This is an image of a summer phytoplankton bloom in the Barents Sea off the north-westernmost corner of Russia. The milky-blue colour that dominates the bloom suggests that it contains large numbers of coccolithophores, phytoplankton that armour themselves with tiny calcium carbonate scales. Chlorophyll and other light-harvesting pigments from other species of phytoplankton can add darker blues, greens, and reddish-browns to the bloom.
Norman Kuring
2009-08-22
<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=39891">NASA Earth Observatory</a>