sinks, the reflectance changes and so does the color. As sediment becomes submerged, it typically starts to look green and then may even show some blue before it sinks deep enough to not be seen from satellite imagery.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Aqua
Date Acquired: 4/24/2025
Resolutions:
1km (167.5 KB), 500m (447.4 KB), 250m (937.1 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
