Polychromatic Population of Bioluminescent Organisms in the Deep Pacific Ocean

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We present a comprehensive study of deep-sea bioluminescent organisms in the Cascadia Basin, Northeast Pacific Ocean, based on four years (2020–2023) of in-situ measurements using STRAW (STRings for Absorption length in Water) instruments. Analysis of over 1.3 million camera images and continuous photomultiplier tube recordings revealed that bioluminescent activity at depths of 2.0–2.6 km is driven by mechanical stimulation from tidal currents, with emission rates showing strong periodicity across quaddiurnal, semidiurnal, and diurnal scales. Machine-learning-assisted chromatic characterization of emission peaks identified a taxonomic composition primarily consisting of blue-emitting organisms (470–500 nm), likely including glass squid (Leachia lemur) and various planktonic species, alongside a non-negligible population of yellow-green emitters (~565 nm) tentatively associated with tomopterid polychaete worms. We quantified an effective organism abundance of 0.03 -0.01 +0.03 m -3 , a value consistent with earlier indirect assessments but here confirmed through long-term, direct observation. These findings establish a baseline for the biological optical background in the Cascadia Basin, providing critical parameters for the design and background-modeling of large-scale neutrino telescopes such as Pacific Ocean Neutrino Experiment (P-ONE).

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