Photoluminescence

Tonight we are sailing from Cartagena to Cabo Del Gata. It is a beautiful night. The weather is settled, and we are moving under sail. There are barely any waves out there. All the stars are out, in a way they could never be closer to land, where there is the perpetual light pollution. When looking at our wake, we can see tiny specs of light. The SaltyPaws is disturbing the water enough for the tiny algae to give up their light. The water needs to be moving in order to see the effect, and the first time I saw it was when we needed to re-anchor in a storm at night. The water moved sufficiently to make the lights come out. Another good spot to observe the light is when using the toilet in the dark. For the more scientifically inclined, the chemical reaction involves the oxidation of Luciferin* . While related, the name doesn't come from any devilish origins, but rather the latin 'lucifer' meaning "light bringer".

* Fancy name for a class of biological glow in the dark pigments