As it turns out there is a fascinating scientific reason for this. The way in which light interacts with water and, more specifically, with things in the water, is part of the reason. Have a question of your own? Send it to us using askusatoday on Twitter. Water is a clear liquid. But If a body of water is deep enough that light isn't reflected off the bottom, it appears blue.
Depth and the ocean bottom also influence whether the surface appears a dark blue or light blue. What colors do you mix to make ocean blue? The color ocean blue is achieved through a mix of the colors cobalt, phthalo and green.
Why are some seas blue and others green? Oceans appear blue because the sunlight scatters across the molecules. Light from the sun is made up of a spectrum of different wavelengths.
When the water in the ocean appears green, it is usually a sign of microscopic algae in the water. The algae grows near the surface of the ocean and can give hues of green. Why are some parts of the sea darker? In deep water, the sun's rays are entirely absorbed by the particles present in the water itself, as sediments are located way down the ocean. Thus, deeper parts of the ocean have a darker hue to them. Cite This! Try Our Crossword Puzzle! What Is the Missing Number?
However, when it comes to the Caribbean, you should be thinking about one thing above all else — salt. Many people believe the water in the Caribbean is blue and clear due to the salt content.
While salt certainly contributes to the clarity of the water, there are a few other factors that also play a role. The Caribbean is such a light a shade of blue due to the tendency of the Caribbean coast to scatter sunlight. The fact that the sand is light colored and the water is relatively shallow also makes the water appear turquoise. Another element that makes water appear blue is the absence of phytoplankton, or algae, which tend to proliferate in water and absorb green light, thereby making water look more green.
Surprisingly, for all of the above reasons, we as humans perceive Caribbean water as being significantly clearer than water anywhere else in the world. This superior clarity has a lot to do with the tidal currents of the area. These currents prevent the layers of sediment usually found in other bodies of water from collecting at the bottom of territorial Caribbean waters, meaning that most of these waters do not have a deep oceanic floor. Providenciales is a smaller island in Turks and Caicos, and yet it has the highest concentration of sand bars in the Caribbean.
This means the island has an incredible amount of companies that offer different activities in water sports. And since Providenciales is a smaller island, it has fewer tourists and more space to accommodate them and their requirements. The substances beneath the water are primarily free-floating plankton but can be any number of other suspended particles.
These substances increase the scattering of light so less light is reflected. Plankton uses a green element called chlorophyll in order to produce carbon via photosynthesis. Since plankton prefers to absorb red and blue portions of the light spectrum it then reflects green light vs blue.
In other words:. Admittedly, this is my translated version. Most of the sunlight that hits the ocean is absorbed, especially in the deepest areas. Deep ocean water has no reflection of the seafloor so red wavelengths are absorbed and water appears dark.
However, in coastal areas, the water can also appear dark. And it can also look murky and brown. This is because there are more substances such as plankton, silt, other particles and even living organisms ocean animals floating around causing water to appear cloudy. In contrast, mountain lakes and streams often appear crystal clear due to the absence of suspended particles. It was a bit more difficult to find agreement on the clearest waters in the Caribbean.
In my research, I learned that plankton is essential for sea life survival. This made me feel a bit guilty. Well, not anymore. Over the years the sea creatures in this region have had to adapt and evolve in order to survive.
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