Dinoflagellate Ceratium gravidum (Photo : Sophie Marro)
Instrumented buoy (Photo : David Luquet)
The research vessel "James COOK"
Mollusk (Photo : Fabien Lombard)
Dinoflagellate Ceratium arietinum var arietinum (Photo : Sophie Marro)
Dinoflagellate Ceratium extensum (Photo : Sophie Marro)
Average chlorophyll concentration in the surface ocean (from mi-September 1997 to August 2007) from the ocean color sensor SeaWiFS (NASA). Subtropical gyres, in the center of the oceanic basins, are characterized by very low concentrations of chlorophyll a (dark blue) - Source : NASA's Earth Observatory (http:/earthobservatory.nasa.gov)
Vue sous-marine d'un groupe de mésocosmes (© Stareso)
Embryos and larvae
Drifting in the currents, embryos and larvae perpetuate the species and are food for multitudes.
Ctenaria Lampetia pancerina (Photo : Fabien Lombard)
Plankton
Plankton are a multitude of living organisms adrift in the currents.Our food, our fuel, and the air we breathe originate in plankton.
Dinoflagellate Ceratium praelongum (Photo : Sophie Marro)
Instrumented buoy (Photo : David Luquet)
Dinoflagellate Ceratium teresgyr (Photo : Sophie Marro)
Mollusk (Photo : Fabien Lombard)
Phytoplankton bloom observed in the Barents Sea (North of Norway) in August 2010 by the ocean color sensor MODIS onboard NASA satellite Aqua. Changes in ocean color result from modifications in the phytoplankton composition and concentration. The green colors are likely associated with the presence of diatoms. The shades of light blue result from the occurrence of coccolithophores, phytoplankton organisms that strongly reflect light due to their chalky shells - Source : NASA's Earth Observatory (http:/earthobservatory.nasa.gov)
Diatoms - Life in glass houses
Champions of photosynthesis, these unicellular organisms appeared at the time of dinosaurs.They produce a quarter of the oxygen we breathe.
