Quizz the ocean seasons

Siphonophores : Forskalia formosa (crédit photo : Fabien Lombard)

Siphonophores Forskalia formosa (Photo : Fabien Lombard)

PLAY VIDEO

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.

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)

World ocean currents map

Diatom genus Chaetoceros (Photo : Sophie Marro)

Villefranche-sur-Mer in stormy weather, winter 2011 - Photo : J.-M. Grisoni

Ciliate (Photo : Fabien Lombard)

Foraminifera (Photo : Fabien Lombard)

Dinoflagellate Ceratium praelongum (Photo : Sophie Marro)

Villefranche-sur-Mer in stormy weather, winter 2011 - Photo : J.-M. Grisoni

Ocean color satellites travel around the Earth at an altitude of about 700 to 800 km.

PLAY ANIMATION

Illustration in synthesized images of the seasons of the ocean: a year from the Arctic - Animation Clement Fontana

PLAY VIDEO

Colony of dinoflagellates Ceratium hexacanthum. In the video, one can observe the movement of the flagella. (Video : Sophie Marro)