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

Copepode Coryceide  (Photo : Fabien Lombard)

Elephant seal equipped with a sensor

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 Coscinodiscus (Photo : Sophie Marro)

Instrumented buoy (Photo : David Luquet)

Ctenaria Eucharis multicornis  (Photo : Fabien Lombard)

Ctenaria Beroe ovata  (Photo : Fabien Lombard)

Foraminifera Orbulina universa  and mollusk larva (Photo : Fabien Lombard)

Squid larva (Photo : Fabien Lombard)

Ostracodes  (Photo : Fabien Lombard)

Rosette for collecting seawater samples

Ctenaria Lampetia pancerina  (Photo : Fabien Lombard)

Diatom species Odontella mobiliensis (Photo : Sophie Marro)

Siphonophores (Photo : Fabien Lombard)

Deployment of a profiling float (Photo : Jean-Jacques Pangrazi)

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)