March 1, 2022 - Sediment in the North Sea

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Sediment
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Swirls of sediment snake through the shallow waters of the North Sea in
late February 2022. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer
(MODIS) on board NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired a true-color image of
the silty scene on February 27.

Mud-colored sediment is visible in the River Thames, which runs through
the city of London, England and empties into the shallow Thames Estuary
on the southeastern section of the island of Great Britain. Further
north along the British coast sediment spills from several rivers,
including River Great Ouse and River Nene, into an estuary called the
Wash. These two sources mix with sediment raised from the shallow and
sand-rich intertidal flats of the Outer Thames Estuary where the
winnowing action of the waves and local currents carry the particles
far into the North Sea.

Sediment appears mud-colored when it floats near the surface of the
water but, as it sinks and disperses, its reflectivity changes and the
appearance changes from brown to green. As sediment sinks even deeper,
it may begin to look blue. Some of the color in this image may also be
due to the presence of phytoplankton—microscopic plant-like organisms
that live in these waters year-round but may burst into vigorous growth
when conditions are right to form large, colorful blooms. Nutrients
supplied by sediment and carried along the currents helps spur spring
and summer blooms in the North Sea.

Image Facts
Satellite: Aqua
Date Acquired: 2/27/2022
Resolutions: 1km (428.5 KB), 500m (1.2 MB), 250m (4.6 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC



https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2022-03-01

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