Blue-Green Glow

Last night Libby and I decided to go and check out the Pacific's new-found bioluminescence. It was well worth the drive to Huntington Beach!

We got there around 9, and left a little before 10, so we weren't there that long, but it was very cool while we were there. At first, I didn't know what to expect. I hadn't ever seen it before, although I remember attempting to see it with my family a long time ago. That time, I remember, we figured we'd been stymied by the bright lights of the beach. So, this time, I decided to go to Bolsa Chica, which I figured would be a darker beach than the main city beach. It was darker, except for the moonlight. That's something you could only avoid by staying up really really late, though, and that's not something I'm interested in doing.

Anyway, it was really cool. Not every wave would glow, but a lot of them did. At first, most of the glow was way out at sea, any time there was a white cap, it would be blue-green. But, we walked down the beach a way, and we started seeing breakers glowing green. Since the violence is what excites the plankton, the color would race along the waves, right where it was folding over on itself. It created the illusion of surfing, which was cool.

There were a few times, after we'd been there awhile, that the min-breakers that form between the onrushing waves and the receding wash from a previous wave (in the very shallowest water) would suddenly glow bright green, right up next to us. That was cool, too.

Finally, I filled a bottle with the water. If you went somewhere completely dark and shook it, it would glow green, too! We brought the bottle home with us, and took it to show the roommates. The dinoflagellettes die without air, and then they'll stink, so when I was done with it, I poured it out into the toilet, which was actually really exciting. The froth it formed as it hit the bowl was brilliant green, and when I flushed it, the whole bowl turned a pale green as it went down the tubes.

Here's an OC Register article on the phenomenon.