Satellites See Sea Changes
http://seagrant.uaf.edu/news/03ASJ/03.14.03sea-changes.html

Doug Schneider, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Alaska Sea Grant College Program


Phytoplankton are single-celled plants that float on the surface of the ocean. They are important because they form the foundation of the marine food chain. This radio broadcast from 2003 reports on research that shows global warming is reducing the levels of phytoplankton in the oceans. The broadcast explains how satellite data is used to measure the amount of phytoplankton in the sea, since the chlorophyll inside the plants appears as reflected green light on satellite images. Satellite images of phytoplankton were compared from different decades, revealing that phytoplankton levels changed the greatest in parts of the oceans where the temperature rose the most. The clip is 2 minutes and 35 seconds in length.

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This resource originally cataloged at:

DLESE

Subject: Geoscience:Oceanography
Grade Level: General Public
Theme: Teach the Earth:Course Topics:Oceanography