For the first time, an orbiting instrument will be able to monitor phytoplankton from space. The following sequence of images showing the Arabian Sea demonstrates this ability. The third image in this sequence showswhere phytoplankyton are not photosynthisizing efficiently. The blue areas show high levels of photosynthisis. Where the phytoplankton is struggling, it is converting sunlight into fluorescence instead of growth and appears red.
All plants fluoresce.
Hold an ordinary houseplant under a black light and it glows red. Florescent intensity is dependent on how successfully a plant is using sunlight. Plants in environmentally challenging places will convert that light into radiative energy, or fluorescence. The greater the glow, the less efficiently the plant is photosynthesizing. A Simulation -A researcher places a vial of water saturated with phytoplankton in front of a high intensity lamp.