Photosynthetic organisms coordinate their metabolism and growth with diurnal light, which can range in intensity from limiting to inhibitory. To gain a comprehensive understanding of how diurnal regulatory circuits interface with sensing and response to various light intensities, we performed a systems analysis of synchronizedChlamydomonaspopulations acclimated to low, moderate, and high diurnal light. Transcriptomic and proteomic data revealed thatChlamydomonas′rhythmic gene expression program is resilient to limiting and excess light. Although gene expression and photodamage are dynamic over the diurnal cycle,Chlamydomonaspopulations acclimated to low and high diurnal light exhibit constitutive phenotypes with respect to photosystem abundance, thylakoid architecture, and non-photochemical quenching that persist through the night. This suggests that cells ″remember″ or anticipate the daylight environment. The integrated data constitute an excellent resource for understanding gene regulatory mechanisms and photoprotection in eukaryotes under environmentally relevant conditions.