Oceans in Peril: 84% of World’s Coral Reefs Suffer Worst Bleaching Ever Recorded

A whopping 84% of the world's coral reefs have been struck by the most severe bleaching event on record, researchers said Wednesday. Driven by record-warm oceans since early 2023, this fourth global bleaching event has devastated reefs in 82 countries and territories around the globe, spanning the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans.

Bleaching occurs when corals, under stress from intense temperatures, expel the algae that provide them with color and nutrients—resulting in once-thriving reefs turning a ghostly white and leaving them vulnerable to disease and death. Last year's record-breaking ocean temperatures, fueled by climate change and ocean heatwaves, have stressed even previously healthy reefs to the breaking point.

Scientists warn that this prolonged phenomenon is reconfiguring ocean ecosystems and threatening the livelihoods of over a billion people who depend on healthy reefs.

 

Sources: Reuters, ICRI, NBC News, DW, UPI