World's coral reefs hit by a fourth mass bleaching event, NOAA says
Extreme ocean heat is causing a mass bleaching event in coral reefs across the globe, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Extreme ocean heat is causing a mass bleaching event in coral reefs across the globe, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
NOAA on Monday declared that a “4th global coral bleaching event” was taking place and that bleaching had been documented over the last 14 months in every major ocean basin, including off Florida in the United States, in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef and in the South Pacific.
“As the world’s oceans continue to warm, coral bleaching is becoming more frequent and severe,” said Derek Manzello, a coral reef ecologist who coordinates NOAA’s Coral Reef Watch Program, in a news release. “When these events are sufficiently severe or prolonged, they can cause coral mortality, which hurts the people who depend on the coral reefs for their livelihoods.”
Sea surface temperatures have set daily records for more than a year, which has prompted concerns among scientists who are trying to untangle how the oceans got so hot, so quickly. Warming from climate change and cycles of natural variability, like El Niño, have played a significant role.
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