Mystery Ocean Glow Confirmed in Satellite Photos

Mariners have long told of rare nighttime events in which the ocean glows intensely as far as the eye can see in all directions.

Fictionally, such a "milky sea" is encountered by the Nautilus in Jules Verne classic "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea."

Scientists don't have a good handle what's going on. But satellite sensors have now provided the first pictures of a milky sea and given new hope to learning more about the elusive events.

The newly released images show a vast region of the Indian Ocean, about the size of Connecticut, glowing three nights in a row. The luminescence was also spotted from a ship in the area.

"The circumstances under which milky seas form is almost entirely unknown," says Steven Miller, a Naval Research Laboratory scientists who led the space-based discovery. "Even the source for the light emission is under debate."

The leading idea

Scientists suspect bioluminescent bacteria are behind the phenomenon. Such creatures produce a continuous glow, in contrast to the brief, bright flashes of light produced by "dinoflagellate" bioluminescent organims that are seen more commonly lighting up ship wakes and breaking waves.

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Pretty cool. Imagine what it would look like in person.

Whoa.... I wonder what that is... IT LOOKS HUGE .

What could cause lighting on that largw of a scale?

Originally posted by ivanglam
Whoa.... I wonder what that is... IT LOOKS HUGE .

What could cause lighting on that largw of a scale?

Must be the alienz again.

that is really interesting

could it be the massacre of the dying planktons

this is something you will find in moderately salty sea waters, like mediteranian for instance, planktons release energy in the form of light when they die, and they die with minimum impact or touch but if the planktons are the cause of this, then that must be the whole population of it including its family tree together. I wonder what it is. abyss comes to mind.

It is an abnormally "giant" population of bacteria.
'Milky seas' detected from space

this one is from ireland and much more smaller compared to the above example

As the plankton die, they feed a bacteria that forms a milky white goo on top of the mats

Now THIS is amazing! Can you farm enough of this stuff in an aquarium, to light a room? Even a "night light" effect will awe my friends and family!

Besides, I'd rather have THIS stuff in a fish tank than a bunch of stupid dying fish any day!

[edit on 5-10-2005 by Toelint]

Theres a type of moss? around here that glows in the dark...

ugh i really hope this happened.

I dunno what the stuff is or why it happens, but it does glow a faint blue.


[edit on 5-10-2005 by Dulcimer]

As Umbrax above points out there is already a thread that covers this,

Please add to the link www.abovetopsecret.com...#

Thanks for posting,
Ill close this, But be sure to head on over to the other thread

Asala