Images
April 27, 2015 - Phytoplankton bloom in the North Atlantic Ocean
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On April 17, 2015 the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite captured a true-color image of a spring phytoplankton bloom in the North Sea.
The milky green bloom is centered due east of Nova Scotia and southeast of St. John’s, Newfoundland in an area known as the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. This is where the North American continental shelf forms a series of shallow underwater plateaus, and where the warm Gulf Stream waters mix with the cooler waters of the Labrador Current. The flowing waters bring nutrients and warmth, as well as stirring nutrients up from the bottom. As daylight lengthens during the springtime, nutrients help fuel the rapid growth of the single-celled organisms known as phytoplankton. These tiny organisms form the basis of the marine food chain, and often bloom in this area in the springtime.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Aqua
Date Acquired: 4/17/2015
Resolutions:
1km (53.5 KB), 500m (197.5 KB), 250m (495 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
On April 17, 2015 the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite captured a true-color image of a spring phytoplankton bloom in the North Sea.
The milky green bloom is centered due east of Nova Scotia and southeast of St. John’s, Newfoundland in an area known as the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. This is where the North American continental shelf forms a series of shallow underwater plateaus, and where the warm Gulf Stream waters mix with the cooler waters of the Labrador Current. The flowing waters bring nutrients and warmth, as well as stirring nutrients up from the bottom. As daylight lengthens during the springtime, nutrients help fuel the rapid growth of the single-celled organisms known as phytoplankton. These tiny organisms form the basis of the marine food chain, and often bloom in this area in the springtime.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Aqua
Date Acquired: 4/17/2015
Resolutions:
1km (53.5 KB), 500m (197.5 KB), 250m (495 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
