Now online: Image of the Month

28 January 2014/Kiel. A near-circular structure with a blue glow, surrounded by a wreath of white rays: The January image in the GEOMAR 2014 calendar looks like a delicate ice crystal or some belated Christmas decoration. But in reality it is the enlarged image of a 15 millimeter blue button jellyfish, Porpita porpita. This photo is not only a visual treat but also symbolizes the fascinating biodiversity in the tropical Atlantic. The image was taken during the Meteor expedition M97 in May 2013 when our scientists researched the oxygen minimum zone off West Africa, but also investigated the plankton in this biologically highly productive region.

Of course, the focus of a printed poster calendar is primarily on the images themselves, with hardly any space for sufficient background information. In addition, a printed calendar is typically only produced in limited numbers. "The calendar was presented to many friends of GEOMAR in December. But to make the beauty of these images available to even more people, we now publish the current calendar photo each month on our website," explains Dr. Andreas Villwock, Director of Communication and Media at GEOMAR. "There we are able to tell the story behind the images and add more information and even more images."

Under the heading "Image of the Month", photos of working scientists, the deep-sea floor, submersibles and erupting volcanoes can be found in the coming months.
Those who already have the GEOMAR calendar receive an informative supplement to their wall decoration. For all others, it's a nice way to gain a little insight into another facet of ocean research every month. The "Image of the Month" is published under www.geomar.de/en/discover/