Phytoplankton and NASA: Agency Captures Rare Biology Photo in Fall

NASA recently released a striking image of blooming phytoplankton.

Phytoplankton are microscopic organisms that play an important role in carbon cycling and can potentially impact clouds and climate. They tend to bloom in large amounts in the North Atlantic each spring, but can do so in the fall as well. Fall weather, however, can make them difficult to be observed.

"A lot of what we don't know about ocean ecology has to do with the difficulty of sampling the ocean, whether it be from a storm-tossed ship or from a cloud-obstructed satellite," Norman Kuring, ocean scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, said in a press release.

That didn't stop NASA, however, from acquiring an image of the phytoplankton on September 23, 2015 using the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on the Suomi NPP. Data from the red, green and blue bands from VIIRS were used to compose the image along with chlorophyll data. Scientists then used processing steps to highlight color differences and accentuate the phytoplankton's less obvious characteristics.

"The image does a beautiful job of showing the close link between ocean physics and biology," said Michael Behrenfeld, a phytoplankton ecologist at Oregon State University, in the release. "The features that jump out so clearly represent the influence of ocean eddies and physical stirring on the concentration of phytoplankton pigments and, possibly, colored dissolved organic matter."

The impact of plankton, however, reaches beyond just the sea. Such organisms distribute organic molecules into nearby seawater, which can be tossed into the air as sea spray.

"These biologically-driven aerosol influences have been detected as far away as coastal monitoring stations in Ireland," said Rich Moore, a researcher at NASA's Langley Research Center and deputy project scientist for NASA's North Atlantic Aerosols and Marine Ecosystems Study (NAAMES), in the release.

Shortly after NASA took the photo, NAAMES traveled to that part of the ocean to take measurements. They hope to learn more about phytoplankton blooms and the impact they have on the environment. The next NAAMES campaign commences in May 2016, when the phytoplankton should be in full bloom.

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