The Sea of Stars in the Maldives: A Miracle at Sea
When bioluminescence brings the waves to life
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You’re in the tropics strolling down the beach at night when you suddenly spot something a bit…out of place. As the waves roll in front of you, an alienesque white glow emanates from the watery depths.
Do you run? Do you scream? Do you search for this article and find out what’s behind this uber-cool natural phenomenon?
I think we know the answer.
It’s the Sea of Stars in the Maldives!
What causes the Sea of Stars to glow?
This eye-shocking marvel occurs yearly during the late summers in the reefs around certain islands of the Maldives.
But why does the water glow?
Surprisingly, it’s not due to radioactive underwater mutants making their slow march to invade the Above World. Rather, it's a type of bioluminescent phytoplankton that goes by the name of dinoflagellates.
Now say that three times fast.
The water in these special areas is full of this breed of plankton during certain times of the year, and as they glow when rattled, the motion of the ocean causes them to glow in astounding beauty.
As you might’ve guessed, this shimmering natural glow makes the ocean here look like the sea is full of stars — thus the name.
Bioluminescence is thought to be a defense mechanism, only activating when these dinoflagellates experience stress or stimulation. In the case of the Sea of Stars, the rolling motion of the waves triggers this reaction, especially when approaching land.
As for the underlying mechanism, there are two components that trigger the glowing. The first is an enzyme called dinoflagellate luciferase, and the second part is a chlorophyll-derived substance named luciferin. I’m not exactly sure if it’s just a coincidence both materials have Lucifer in the name, but I’d be screaming at the devil too if I saw this stuff before science was a thing.
