The Milky Sea phenomenon, which makes the seas glow to the edge of the horizon, remains impressive and a mystery, especially for sailors who have created myths and legends.

“The sea from horizon to horizon in all directions took on a glow of phosphorus … The moon had just set and the whole sea was a lot of shades lighter than the sky,” wrote J. Brunskill, an officer on a ship called SS Ixion.

Nearly 10 years later, another crew on a boat named MV Westmorland experienced a similar incident in the Arabic Sea as it sailed through a “large area of ​​biolinity”, according to the commander of the ship, Pw Price.

“The sea … was green and so glamorous,” he wrote in a letter in 1976.

The phenomenon was named Milky sea Of the sailors who were lucky enough to meet it in the oceans.

What do scientists say

Scientists say they are one step closer to prediction, that is, to calculate when and where these mysterious phosphorescent stars will appear in the sea.

Justin Hudson, a student in the Department of Atmospheric Science at the Colorado State University, gathered over 400 well -known views of the phenomenon to create a new database that will help scientists one day bring a research vessel to a point to study it.

“I hope that with this database more people will be able to start studying the ‘milky seas’ and start unraveling this mystery that has existed for centuries,” Hudson told CCN, who is the head of the new research.

“Milky Sea” could be a sign of a very good, healthy ecosystem or even a sign of an unhealthy ecosystem, and we just don’t know it, “he added. “If we manage to predict when and where it happens we can start answering these questions.”

Biolinaria bacteria

Observers often describe “Milky Sea” like the light of the stars placed on the ceilings of the children’s rooms.

The glow that emits the phenomenon has been reported by sailors that it is strong enough to read in the dark.

These events, which can last for months, extend to 100,000 square kilometers wide and older can be seen from space, according to a study.

Although scientists do not know exactly why this rare glow appears, it is likely to be a by -product of high concentrations of tiny biofatore bacteria called Vibrio Harveyi, according to the study.

This case is based on a random meeting of 1985 by a research vessel that had collected and tried a sample of water during an “milky sea” event.

“But besides that, the conditions for how they form and how they started to make the whole ocean shine so are still very unknown,” said Dr. Steven Miller, a professor in the Department of Atmospheric Science at the Colorado State University. Miller, who has studied the phenomenon for decades, was the main author of a 2021 study who found that the largest “milky seas” could be detected through satellites.