Start Date: End Date: Published Date Data Date
Data acquired June 23, 2007 540 x 405 JPEG
Data acquired June 23, 2007 6192 x 5694 3 MB - JPEG
Data acquired June 23, 2007 3969 x 4000 36 MB - GeoTIFF
Data acquired June 23, 2007 61 KB - KML/KMZ
342 x 228 JPEG
Reminiscent of the distinctive swirls in a Van Gogh painting, millions of microscopic plants color the waters of the North Atlantic with strokes of blue, turquoise, green, and brown. Fed by nutrients that have built up during the winter and the long, sunlit days of late spring and early summer, the cool waters of the North Atlantic come alive every year with a vivid display of color. The microscopic plants, called phytoplankton, that give the water this color are the base of the marine food chain.
NASA image courtesy Norman Kuring, Ocean Color Group at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Published July 3, 2007 Data acquired June 23, 2007