Satellite Imagery Shows Southern California’s Toxic Algal Blooms From Space

A strange phenomenon occurs on the west coasts of Earth’s continents, in which wind and associated currents send surface waters offshore and deep-sea water floods in to take their place. This is known as upwelling, and along with it, that deep-sea water brings nitrogen and phosphorus. Those two elements are superfood for phytoplankton, or the basis of the food chain. Regular infusions of nitrogen and phosphorus are part and parcel of a healthy ecosystem, but too much, and algal blooms become a little too prolific.