Space Image of the Day Gallery (May 2015)

By Tom Chao
published

Currents

Norman Kuring, NASA Ocean Color Group

Friday, May 29, 2015: This composite image depicts the northwest Atlantic Ocean on May 14, 2015, with New England and the Canadian Maritimes in the background. During the spring season, increasing sunlight, nutrient runoff from land and upwelling from the deep, and changeable atmospheric weather contribute to the colored patterning of the ocean surface. At left, circles are traced out by light green phytoplankton, plant-like species, near the surface. The underwater plateau George’s Bank lies at the center of the image, below the Gulf of Maine. The Canadian province of Nova Scotia is at right. The Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) sensor on the Suomi NPP satellite provided the data for the image, released May 26.

— Tom Chao

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Tom Chao
Tom Chao
Tom Chao has contributed to SPACE.com as a producer and writer since 2000. As a writer and editor, he has worked for the Voyager Company, Time Inc. New Media, HarperCollins and Worth Publishers. He has a bachelor’s degree in Cinema Production from the University of Southern California, and a master’s degree from NYU’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study. To find out what his latest project is, you can follow Tom on Google+.