An area of the remote Southern Ocean that’s long confused ocean color satellites by reflecting large amounts of turquoise-colored light appears to be full of silica-rich diatoms, according to a new study. Surprisingly, there is also evidence in these polar waters of coccolithophores, a type of marine microalgae with elaborate calcium carbonate shells that plays a critical role in the global carbon cycle.
New study illuminates how diatoms thrive in—and light up—the Southern Ocean
