July 9, 2023 - Bloom off British Columbia

Bloom
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Bright swirls colored the deep blue waters of the Queen Charlotte Sound
off of northern British Columbia, Canada in early July 2023. The
Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s
Aqua satellite acquired a true-color image of the scene on July 4.

The jewel-toned hues appear to be caused by a spring bloom of
phytoplankton—microscopic, plant-like organisms that live in these
waters year-round in relatively small numbers. When conditions are
favorable, that is, when there is enough nutrients, daylight, and the
correct water temperatures, phytoplankton can reproduce explosively to
create massive floating “blooms” that can easily be seen from space.

The semi-circular and swirling patterns that are visible mark eddies
that are formed by strong outflow currents from several rivers along
the northwestern coast of British Columbia. In spring, these rivers
carry abundant snowmelt which runs off the mountains as temperatures
rise. Not only does this create strong currents, but the snowmelt helps
bring nutrients into the rivers and this ultimately spurs the growth of
phytoplankton.

Image Facts
Satellite: Aqua
Date Acquired: 7/4/2023
Resolutions: 1km (111.4 KB), 500m (284.1 KB), 250m (607.8
KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC



https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2023-07-09

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