A year from the Antarctic

PLAY ANIMATION

The profiling float

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

Posters

The research vessel "James COOK"

Rosette for collecting seawater samples

PLAY ANIMATION

Drifting profiling floats in the Atlantic

Rosette used to collect seawater samples during a scientific cruise in the South Pacific Ocean. During the austral summer, the amount of chlorophyll a is so low that the water becomes deep blue, almost purple. (Photo : Joséphine Ras)

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)

Diatom genus Chaetoceros (Photo : Sophie Marro)

Instrumented buoy (Photo : David Luquet)

PLAY VIDEO

Plankton
Plankton are a multitude of living organisms adrift in the currents.Our food, our fuel, and the air we breathe originate in plankton.

Préparation des mésocosmes sur le ponton du laboratoire d'Océanographie de Villefranche lors de l'expérience menée en rade de Villefranche en février 2013 (© L. Maugendre, LOV)

Surface chlorophyll a concentration in the Mediterranean Sea.

Siphonophore Forskalia formosa (Photo : Fabien Lombard)

Vue sous-marine d'un groupe de mésocosmes montrant la structure de flottaison en surface (© Stareso)

World ocean currents map

Profiling float (Photo : David Luquet)

Foraminifera Ruber (Photo : Fabien Lombard)