Phytoplankton in the North Sea

Phytoplankton and sediments in the southern North Sea

Suspended Matter is transported from West to East, forming horizontal waves in a north-south direction, i.e., perpendicular to its propagation, because their distribution is influenced by the bottom topography. The sea floor lies no more than 50 m below the surface.

Adjacent to this sediment plume, is a large phytoplankton bloom, already visible in the RGB in darker colours south of the brighter sediment loaded waters. The area covered by phytoplankton in the bottom image is about 5,100 – 5,300 km².