Radiolarians (Photo : Fabien Lombard)
Sea Urchin - Planktonic Origins
Barely visible to the naked eye, sea urchin larvae grow and transform into bottom-dwelling urchins.
Dinoflagellates Ceratium platycorne var platycorne (Photo : Sophie Marro)
Dinoflagellate Ceratium gravidum (Photo : Sophie Marro)
Siphonophore (Photo : Fabien Lombard)
Tunicata Pyrosoma (Photo : Fabien Lombard)
Velella - Planktonic Vessels
Colonies of polyps transported by prevailing winds, velella drift at the surface of warm seas.
Acantharia (Photo : Fabien Lombard)
Phytoplankton bloom observed by the ocean color sensor MODIS onboard NASA satellite Terra in May 2010. The bloom spreads broadly in the North Atlantic from Iceland to the Bay of Biscay - Source : NASA's Earth Observatory (http:/earthobservatory.nasa.gov)
Dinoflagellate Ceratium macroceros var macroceros (Photo : Sophie Marro)
Phytoplankton bloom observed in the Barents Sea (North of Norway) in August 2010 by the ocean color sensor MODIS onboard NASA satellite Aqua. Changes in ocean color result from modifications in the phytoplankton composition and concentration. The green colors are likely associated with the presence of diatoms. The shades of light blue result from the occurrence of coccolithophores, phytoplankton organisms that strongly reflect light due to their chalky shells - Source : NASA's Earth Observatory (http:/earthobservatory.nasa.gov)
Mollusk (Photo : Fabien Lombard)
The research vessel "James COOK"
Diatoms - Life in glass houses
Champions of photosynthesis, these unicellular organisms appeared at the time of dinosaurs.They produce a quarter of the oxygen we breathe.
Instrumented buoy (Photo : Emilie Diamond)
The research vessel "Marion Dufresne"
Rosette used to collect seawater samples during a scientific cruise in the South Pacific Ocean. During the austral summer, the amount of chlorophyll a is so low that the water becomes deep blue, almost purple. (Photo : Joséphine Ras)
