From sea to space: Turning the tide on microplastic pollution with satellite technology
Feb 04, 2026
What do microplastics, water color, and satellites have in common? Dr. Karl Kaiser, professor of marine and coastal environmental science in the College of Marine Sciences and Maritime Studies at Texas AM University at Galveston is exploring an innovative idea: using satellites to spot microplastics
in the ocean. How? By studying how tiny plastic particles change the way light reflects off the water—and how that changes the color we see from space. If this connection works, it could give scientists a powerful new tool to track microplastic pollution across the globe without ever leaving orbit. ...read more read less