March 28, 2023 - Bloom off of Namibia

Bloom
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Glimmers of green colored the waters of the South Atlantic Ocean off
the northern Namibian coast in late March 2023. The Moderate Resolution
Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Aqua satellite
acquired a true-color image of the scene on March 26.

The peacock-green streaks and swirls mark a large mass of floating
phytoplankton—microscopic plant-like creatures that live in these
waters year-round. When conditions are favorable, the tiny organisms
can reproduce explosively to create large colonies that can easily be
seen from space.

The location of this bloom occurs over a continental shelf off of the
African continent, and in an area washed by the highly productive
Benguela current system. This current flows along the ocean surface,
moving north and west along the coast from southern Africa, and is
enriched by dust blowing off the coastal deserts, including the
beautiful orange sands of the Namib Desert. Easterly winds push surface
waters offshore and promote upwelling, which carries cold,
nutrient-rich waters up from the seafloor to the upper layers where
phytoplankton are found and often spurs colorful blooms.

Image Facts
Satellite: Aqua
Date Acquired: 3/26/2023
Resolutions: 1km (249 KB), 500m (566.6 KB), 250m (349.4 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=2023-03-28

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