Ocean Sciences

dataset

A synergy of observations: Filling the gaps in an ocean colour chlorophyll-a record

Daniel J. Ford February 20, 2026

Satellite ocean colour chlorophyll-a provides synoptic scale observations that highlight the turbulent and dynamic nature of the oceans (Credit: Daniel Ford generated from ESA OC-CCI data).

Chlorophyll-a (chl-a), as the dominant photosynthetic pigment within phytoplankton, provides an indication of the phytoplankton biomass and are essential for understanding global and regional changes in primary production in the oceans. Multiple ocean colour satellites have unlocked routine synoptical scale observations of chl-a which now extends from 1997 to the present day. Differing numbers of ...[Read More]

Monitoring the Ocean’s Green Pulse: A New Global Dataset for Phytoplankton Phenology

Sandy Thomalla June 10, 2025

Summer phytoplankton bloom in the Baltic Sea (Credit: NASA Earth Observatory images by Joshua Stevens and Lauren Dauphin, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey and MODIS data from LANCE/EOSDIS Rapid Response).

Phytoplankton are tiny, single-celled organisms mainly found in the ocean’s sunlit surface, where they grow through photosynthesis, forming the marine food web’s base and regulating Earth’s climate by absorbing carbon dioxide. Their seasonal growth cycles—known as “blooms”—drive marine productivity and influence everything from carbon uptake to food security. But how can we track ...[Read More]