Left, SeaWiFS ocean color image of Monterey Bay and the outer waters of the California Current System, captured in Jan. 1998. The blue areas denote low chlorophyll levels while the yellow and red areas signify high levels of chlorophyll. Contrast the winter image on the left to the image on the right, captured in May 1998, during the spring upwelling period. Satellite observations can provide insight to the marine biosphere due to their large area of coverage and frequency of observations.
Ocean color satellites quantify key properties on a global basis.