The research project, ‘Phytoplankton Blooms in the South China Sea and Adjacent Waters: Processes, Mechanisms and Remote Sensing Methods’, jointly conducted by CUHK’s Institute of Space and Earth Information Science (ISEIS) and the South China Sea Institute of Oceanology (SCSIO), has been awarded the first prize of the 2012 Guangdong Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award (Basic Science). The award ceremony was officiated by Mr. Zhu Xiaodan, Governor, Guangdong Province.

By using advanced research equipments and facilities such as satellite remote sensing ground receiving station of ISEIS and large marine vessels of SCSIO, the Guangzhou-Hong Kong project launched a series of studies on the laws of formation and dissipation, the dynamic mechanism and ecological effects of phytoplankton, as well as remote sensing monitoring and assessment methods. The results deepened understanding of the formation process and control mechanism of phytoplankton blooms, thus providing theories and methods for forecasting and warning about marine disasters. The study contributed not only to fishery production in the South China Sea and government decision-making, but also development and international cooperation in marine ecological remote sensing.