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   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   October 10, 2022 - Spring Boom off South Africa   
      
      Bloom   
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      On October 7, 2022, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer   
      (MODIS) on board NASA’s Terra satellite acquired a true-color image of   
      a colorful spring bloom coloring the waters off the west coast of South   
      Africa. The jewel-toned swirls of stretch for hundreds of miles in the   
      South Atlantic, roughly paralleling the coastline.   
      
      The colors are created by a floating mass of phytoplankton, which are   
      microscopic plant-like organisms that live in these waters year-round   
      in smaller numbers. When conditions are right—lengthening daylight,   
      proper water temperature, and adequate nutrition—phytoplankton can   
      reproduce explosively, creating massive blooms that are easily seen   
      from space.   
      
      Such blooms are common in the coastal waters off southwest Africa where   
      cold, nutrient-rich currents sweep north from Antarctica and interact   
      with the coastal shelf. At the same time, the easterly trade winds push   
      surface water away from the shore, allowing water from the ocean’s   
      floor to rise to the surface, bringing with it iron and other material.   
      The suffusion of nutrients from both the currents and upwelling water   
      creates an environment where these tiny surface-dwelling ocean plants   
      thrive in abundance.   
      
      Image Facts   
      Satellite:  Terra   
      Date Acquired: 10/7/2022   
      Resolutions:  1km (430.7 KB),  500m (1.2 MB),  250m (2.6 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=2022-10-10   
       
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