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The Best Science Writing Online 2012
Showcasing more than fifty of the most provocative, original, and significant online essays from 2011, The Best Science Writing Online 2012 will change the way...
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In 2005 coral reefs throughout the Caribbean faced an epic heat wave—underwater. Sea surface temperatures stayed at record high levels for more than three months in some locations and as much as 60 percent of corals died as a result. Most bleached, expelling the symbiotic algae that feed them, turning once vibrant, colorful reefs into skeletal remains.
2005 was one of the hottest years in records that stretch back to 1880. This fall is even warmer at the same point in September, according to Mark Eakins of NOAA's Coral Reef Watch program. Already, bleaching throughout southeast Asia killed more than 60 percent of coral reefs in certain locations there this past May and June.
The hot weather—and hot water—has come to the Caribbean, which has seen above average sea surface temperatures since January.
Of course, a tropical cyclone depending on where you are in the world can cool off the water fast. Satellite maps reveal the track of the recent Hurricane Earl as a wide swath of cool blue water from the Caribbean up the East Coast of the U.S.
But hoping for a hurricane is no permanent solution. Ultimately, curbing the CO2 emissions that are trapping extra heat—and acidifying the oceans, another stress on coral—is the only fix that can save the reefs.
—David Biello
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6 Comments
Add CommentCue all the morons with "Meh, Global Warming is a hoax, I don't like Al Gore so it must be false. CO2 is a trace gas so it can not change the temperature, and anyway it's good for plants and volcanoes emit lots of it too." Did I miss any of the standard dumb arguments?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisYou forgot to mention your post.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisRALF123... uh, well you covered most of them 'cept "natural cycles" and the rudder on this Ship O' Delusional Fools: gawd.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisYes, religion rears it's ugly anti-reality head at almost every turn of human scientific progress... and the push to be responsible stewards of the environment from those of us a bit more enlightened, is no exception. The evangelical fundies believe above all else, some sky-god "gots the hole world in his mitts"... and thus, it be part o' the grand plan... before the rupture... er, rapture.
I think these dimwits will push back on the science until only true morons, like Glen Beck will be left ranting in a Discovery Institute echo chamber ... waiting for his next dose of Haldol.
We can either control world population growth by intelligent, compassionate strategies, or Nature will prune our viral expansion... rather harshly. The wholesale loss of corals is a huge warning -dismissed at our peril.
The climate change issues is so complex, I think there should also have some other reasons for bleaching of corals, such as pollution
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI would imagine that the higher temperatures cause trapped oxygen or other gases to be expelled from the coral that it needs to support life. Has anyone ever experimented with oxygenating the coral reefs with some sort of air hose/motor/thermostat combination as a means of deterring their demise when temperatures are above normal?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisCorals expel their symbiotic zooxanthellae (algae) because the zooxanthellae become overproductive and the over-abundance of their waste products becomes detrimental, as opposed to beneficial, to the corals. The zooxanthellae become over-productive because of the increased temperature (much like algal blooms in a warm pond). Nutrient loading from coastal development can have a hand in this as well. Pollution and nutrient additions are also tied to coral diseases. Disease and acidification coupled with warming can and has weakened some reefs past the point of recovery. However, a decrease/cessation in CO2 emissions would be a great way to reverse these downward trends.
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