Sediment over the Great Barrier Reef With high winds, a powerful
storm surge, and torrential rains, Cyclone Yasi churned the
waters of the Coral Sea off Australia’s Queensland coast. On
February 4, 2011, as the clouds began to clear, evidence of the
storm’s violence lingered in the water. The normally clear,
shallow water of the Great Barrier Reef was clouded with
sediment brought to the surface by the cyclone. Light reflects
off the bright-colored sediment, turning the ocean electric
blue. Sections of the reef—well-defined shapes that are greener
than their surroundings—are visible amid the clouded water. The
section of reef shown here is near Whitsunday Island National
Park. The large image, which shows a wider area, reveals
sediment in the water along much of the coast. The Moderate
Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua
satellite acquired this image in the early afternoon on February
4. Twice-daily images of northeast Australia are available from
the MODIS Rapid Response System. This