NASA Satellite Images Show Huge Colored Plumes Staining the Ocean

"NASA satellites are tracking an intriguing patch of colored plumes in the waters off the US's Mid-Atlantic coast. Swirling with vivid hues of green and turquoise, and tinged with a little brown, the stained waters were first detected by orbital observatories in early April. But they were most intense in the Mid-Atlantic Bight, an area where the waters from several bays, including the Chesapeake, merge with the open ocean, according to an update from the space agency."

"Discerning what's swirling through these so-called "noisy" and "dirty" coastal waters is a challenge to scientists, because they can be caused by a hodgepodge of phenomena, unlike in the open ocean, which is fairly uniform. The colorful plumes could be tinged by sediments, plant life, and other organic matter. They could also be the result of phytoplankton blooms, meaning periods when the microscopic algae rapidly explode in number. Or it could be a combination of all of the above."

"Thanks to the latest NASA satellites like PACE - which stands for Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, Ocean Ecosystem - oceanographers can make more confident conclusions than ever. Some of the colors in the images may be due to outflows from coastal rivers and sediment churned up by spring storms, but "there are likely phytoplankton blooms happening," Anna Windle, a NASA research scientist supporting the PACE science team, said in an agency statement."

"Windle added that diatoms - single-celled algae - "typically dominate blooms early in the spring, but we are seeing some signs of coccolithophores mixed in as well." Diatom-dominated blooms tend to happen in the spring and look greenish in natural-color satellite imagery, according to NASA. Coccolithophores, which are phytoplankton clad in a sort of limestone armor plating, produce a milkier, turquoise colored bloom, and typically occur in late spring or summer."

NASA satellites have observed colorful, swirling plumes in coastal waters off the US Mid-Atlantic, first detected in early April and most intense in the Mid-Atlantic Bight. The stained waters appear green and turquoise with some brown tint. Coastal waters are difficult to interpret because color can come from sediments, plant and other organic matter, phytoplankton blooms, or combinations of these factors. NASA’s PACE satellite improves identification of ocean ecosystem signals. Some colors may reflect river outflows and sediment stirred by spring storms, but phytoplankton blooms are likely occurring. Diatoms typically dominate early spring blooms, while coccolithophores can also be present, producing a milkier turquoise bloom later in the season.

Read at Futurism