Algal Bloom Off Brazil Coast
On January 19, 2014, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer on NASA's Aqua satellite captured this image of a bloom of microscopic organisms off the southeastern coast of Brazil. The coastal cities of Sao Paolo (upper center) and Rio de Janeiro (upper right) can be seen through strands of white clouds. Biologists working in the area have identified the bloom as Myrionecta rubra (previously known as Mesodinium rubrum), a fast-swimming ciliate protist. Though it is not a true phytoplankter, it is an autotroph; that is, it makes its own food. Myrionecta fuels itself by photosynthesis, but it does so by ingesting chloroplasts (chlorophyll-bearing plastids) from other algae.
Size: 4000px × 4000px
Photo credit: © Photo Researchers / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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