Oh my. This got me.

Yes

Am I blind? I’m not seeing it. I doubt this is generated. It’s too aware of too many things.

It’s a combination of the water depth, suspended sediments, and the phytoplankton population in an area. The Bahamas are on shallow waters, where the light doesn’t penetrate as deeply as it does in the open ocean. In the open ocean, sunlight gets absorbed until it reaches a depth where no light remains. On shallow waters however, especially where the sea floor is built out of white sand such as in the Bahamas, more light gets reflected back to the surface, making the area appear brighter.

Sediments and phytoplankton also play a role. Less sediment around the islands leads to clearer waters. There’s also less phytoplankton in the area. Phytoplankton, much like plants, use chlorophyll to make their food. As a result, both phytoplankton and plants reflect a lot of green light. Without phytoplankton, the area looks more blue.