About 650 million years ago, an algal explosion kicked off human life. Now, this vast group of aquatic organisms could hold the key to helping humanity in a very different way—or so says a startup growing algae in the Moroccan desert. When the microscopic algae get the right influx of nutrients from an ocean current, they can multiply exponentially, creating swirling blooms that ripple across the ocean in a range of eye-catching colors from lime green and yellow to turquoise and electric blue. The blooms can be so huge they can be seen from space, and while they can sometimes be harmful, they also do wonders for the climate. Algae are neither plants nor animals, but they photosynthesize as they grow. Thousands of species of algae coexisting remove more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than forests, while pumping out oxygen in return. “Algae are the unsung heroes of carbon removal,” says Adam Taylor, whose British company Brilliant Planet is harnessing their potential to combat climate change. (Victoria Seabrook)

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