A NASA satellite has captured images of giant turquoise whirlpools in the Black Sea

A NASA satellite named PACE has detected massive blue and turquoise eddies in the Black Sea caused by a massive bloom of microscopic algae—coccolithophores. 

According to the Hydrometeorological Center for the Black and Azov Seas, these organisms are covered with tiny calcium carbonate plates, which, when present in large numbers, reflect sunlight and give the water its bright color. 

Experts note that such blooms are typical for late spring and early summer, whereas during the colder months, diatoms with silica shells predominate in the waters, causing the water to appear darker. Satellite monitoring currently allows scientists to study marine processes in areas where ship-based expeditions are impossible due to ongoing hostilities.

At the same time, scientists are documenting the recovery of the Black Sea ecosystem following the bombing of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant in June 2023. According to Viktor Demchenko, deputy director of the Institute of Marine Biology at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, despite predictions of long-term negative consequences due to large-scale desalination and chemical pollution, the sea has proven to be much more resilient. The most acute phase of the environmental crisis lasted only a few months, and within a year, the ecosystem had practically returned to its previous natural state.

Source: Hydrometeorological Center of the Black and Azov Seas.

Over the past month, 56 dead dolphins have been found along the coast of the Tuzly Estuaries National Nature Park. Park officials called this number unprecedented and linked the mass death of cetaceans to the consequences of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine.

In the Odesa region, on the coast of the Tuzly Estuaries National Park, dead relict sturgeon were found; according to scientists, are the first to be affected by toxic pollution of the marine environment linked to Russia’s war against Ukraine.