Bioluminescent Waves at Newport Beach

May 9th, 2020 | Posted by: Grace Kim

What seems to only live in fictional stories has come to life. Every decade or so, the oceans in Southern California light up with mysterious blue color. These oceans are full of secrets as Mother Nature blesses the Earth with some of her divine beauties.

Southern California’s beaches have been full of bioluminescent waves, providing surfers with an experience of a lifetime. Bioluminescence has been filling the ocean with light shows as you might’ve seen glow in the dark dolphins in the middle of the sea or light blue waves crashing on the ocean shore. These turquoise colors are new to many as the beaches start to open up again after being closed for weeks due to the coronavirus.

All You Need to Know About Bioluminescence

Bioluminescence California 2020 has been hitting a hot trend during the last weeks of the quarantine. And if you’ve never seen anything like this before, you’re in it for the ride.

What are the red tides in the ocean?

Freaked out about the red tides in the ocean? The red tides in the ocean turn red or orange during the daytime due to pigmentation of bioluminescent dinoflagellates, creating a flash of light inside the organisms cell when it’s disturbed.

What is bioluminescence?

Bioluminescence is an emission of light from living organisms, resulting from oxidative chemical reactions. An oxidative chemical reaction is when a molecule, atom, or ion changes by gaining or losing an electron.

Some examples of bioluminescent organisms and animals include bacteria, plankton, algae, sharks, dolphins, worms, and fireflies. Many marine animals are classified under bioluminescent animals, resulting in the light blue waves seen in the ocean.

Many bioluminescent traits are not entirely known for all species, but typically is used to warn predators, communicate between members, and detect and lure in prey.

Bioluminescence Timeline

What causes bioluminescence in water?

Some of the animals and organisms that cause the red and light blue waves are triggered by a physical disturbance, such as waves, surfers and boats.

You’ll be able to see these reactions if you stay at the beach after sunset in search of the nocturnal species glowing in bioluminescence.

When are the best hours to see the bioluminescent algae and plankton?

The best time to see these creatures make an appearance is right after sunset. The waves last about 2 hours after sunset, so make sure to bring a sweater because it gets chilly at night.

How long will the bioluminescence waves last for?

Scientists aren’t entirely sure of how long the tides will last for. However, back in 2011 and 1995, the waves lasted anywhere between one week to a month or longer.

The length of time that the plankton bloom for depends on available sunlight, water temperature, nutrients, competition with other species, and surf and wind conditions.

At the Beaches

Where can you see bioluminescence?

Tracking the currents isn’t the easiest, but you can catch them at a few beaches in Southern California. Around Los Angeles and Orange County, the waves are most visible at Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, and South Bay. There are chances that you might be able to catch them at San Clemente, Malibu Beach, and Manhattan Beach.

In San Diego, the best places you can catch the bioluminescent waves are at Ocean Beach, Sunset Cliffs, and Scripps Pier of La Jolla.

Be aware that due to the lockdown, not all beaches are open. And if beaches are, you want to make sure that you arrive at the beach earlier than anticipated since many also want to witness this phenomena.

Tip: try arriving before sunset because there will be floods of people wanting to witness this wonder. Surprisingly, finding parking took longer than expected when visiting Newport Beach on a Thursday.

Is the water safe for surfing and swimming?

At Newport Beach, there were surfers surfing along the waves. One surfer said he was fine surfing the algae-filled waves but had to be careful because a surplus of algae and jellyfish were swimming right underneath his board.

If you have sensitive skin, I wouldn’t advise swimming in the waves since your skin could become irritated. Because the bioluminescent light waves appear post sunset, its darker outside swimming at night. And because there are no lifeguards on duty, precaution needs to be taken more seriously.

But if you decide on swimming with the algae and plankton at night, be aware that your clothes and swimsuit will start smelling. So, make sure you don’t go into the water with your favorite t-shirt on. I also wouldn’t advise going in with a bathing suit because there is a chance you could get stung by jellyfish. Now, who wants to risk that?

Dolphins Visibly Swimming with Bioluminescent Waves

Although not everyone has the opportunity to see dolphins swimming in the ocean, this jaw dropping video had me running to the beach. Photographer Patrick Coyne captured a stunning video of dolphins swimming in these bioluminescent waves.

Until I watched this video, I thought that being able to see dolphin under water only existed in Little Mermaid.

Free Light Show at Newport Beach

Arriving to Newport Beach during sunset and watching the beautiful skies turn into dusk, I waited about 20 minutes for the moon to make its appearance. One wave after the other, the highest point of the wave started glowing. And as the crowd hovered as closely as they could get, the number of glowing waves started to multiply. Newport Beach’s waves were supplying its viewers with a free light show as the algae and plankton continued to dance to the beat of the cameras shutter.

For someone whose lived in the East Coast her entire life, the bioluminescent waves at Newport Beach was an experience of a lifetime. I had only seen glowing organisms as a child, attempting to capture fireflies in jars at night. California’s beaches are seriously one of a kind as Mother Nature continues to surprise everyone with her unique wonders.

Why you should go see the bioluminescent waves

Nature person or not, experiencing these waves might be a once in a lifetime thing. They come around once every decade and is a phenomena that is worth trekking out to the beach for. If you’re done getting your tan on, feel the California breeze hit your face while witnessing the lighted blue waves approach the shoreline.

I promise, you won’t regret this moment one bit. But if you’re discovering these waves a little too late, there’s always another decade to witness these breathtaking moments, once again.

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In December 2019, I quit my 9-5 to experience passion driven pursuits, leading me towards indefinite travels.

Now, I help travel enthusiasts solo travel, plan indefinite trips, and how to explore the outdoors. And through travel, blogging and photography, I also share and teach others how to obtain this non-linear lifestyle.

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