Images
May 22, 2021 - Bloom off South Australia
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A colorful bloom of phytoplankton swirled in the Great Australian Bight south of the Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia, in autumn 2021. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired this true-color image on May 21.
Phytoplankton are microscopic marine organisms that thrive in nutrient-rich cold waters. The striking turquoise color is caused in part by sunlight reflecting off of chlorophyll in the phytoplankton, which (like terrestrial plants) use the process of photosynthesis to create carbohydrates from carbon dioxide and water. The milky-blue tone of the bloom suggests that the phytoplankton are probably a species contain a coat of calcium carbonate, white chalk, which lends a white tint to the organisms.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Aqua
Date Acquired: 5/21/2021
Resolutions:
1km (404.4 KB), 500m (1005.9 KB), 250m (2.3 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
A colorful bloom of phytoplankton swirled in the Great Australian Bight south of the Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia, in autumn 2021. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired this true-color image on May 21.
Phytoplankton are microscopic marine organisms that thrive in nutrient-rich cold waters. The striking turquoise color is caused in part by sunlight reflecting off of chlorophyll in the phytoplankton, which (like terrestrial plants) use the process of photosynthesis to create carbohydrates from carbon dioxide and water. The milky-blue tone of the bloom suggests that the phytoplankton are probably a species contain a coat of calcium carbonate, white chalk, which lends a white tint to the organisms.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Aqua
Date Acquired: 5/21/2021
Resolutions:
1km (404.4 KB), 500m (1005.9 KB), 250m (2.3 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
