Here's a story of how satellite imagery helped to solve a local mystery. One weekend back in late July, residents across coastal New Jersey reported an unusual odor. Hours later, the smell was reported as far west as Bucks County in Pennsylvania.

The odor was eventually traced to the ocean, and that's where satellite imagery comes in. This color-coded chart shows water temperatures off the Jersey shore early on July 21. The greens and yellows stand for temperatures in the 65-70^oF range. Here's the same area later that day. The oranges indicate that in just hours, the water warmed about 10^oF. Marine biologists think that this quick warming induced rapid growth of ocean plankton.

This plankton growth can also be seen from the satellite. Here's the view early in the day, before the water warmed. The blue that covers the ocean indicates low plankton concentrations. Later that day, the picture changed dramatically. The reds and maroons indicate high plankton levels in the same areas where the water warmed, and that's what created the smell. Onshore winds then blew the odor into New Jersey and eventually into eastern Pennsylvania. Case closed.