Marine phytoplankton contribute roughly half the net primary production (NPP) on Earth, fixing atmospheric CO2 into food that fuels global ocean ecosystems and drives biogeochemical cycles. Phytoplankton growth is dependent on availability of light and nutrients (e.g., iron, nitrogen, phosphorous) in the upper ocean euphotic zone, which in turn is influenced by physical factors such as ocean temperature. SeaWiFS and MODIS are satellite ocean color sensors that provide observations of sufficient frequency and geographic coverage to globally monitor changes in the near-surface concentration of the phytoplankton pigment chlorophyll-a (Chla; mg -cu m), which serves as a proxy for phytoplankton abundance. Here, global Chla distributions for 2017 are evaluated within the context of the 20-year continuous record provided through the combined observations of SeaWiFS (1997–2010) and MODIS on Aqua (MODISA, 2002–present). All Chla data used in this analysis correspond to NASA processing version R2018.0, which utilizes common algorithms and calibration methods to maximize consistency in the multi-mission satellite record.
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