Ocean Data Viewer

This dataset shows mean global sea surface chlorophyll-a concentration (mgChl-a/m3) averaged for the period from 2009 to 2013. It was created using remotely-sensed images from NASA’s (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) Ocean Color database (http://oceancolor.gsfc.nasa.gov).

The concentration of chlorophyll pigments (the photosynthetic pigments of phytoplankton) is often considered as an index of biological productivity as productive surface waters attract marine organisms that benefit from phytoplankton blooms and, in turn, larger marine predators. Any changes in the location, duration and extent of highly productive surface waters is therefore expected to cause matching changes in the distribution, abundance and migration patterns of marine mammals and large fish.