Why does the sea glow? Black Sea. Water from light

The majestic spectacle of the burning sea has long captured the imagination of people. The ancient Greek scientist Aristotle (382–322 BC) and the Roman writer Pliny (23 or 24–79) wrote about it, seafarers regularly noted it in ship’s journals, biologists were interested in it, and it inspired writers. Over the course of several centuries, thousands of observations have accumulated, described with great accuracy. Here, for example, is a description of the glow of the sea by the English naturalist Charles Darwin (1809–1882): “Once on a very dark night, when we were sailing somewhat south of La Plata, the sea presented an amazing and beautiful sight. A fresh wind was blowing, and the entire surface of the sea, which during the day had been completely covered with foam, now glowed with a faint light. The ship drove waves in front of it, as if made of liquid phosphorus, and a milky light stretched in its wake. As far as the eye could see, the crest of each wave glowed, and the sky near the horizon, reflecting the sparkle of these bluish lights, was not as dark as the sky above.”

Soviet writer Konstantin Paustovsky tells a different story about the burning sea: “The sea is burning! I looked back. I still cannot imagine everything that happened next as reality. In such cases, people say that reality is like a dream, but this is not true. It was better than the most extraordinary dream. The sea was burning. Its bottom seemed to consist of crystal, illuminated from below by moonlight. The light spread to the horizon, and where darkness always thickened, the sky sparkled, as if covered in silver fog. The wide light slowly dimmed. But after a short darkness the sea again turned into an unfamiliar starry sky, thrown at our feet. Myriads of stars, hundreds of Milky Ways floated under water. They either sank, dying out, to the very bottom, or flared up, floating to the surface of the water. The eye distinguished two lights: motionless, slowly swaying in the water, and another light, all in motion, cutting through the water with quick purple flashes. It was awakened fish rushing about under the water... White fire was running onto the beach, and the entire bottom was visible. The stones and cans lying under the water were covered with a thin fiery dew... We were present at one of the most majestic phenomena in the world.”

It has now been established that the source of this extraordinary spectacle, called the burning sea by the British, is small marine organisms, of which more than 800 species are known. Bacteria, nocturnal moths, ctenophores, jellyfish, some marine worms, crustaceans, and mollusks are capable of emitting light.

The glow of organisms - bioluminescence (literally - “living glow”) can be intracellular and extracellular. The first type of glow is more common. It is characteristic of masses of single-celled organisms and bacteria. In higher crustaceans or fish, it is due to the presence of special organs - photophores. For example, some squids and shrimps exhibit extracellular luminescence, throwing out luminous mucus as a curtain.

As studies by biochemists have shown, luminescence occurs mainly during the oxidation of luciferin by luciferase. It is a complex compound that has all the properties of proteins. Luciferase is a specific bioluminescence factor and accelerates the oxidation of luciferin by approximately 100 times. The substance luciferin is a derivative of benzothiazole, its formula is as follows - C 21 H 28 N 62 HC. These two substances are contained in special cells of organisms.

With bioluminescence, the energy of the chemical reaction that causes the glow is almost completely converted into light without the expense of heat. Its luminous efficiency is significantly higher than all known electrical and thermal light sources. The efficiency of bioluminescence exceeds 90%.

The glow of the sea almost always does not arise independently, but is excited by some external cause - the arrival of a tsunami, waves, or the impact of the surf on the shore. The movement of a ship or boat in water containing organisms capable of glowing leaves a long luminous trail. A similar light trail can be observed in moonless, calm weather as dolphins, swordfish and large tuna rush rapidly through the water. The most mysterious is the so-called figured glow. It often manifests itself in the form of strange spinning wheels. It is rare to see a shaped glow, so navigators consider it necessary to record it in the logbook as an unusual phenomenon encountered at sea.

From the Danish ship "Bintang" on June 18–19, 1909, waves of light were observed traveling from west to east in the Strait of Malacca (at 3°20′N and 100°20′E). Gradually they took the form of long rays emanating from a common center on or beyond the horizon and rotating clockwise. The rays were not straight, but concave in the direction of rotation. The entire system of rays moved, decreasing the rotation speed, and finally disappeared. This unusual phenomenon was observed for about 15 minutes. The system was completely correct; its boundaries could not be seen. The width of the rays reached approximately two meters, the dark spaces were twice as wide. The glow was noticeable in the water and outside the rays. Large spots of it flared up when the beam touched them. The beam followed one after another in a second. After the disappearance of the rotating stripes, the flashes of luminous spots remained regular for some time, as if rays that had become invisible were passing through them.

There are many descriptions of vortex-like “luminous wheels” in the English magazine “Marine Observer” for the years 1929–1936.

Similar phenomena were often observed in the 50-60s of our century. In 1973, the sailors of the Soviet motor ship Anton Makarenko in the Strait of Malacca were lucky enough to see a wonderful performance with a figurative glow. According to eyewitnesses, spots of light on the surface of the ocean either stretched out into stripes, then connected, forming a circle rotating counterclockwise, and then, after 40–50 minutes, everything suddenly disappeared. The crew of another Soviet scientific vessel, the Vladimir Vorobyov, observed the rotation underwater of 8 radial white rays 150–200 m long in the Bay of Bengal. They probably came from some large object that was recorded by an echo sounder under the keel. The ocean depth at this location was 170 m, and the light source was 20 meters from the surface. The movement of the light rays continued for about half an hour. Then it suddenly stopped. The water temperature overboard was +26C°; no traces of plankton accumulation were found. It is interesting to note that as soon as a glow appeared on the water, the sleeping sailors woke up from an inexplicable feeling of anxiety (“Week”, 1977). There is a unique case of observing a “devil’s carousel” under water.

Oceanologists in Sevastopol told optical physicist A. Kuzovkin how, while underwater in a bathyscaphe, they saw a giant wheel-shaped object with the diameter of a ten-story building. At first, it stood vertically in the water column, and then took a horizontal position and, rotating, began to move away from observers (“Echo of the Planet,” 1990).

The rotation speed of the “luminous wheels”, as a rule, reaches several tens of revolutions per minute. But sometimes witnesses recorded much higher speeds, up to 100 rpm and higher. For example, in 1967, from the Dutch ship “Weverbank”, which was located in the Gulf of Thailand, it was recorded that light rays passed past it with an interval of 4–5 s. According to available observations, sources of “luminous wheels” are capable of moving quickly in the water column. And sometimes observers of this mysterious spectacle had the impression that their rays could pass through the hull of the ship without encountering an obstacle. The largest number of descriptions of rotating “light wheels” occur in the Andaman Sea. Sailors of the last century experienced a sense of fear at the sight of “luminous wheels” moving along the surface of the sea. They could not understand the essence of this mysterious phenomenon and therefore associated their rotation with the manifestation of occult forces. In Europe it was called the “devil’s carousel”, and in the East - “Buddha’s wheels”. In a later period of time, there were attempts to connect the nature of luminous circles with a giant sea serpent, space aliens, and even with a highly developed underwater civilization, supposedly inhabiting the inaccessible depths of the ocean. In recent years, a fairly convincing explanation seemed to be found for these stunning light patterns.

The German oceanologist K. Calle, having analyzed more than two thousand observations of the figure glow, hypothesized that the reason for it is the highlighting of tiny organisms at the surface of the sea, disturbed by shock waves that occur during movements and displacements of layers on the seabed. Shock waves are transmitted into the water column, and a kind of interference pattern is created on the surface of the sea, where luminous organisms accumulate. If seismic sources at the bottom of the sea change their position, then it begins to move.

And yet it cannot fully explain the rectilinear nature of the rays, the symmetry of the “wheels” and the uniformity of their rotation.

In addition, as already noted, water samples taken by researchers from the vessel “Vladimir Vorobyov” immediately after observing the “devil’s carousel” showed the absence of luminous microorganisms in it.

Therefore, even today we can safely say: “light wheels” in the sea are a mystery that has not been fully solved. It may very well be that they are the result of man-made activity of a highly developed civilization hiding in the inaccessible depths of the World Ocean. This assumption is supported by a strange discovery made by the deep-sea submersible Squid of the Australian Navy in 1997. The device examined the Bellingshausen Basin near Tierra del Fuego, and its movie camera captured an underwater city or factory above the bottom at an altitude of about 35 meters (the depth of the basin is about 6000 m). The "houses" or "enclosures" were oval in shape and emitted a strong internal light. Clearly defined contours allowed experts to completely rule out the possibility of phosphorescence of rotting remains of organic origin, such as squid.

The film was carefully studied by specialists from the University of Melbourne and the Royal Institute of Oceanology. Scientists' conclusion: these are artificial structures. But a hastily organized re-survey of the same area showed nothing. Thus, two versions arise: either the buildings changed their location, or the “objects” were blacked out - the lights were turned off.

Notes:

Water from light

The night has gone deaf. No matter how much I listened, I could not distinguish a single sound. Occasionally it seemed that I heard the careful splash of water near a coastal stone, similar to a hidden sigh.

I listened and peered into the darkness for a long time. Long minutes passed, but the sound did not repeat.

Sometimes I heard the rustling of birds flying high above my head. I knew that the seagulls and cormorants had been sleeping for a long time, and could not understand the origin of this sound. The thought involuntarily came to mind that the stars were rustling.

Smetanina and I had to study all the sounds of the night against our will.

We arrived by tram to Balaklava. All day we wandered around this city of red rocks, cats and old men talking near schooners pulled ashore, supported by limestone blocks.

We walked on the nets spread across the entire width of the embankment, like gray carpets. In the bay, in the thickets of sea lettuce, herds of anchovies swayed.

The high sky with a single cloud like a bunch of grapes was reflected in the water.

In the niches of the houses, instead of statues, there were dry oleanders and wormwood brooms. Dim lights shone from the windows onto the water, which turned black next to the thresholds of the houses.

In the evening the current stopped. We fell into a trap - the tram did not run. We had to spend the night in Balaklava.

A compassionate Greek woman gave us a room in a house that looked like a narrow fortress tower. The balcony hung just above the water.

I didn’t want to sleep with sour cream. She was sitting on the balcony, wrapped in a blanket taken from the bed. We were silent. I noticed that Smetanina, despite her impetuous, cheerful disposition, was generally silent a lot.

The silence of the night did not last long. When my hearing became accustomed to the silence, I began to discern the grumbling of water in the underwater caves. The sea muttered in its sleep and was angry at someone who did not let him sleep.

The lights in the city went out. Only the green lantern at the entrance to the lagoon smoldered no brighter than a phosphorus match.

I looked at Smetanina, but did not see her face. Suddenly, perhaps because my eyes were tired, it seemed to me that her face was lit up with cold fire. I clearly distinguished a clean forehead, eyebrows and anxious eyes.

Smetanina jumped up, grabbed my hand and shouted:

- The sea is burning!

The sea was burning. It seemed that its bottom consisted of crystal, illuminated from below by moonlight.

The light spread to the horizon, and where darkness always thickens, the sky sparkled, as if covered in silver fog.

The wide light slowly dimmed. But after a short darkness the sea again turned into an unfamiliar starry sky, thrown at our feet. Myriads of stars, hundreds of Milky Ways floated under water. They either sank, dying out, to the very bottom, or flared up, floating to the surface of the water.

The eye distinguished two lights: a motionless light, slowly swaying in the water, and another light, all in motion, cutting through the water with quick purple flashes. These were awakened fish darting about under the water.

Sour cream dragged me along the dark stone stairs down to the water.

White fire ran onto the beach, and the entire bottom was visible. Stones and cans lying under the water were covered with a thin fiery dew.

Sour cream scooped water into her palm. Jets of liquid magical light flowed through the fingers, splashing. The water illuminated her face, pale with excitement.

We were present at one of the most magnificent phenomena in the world. Smetanina was happy like a child. Her wet hands glowed in the darkness for a long time.

The sea went out as quickly as it had flared up.

Until dawn we sat on the glassed-in terrace and talked about various sea wonders.

The lamp illuminated an oleograph on the wall depicting the Greek cruiser Averov. This was the famous “Averov” - a target for constant ridicule of the Black Sea fishermen and the pride of every Greek. The fishermen shouted that the Averov had wooden anchors. I myself in Kerch witnessed a fierce fight over this between fishermen and Greek bootblacks.

The lamp illuminated the white walls, centipedes, lacquered crab boxes and dried bouquets.

We talked about the phosphorescence of the sea. In autumn, myriads of Noctiluc bacteria appear in sea water. Under a microscope they look like a water lily leaf. They contain many tiny luminous grains. They cause the sea water to glow.

But it's not just bacteria that glow. Jellyfish glow with white light. A strange animal, a “sea feather” that looks like a coral bush, also glows with the same light. If you take it out of the water at night, then many wandering fiery points begin to run across the branched parts. the animal goes up and down.

Small sea worms give off either blue, then green, or violet light.

Some shrimp emit a bright yellow light, and the black sea folada shell, drilling into the rocks, burns with blue fire.

In the Mediterranean Sea there are transparent, glass-like animals called pirozomas. They glow alternately with red and blue fire. The English scientist Moseley wrote his name on a large pyrozoma he caught with his finger and threw the animal into the water. After a few seconds, the word "Moseley" flashed on the body of the pyrozoma underwater with the same brightness as a movie sign.

The monkfish fish carries two bright electric lights on its antennae in front of it and lures stupid shrimp to them.

Some sea animals release luminous mucus into the water to blind the enemy, others use their own light as a lantern to find food.

write your summary briefly. The sea was burning. It seemed that its bottom consisted of crystal, illuminated from below by moonlight. The light spread to the horizon, and where darkness always thickens, the sky sparkled, as if covered in silver fog. The wide light slowly dimmed. But after a short darkness the sea again turned into an unfamiliar starry sky, thrown at our feet. Myriads of stars, hundreds of Milky Ways floated under water. They either sank, dying out, to the very bottom, or flared up, floating to the surface of the water. The eye distinguished two lights: motionless, slowly swaying in the water, and another light, all in motion, cutting through the water with quick purple flashes. These were awakened fish darting about under the water. Sour cream dragged me along the dark stone stairs down to the water. White fire ran onto the beach, and the entire bottom was visible. Stones and cans lying under the water were covered with a thin fiery dew. Sour cream scooped water into her palm. Jets of liquid magical light flowed through the fingers, splashing. The water illuminated her face, pale with excitement. We were present at one of the most magnificent phenomena in the world. Smetanina was happy like a child. Her wet hands glowed in the darkness for a long time. The sea went out as quickly as it had flared up. Until dawn we sat on the glassed-in terrace and talked about various sea wonders. In autumn, myriads of bacteria appear in sea water. Under a microscope they look like a water lily leaf. They contain many tiny luminous grains. They cause the sea water to glow. I'll give you 12 points, I need help urgently!!!

In the tropics

The sea... Here for the first time I understood what the “blue” sea means, and until now I only knew about it from poets. There, in the north, blue is the festive attire of the sea. There he has other colors, in the Baltic, for example, yellow, in other seas green, the so-called aquamarine. Now, finally, I see the blue sea... This is not slightly colored water on top, but a thick mass of yachts, equally blue in the sun and in the shade.

Ivan GONCHAROV.
Frigate "Pallada". 1858

Glow of the sea

The sea was burning. Its bottom seemed to consist of crystal, illuminated from below by moonlight.

The light spread to the horizon, and where darkness always thickens, the sky sparkled, as if covered in silver fog. The wide light slowly dimmed. But after a short darkness the sea again turned into an unfamiliar starry sky, thrown at our feet. Myriads of stars, hundreds of milky ways floated under water. They either sank, dying out, to the very bottom, or flared up, floating to the surface of the water.

White fire ran onto the beach, and the entire bottom was visible. Stones and cans lying under the water were covered with a thin fiery dew...

The sea went out as quickly as it had flared up.

In autumn, myriads of Noctiluc bacteria* appear in seawater. Under a microscope they look like a water lily leaf. They contain many tiny luminous grains. They cause the sea water to glow.

But it's not just bacteria that glow. Jellyfish glow with white light. The strange animal “sea feather”, similar to a coral bush, also glows with the same light. If you take it out of the water at night, then many wandering fiery points begin to run across the branched parts of the animal, up and down.

Small sea worms give off either green or violet light. Some shrimp emit a bright yellow light, and the black sea folada shell, drilling into the rocks, burns with blue fire.

Konstantin PAUSTOVSKY. Black Sea. 1935

* Nightlight - Noctiluca miliaris - flagellated protozoan.

Atlantic Ocean

They're running
along the sides
water blocks,
huge,
like a year'.
There are birds above me,
there are fish under me,
and all around -
water.
weeks
with his athletic chest -
then a hard worker,
then he's drunk as hell -
sighs
and thunders
Atlantic
ocean.
Waves
excite the master’:
childhood will be thrown out;
to another -
sweet voice.
Well, I would
again
stretch out the banners!
Vaughn -
let's go',
started chattering
trashed!
And again
water
the end-to-end calmed down,
and no
no doubt about anyone.
And suddenly,
from somewhere -
God knows! —
rises
from the depths
aquatic Revcom.
And the guard of drops -
water partisans -
climb
up high
from the ocean moat,
will rush to the sky
and fall again
porphyry foam torn into shreds.
And again
the waters melted into one,
wave
having commanded
become seething leader.
And the waves are rushing
from under the clouds
to the bottom -
orders
and slogans
pours rain.
And the waves
swear
to the all-water Tsik
weapons of storms
don't put it down until victory.
And so we won -
equator to compasses
The Soviets have unlimited power.
The last waves of small rallies
they make noise
about something
in an elevated style.
And so
ocean
smiled smartly
and froze
for a while
at rest and in calm.
I look over the railing.
Try hard, buddies!
Under the gangway
looming
openwork bridge,
at an ocean enterprise
sweats
over something
wave town,
And underwater
businesslike and quiet
palace
growing
coral braid,
to make life easier
labor kitihe
with working kit
and a preschool kitten.
Already
and the moon
laid a path.
At least directly
on the belly,
as if on dry land, climb.
But the enemy will not interfere -
into the sky
carefully
looks
without blinking,
Atlantic eye.
You'll freeze
in the shine of moonlight,
then you moan
wounds covered in foam.
I'm watching,
I'm watching -
and always the same
we love you
The ocean is close to me.

Vladimir MAYAKOVSKY. 1925

Sea

Whispering about eternity, it sleeps near the skerries,
And suddenly, shaking, he enters the grottoes
And drowns them without pity or counting,
And he whispers something as he comes out of the caves.

And sometimes it’s quieter than ever,
Protects shells from slumber
On the shore, where she's gone
The last squall swept the entire quarry.

Here, you who have weakened your eyesight through labor!
The vastness of the sea will give peace to the eyes.
And you, O victims of city life,
Deaf from petty rubbish,

Think to the measured sound of the sea,
Until you hear the sirens singing!

John KEATS. 1817
Per. from English B. Pasternak

Listen to the sound of the ocean

It’s not for nothing that I, a resident of the earth, keep
Sea wave in the arteries
Since my ancestors rose
Lizards ashore.

And those of you who arose wrong
And wrap themselves in blankets,
Still, at least go on trains
Listen to the sound of the ocean.

Ilya SELVINSKY. Great Ocean. 1932

Seaweed

At the hour when the wave is big
The storm is raging,
It hits the boulders with noise,
The waves rush towards the rocks -
Shaft after shaft -
Full of algae.
From the southern reefs, from the rocky ones,
stony,
Blue solar Azores
The sea grass is tearing away,
Dissecting
Atlantic space!
To the Hebrides, to Bermuda
The piles are rushing
Dark herbs from sea fields:
From the coral atolls,
Slippery piers
And broken ships...
It takes a long time for the grasses to float, wandering,
Forever sensing
Water whirlpool;
Far away in the coastal grottoes
waiting for them again
Silence, and sleep, and firmament.

Henry Longfellow (1807-1882)
Per. M. Boroditskaya

Sea in bloom

Beyond Mariupol, the sea lit up with bright, eye-catching meadow greenery. It seemed that the steamer was slowly rocking in the vast spring steppe. The sea was blooming. The water shimmered under the propeller like liquid chrysolite and foamed with a thick foam that took a long time to melt.

The Azov Sea blooms in early August, as do rivers and ponds. Microscopic duckweed floats on its surface in vast islands, sometimes several miles long. Steamboats cut foamy roads along it, and coastal residents stop swimming - the water in the sea during the “bloom” is supposedly poisonous.

The ancient Romans, seeing this blooming sea, gave it the name Maeotian swamp.

The bloom of the sea ended only near Berdyansk - a deserted and quiet town, dried out by the steppe heat.

Konstantin PAUSTOVSKY. Azov region. 1924

Native Sea

I am familiar with many seas;
I communicated very closely with others,
Loved them. And only the ocean
Unfortunately, I was unable to see it.
I was captivated by the Sea of Marmara,
Calm, like rose oil.
Near Astrakhan she hissed at me
Spiny Caspian wave.

I saw the Persian Gulf
Lips covered with dry sand
And the White Sea near Kandalaksha
Ice-covered coastal grin.

I saw calm in the Baltic.
Near Genoa, on the Mediterranean Sea,
Shining like the turquoise sky,
Furious I watched the storm.

But all the beauties of the north and south
And all shades of turquoise and rose
I preferred my native sea,
The only Black thing is mine.

In hours of calm, in hours of peace -
It turned blue all the way to Turkey.
It thundered all the way to Turkey,
When the crazy nor'easter broke out...