29/07/2026
🌊🔵Ever wondered why the ocean isn't just one blue?
Ocean color first behaves like a mirror of the sky. But it also has a filter, created by the organisms living in it.
In productive waters, like the Norwegian Sea in summer, phytoplankton and nutrients turn the sea green under a clear sky, grey under clouds.
In oligotrophic (low-nutrient) waters, like around the Azores and the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, there's little to filter the light. The water mirrors the sky instead: royal blue on a sunny day, darker blue under clouds.
Same ocean, different biology, different light, different blue. Depth, seafloor, and sediment play a role too, but sky and biology make the biggest difference.
🔬 Science: Athina Nikolitsa Kekelou, MERS Research Group