A few days ago the Bosphorus Strait and a greater part of the Western Black Sea underwent a sudden change of color, transforming its waters from deep blue to milky turquoise. According to specialists, this phenomenon results from expansion of microscopic plankton in the sea.
This abrupt transformation of water color sparked alarm among local residents. Some suggested there had been a pollution spill, while others speculated it could be linked to an earthquake that rocked the Aegean Sea on June, 12. Turkish environmental scientists, however, reassured the public that the cause was a surge in numbers of Emiliania huxleyi microorganism, also known as Ehux. The change in the Strait’s color was attributed to fluorescent plankton laminae creating a brightening effect from a distance.
The changing color across the Bosphorus was also captured in imagery taken from NASA’s satellites. The first signs of rapid phytoplankton bloom in the Black sea were registered by a spectral radiometer onboard Aqua satellite as early as May, 29.