Weekly Photo Challenge: Plankton Rainbow

Plankton Rainbow

This week’s challenge is all about forces of nature, so I thought I’d post something about light and its effects of animals. Here’s another Exploratorium exhibit. Basically, zooplankton can distinguish different colors of light. In the ocean, it helps them swim toward the surface, where their food is located. Blue and green lights shine deeper in the water than the other colors, hence why the plankton are attracted to these ones; they think the sun is shining through the water, and that they’re entering the photic zone for a meal. Large version available here.

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Depth, Or: Kilauea Panorama

Kilauea Panorama

This week’s challenge is all about depth. It reminds me of the afternoon I spent at Kilauea on the Big Island. It rained for about 90% of the time I was out there, but the skies cleared up long enough for a glimpse of the volcano’s sprawling range and depth. This was taken at the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.