The PACE satellite distinguishes phytoplankton communities from space

April 12 () –

NASA has published the first image from orbit of the OCI (Ocean Color Instrument) instrument on board the PACE satellitewhich allows for the first time to differentiate phytoplankton communities.

This first image published by OCI identifies two different communities of these microscopic marine organisms in the ocean off the coast of South Africa on October 28, 2024. The center panel of this image shows Synechococcus in pink and picoeukaryotes in green. The left panel of the image shows a natural color view of the ocean and the right panel shows the concentration of chlorophyll-a, a photosynthetic pigment used to identify the presence of phytoplankton.

NASA is already publicly distributing science-quality data from its newest Earth observation satellite, providing first-of-its-kind measurements of ocean health, air quality, and the effects of a changing climate. reported in a statement.

The Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud and Ocean Ecosystem (PACE) satellite was launched on February 8, and has undergone several weeks of in-orbit testing of the spacecraft and instruments to ensure proper operation and data quality.

PACE data will allow researchers to study microscopic life in the ocean and particles in the air, advancing our understanding of issues such as fishery health, harmful algal blooms, air pollution and smoke. forest fires. With PACE, scientists can also investigate how the ocean and atmosphere interact with each other and are affected by climate change.

While previous ocean color satellites could only detect a handful of wavelengths, PACE is detecting more than 200 wavelengths. With this extensive spectral range, scientists can identify specific phytoplankton communities. Different species play different roles in the ecosystem and carbon cycle (most are benign, but some are harmful to human health), Therefore, distinguishing phytoplankton communities is a key mission of the satellite.

Additionally, PACE's two multi-angle polarimeters, HARP2 and SPEXone, measure polarized light reflected from clouds and tiny particles in the atmosphere. These particles, known as aerosols, They can range from dust to smoke, sea foam and more.

With their data, scientists will be able to measure cloud properties, which are important for understanding climate, and monitor, analyze and identify atmospheric aerosols to better inform the public about air quality. Scientists will also be able to learn how aerosols interact with clouds and influence their formation, which is essential for creating accurate climate models.