As coral reefs face unprecedented heat, scientists pioneer new ways to protect them

In Puerto Rico and elsewhere, researchers are attempting to restore coral reefs and make corals more resilient to ocean heat — with some recent success.

There hasn’t been a worse time to be a coral in recent history. 

Record-breaking sea surface temperatures have persisted globally since March 2023. In that time, more than three-quarters of the world’s reefs have experienced heat stress intense enough to bleach corals, according to Derek Manzello, an ecologist who coordinates the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Coral Reef Watch Program.

“There was this kind of existential crisis a year ago where people were like, ‘Oh, my God, are we witnessing the end right now?’” Manzello said. “The oceans are just basically getting so warm that it’s hard for them to keep surviving.” 

In April, NOAA declared the world’s fourth mass bleaching event — one that continues today and is growing.

“This is by far the worst bleaching event that’s ever hit the Caribbean, in Florida as well as the South Atlantic and Brazil,” Manzello said, adding that “99.9% of all the reef areas in the Atlantic Ocean — the North and South Atlantic — experienced thermal stress within the last year, which is crazy. That’s never happened before.” 

https://www.nbcnews.com/science/environment/coral-reef-protection-efforts-ocean-heat-rcna171719

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