Environmental Science
Desert Dust Fertilizing Ocean Phytoplankton Blooms
Quick fact
The Amazon rainforest receives about 27 million tons of dust from the Sahara every year, which helps fertilize its soils and, when deposited in the ocean, can spark massive phytoplankton blooms.
Why this is interesting
Every year, billions of tons of dust from deserts like the Sahara travel thousands of kilometers across the ocean, yet they aren't just pollution—they're plant food for the sea. How can something as dry as dust cause explosive blooms of life underwater?