June 20, 2013 - Phytoplankton bloom off Ireland

Phytoplankton

The vigorous bloom of phytoplankton off Ireland’s coast continued through early June, 2013, coloring the Celtic Sea and Atlantic Ocean with greens, blues and milky tones. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS aboard NASA’s Terra satellite captured this true-color image on June 8, 2013.

The bloom appeared to have expanded slightly, increasing both in length and width from an earlier image captured on June 4. The continuation of a bloom for this length of time is not uncommon. However, the lifespan of each single organism is seldom more than a few days. Blooms that last long periods are caused by several generations of phytoplankton continuing the reproductive cycle.

The link for the earlier image of this bloom is: http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2013-06-12

Image Facts
Satellite: Terra
Date Acquired: 6/8/2013
Resolutions: 1km ( B), 500m ( B), 250m ( B)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC