Rare phenomenon of glow-in-the-dark sea captured in first image

A crew member on-board the super-yacht Ganesha witnessed the mysterious glow of the phenomenon known as a 'milky sea' back in 2019. It has been captured in an image for the first time.

What is a 'milky sea?'

For hundreds of years, mariners have recalled navigating surreal night-time waters, illuminated by a mysterious glow. However, the phenomenon know as 'milky seas' has long evaded scientific research due to their remote, transient and infrequent nature, as reported byThe Guardian.

According to Steven Miller, a professor of atmospheric science at Colorado State University in Fort Collins:

I’d say there’s only a handful of people currently alive who have seen one. They’re just not very common – maybe up to one or two per year globally – and they’re not typically close to shore, so you have to be in the right place at the right time.

Milky seas are thought to be caused by bioluminescent bacteria communicating with one another, possibly as a result of changes in ocean currents caused by atmospheric conditions. David Gruber, professor of biology at City University of New York, told Newsweek:

Milky Seas or Burning Seas is the result of trillions upon trillions upon trillions of luminescent bacteria with each cell emitting a relatively faint glow. Yet, when combined, their glow can be seen from space using remote sensing and blooms over 15,000 square kilometers have been witnessed.

First photographic evidence

In July 2021, Miller published images captured by US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellites in 2019 of a possible bioluminescent eventsouth of Java, Indonesia which spanned over 100,000 square kmin Nature Scientific Report. It was the media coverage of this research that spurred Naomi McKinnon, a Ganesha crew member, to contact Miller and describe what the crew saw that night in 2019.

The Ganesha entered the patch of luminescent water between Lombok, Indonesia, and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands in the east Indian Ocean. One crew member said:

There is no moon, the sea is apparently full of plankton, but the bow wave is black. It gives the impression of sailing on snow.

While another said 'both the color and intensity of the glow was akin to glow-in-the-dark stars/stickers.' The crew took images of the milky sea on a smartphone and digital camera, which are the first photographic evidence of the phenomenon. These, and the crew's recollections, confirm the satellite's detection. Miller said:

To this point it’s all been word of mouth, dating back to the earliest times of the trade ships in the 18th century. They’ve all kind of described a similar thing, and the pictures are consistent with what they’ve described – it’s a kind of uniform, ethereal glow, almost a foggy appearance, very disorienting.

Miller’s latest findings were published on Monday 11 July in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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