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This sequence illustrates the vast size and intensity of the ocean's biological rebound from El Niño. Satellite imagery from NASA's Sea-viewing Wide-Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) instrument showed nearly a complete lack of plankton along the equatorial Pacific during El Niño. The cool waters associated with La Niña brought nutrients from the below the surface and enabled an enormous plankton bloom (shown in green). View A Sequence of Weekly (Eight-day averages) Images from September 1997 to September 2000 View A Sequence of Monthly Images from September 1997 to June 1999 REBOUND FROM EL NIÑO The SeaWiFS data revealed surprisingly low levels of plankton coinciding with El Niño's strongest phase. The cooler waters associated with La Niña brought a huge plankton bloom along the equator (shown in green).See the 22 month Movie Sequence (5.7 MB) EXPLOSION IN THE GALAPAGOS 
SeaWiFS documented the rapid demise of El Niño in the waters around the Galapagos Islands. The images show a explosion in plankton growth as the warm El Niño waters blamed for choking off essential ocean nutrients are replaced by deep cold upwelled waters. The false color images, which document plankton concentrations a period from May 9 - 24 1998, show that life in the region to the west archipelago has returned in remarkable abundance. High concentrations are shown red. Areas occluded by clouds are shown in white. View Image Above at Higher Resolutions THE CARBON CONNECTION - PHYSICAL PROCESSES By understanding the magnitude of the huge plankton bloom, scientists were able to calculate how changes in biologic activity caused massive changes in carbon dioxide. Scientists determined that El Niño cut the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere by 700 million metric tons. The deep ocean waters normally release large amounts of carbon dioxide. During El Niño, the carbon-dioxide-rich waters were held below the surface.
THE CARBON CONNECTION - BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES Nutrients in the cooler waters associated with La Niña were brought to the surface and helped fuel a huge plankton bloom. This animation shows how the tiny plants can lock up carbon when they die.THE 1997-98 EL NIÑO 
The 1997-98 El Niño was truly a global event. The sequence shows a superposition of sea surface temperature anomalies on anomalies of the sea surface elevation. Warmer than normal temperatures are shown in red and cooler than normal temperatures are shown in blue. View Image Above at Higher Resolutions 3-D EL NIÑO
View Images Above at Higher Resolutions PHYTOPLANKTON -- UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL Images of phytoplankton and zooplankton. Plankton are lowest rungs on the oceanic food chain.BUOY ARRAY Scientists also used data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Tropical Atmosphere Ocean array. Buoy Array MovieEYE IN THE SKY - SEAWIFS 
NASA's Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-View Sensor (SeaWiFS) gave researchers an unprecedented view into the extreme biological effects of this El Niño/La Niña event
Read More About The
SeaWifs Project
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