History of Bioluminescence

Luminescence has been observed for a long time, but it is only until very recently that we have been able to explain what iss happening.  The ancient Greek and Chinese both recorded sighting of luminescence.   Aristotle wrote about organisms releasing light over two thousand years ago!  He said, “some things, though they are not in their nature fire, nor any species of fire, yet seem to produce light”(4).  One phenomenon that scientists attribute to bioluminescence is milky seas.  These very rare occurrences have been recorded by seamen for centuries.  A milky sea is a rare occurrence where part of the Ocean emits a whitish blue light.  These lights, which extend at times to forty miles, make the sea look milky.  The first satellite image was taken January 25, 1995.  This phenomenon still cannot be explained, but many scientists think that it is due to a high concentration of bioluminescent creatures.  They compare it to a red tide, where algae accumulate in large bunches.  In the novel Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea the submarine passes through a milky sea.  The parallels between an actual milky sea and the “sea of milk” described in the book make researchers conclude that this occurrence in the book was based on someone’s real account (1).  Overall, the exact reason behind the occurrences of milky seas remains a mystery.  Bioluminescence has been seen for centuries, but just only recently studied in depth.