Mystery of the Sargasso Sea Solved

Mystery of the Sargasso Sea Solved

Swirling ocean currents carry the nutrients that fuel mysterious blooms of microscopic plants that have been found in otherwise barren regions in the middle of Earth's oceans, scientists found.

For years, scientists were puzzled by the vast blooms of phytoplankton that erupted in the middle of the Sargasso Sea, for instance, a mid-ocean region that is warmer, saltier, bluer and clearer than most other parts of the North Atlantic. Because of these conditions, it was thought that the region was the desert of the ocean, with few signs of life.

But observations showed that oxygen and other elements were being consumed at a higher rate than theories and models could account for, leading scientist to think there must be some nutrient source fueling the blooms.