The Glow-in-the-Dark World Beneath the Sea

Did you know there is an underwater world of glow in the dark sea creatures: sharks, sea turtles, and corals out there?

You don’t have to dive to the bottom of the ocean to see these incredibly cool animals, they are swimming right off our shores.

Source: Luminescent Labs

Our eyes are beautifully suited to see things here on land, but under the water, the world looks completely different when viewed through an aquatic filter. So, how do fish see the world?

For many glow in the dark sea creatures, it seems they see the world in through the lens of biofluorescence.

This incredible find is the research topic of David Gruber, a marine biologist and photographer. His images and research capture a world we never realized existed and are a groundbreaking new way to study marine biology. Here is David Gruber from the incredible TED stage discussing the amazing, biofluorescent world beneath the sea…

(TED creates incredible content and sponsors brilliant thought leaders. Check out our must-see TED Talks here!)

What a stunning and eye-opening project!

Some of you might recognize David Gruber and those squishy robot fingers from an article we wrote a few weeks ago if you haven’t seen that article, we suggest jumping over there to check it out!

Also, if you want to see one of the most beautiful and unique wonders on the web, check out the Luminescent Labs website!

Source: Luminescent Labs

Head over to their website and hit the red button saying “Night Dive with Us!” Then, once you are on the reef, move your cursor around to see some hidden gems.

There’s also a beautiful page for the science behind their project, three different pages full of creatures, and even another with art that has been inspired by this work. And there’s a lot more.

Take the time to explore a little. It’s all really quite jaw-dropping.

(Share it with a kid and you may start a spark that lights a life-long passion for science! In fact, if you work with children a lot, we have an entire category of articles for Education Enrichment. Check them out!)

Even more glow in the dark sea creatures!

So I want to leave you with one last video that highlights the moment when Gruber and his team came across their first biofluorescent sea turtle. This is brought to us by an organization we absolutely love, National Geographic. There’s a beautiful moment where you can see on the scientists’ faces the pure joy of discovery!

If that doesn’t leave you feeling like this world is an amazing place I don’t know what will!

The Solomon Islands are home to many other natural wonders, and if you are in the mood to check them out you can head over to our Saturdays Around the World Articles, all about amazing things – you guessed it – all around the world.

Stay beautiful & keep laughing!

-Liesl