[Coral-List] NOAA Coral Reef Watch Issues First Seasonal Bleaching Forecast
Mark Eakin
Mark.Eakin at noaa.gov
Thu Jul 10 15:31:54 EDT 2008
The following is a press release on our new seasonal bleaching
forecast. You can get full details at http://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/
satellite/bleachingoutlook/index.html
Cheers,
Mark
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 10, 2008
Contact:
Ben Sherman 202-253-5256
John Leslie 301-457-5005
New NOAA Coral Bleaching Prediction System Calls for Low Level of Coral
Bleaching in Caribbean this Year
More severe bleaching expected in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands
A new NOAA coral bleaching prediction system indicates
that there will be some bleaching in the Caribbean later this year,
but the event will probably not be severe. NOAA issued the first-ever
seasonal coral bleaching outlook this week at the 11th International
Coral Reef Symposium in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
The system suggests that there is a risk of widespread bleaching in
the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands in August, but little bleaching
elsewhere during the northern hemisphere summer.
“The ability to predict coral bleaching events and
provide advance warning is critically important to sustaining healthy
reefs,” said Timothy R.E. Keeney, deputy assistant secretary of
commerce for oceans and atmosphere and co-chair of the United States
Coral Reef Task Force. “When coral reef managers and reef users are
alerted, they can mobilize monitoring efforts, develop response
strategies, and educate reef users and the public on coral bleaching
and possible effects on reef resources.”
The new prediction system uses NOAA experimental sea surface
temperature forecasts to develop maps of anticipated coral bleaching
severity during the upcoming bleaching season (August to October).
While NOAA’s Coral Reef Watch Program uses satellite sea surface
temperature data to alert managers and scientists around the world of
the risk of coral bleaching, the prediction system includes longer
range temperature forecasts up to three months.
Coral bleaching is associated with a variety of
stresses, especially increased ocean temperatures. This causes the
coral to expel symbiotic micro-algae living in their tissues – algae
that provide corals with food. Losing their algae leaves coral
tissues devoid of color, and thus they appear bleached. Prolonged
coral bleaching of over a week can lead to coral death and the loss
of coral reef habitats for a range of marine life.
A major coral bleaching event occurred in the Caribbean
in 2005, resulting in significant coral death in much of the region.
“As global temperatures continue to climb, predicting
coral bleaching becomes even more critical," said Dr. C. Mark Eakin,
coordinator of NOAA's Coral Reef Watch Program. “Our goal is to issue
bleaching forecasts for coral reefs worldwide.”
The new system was developed by scientists in NOAA’s Coral Reef Watch
in Silver Spring, Md. and NOAA’s Earth Science Research Laboratory in
Boulder, Colo., with funding from the NOAA Climate Program Office’s
Sectoral Applications Research Program and NOAA’s Coral Reef
Conservation Program.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, an
agency of the U.S. Commerce Department, is dedicated to enhancing
economic security and national safety through the prediction and
research of weather and climate-related events and information
service delivery for transportation, and by providing environmental
stewardship of our nation's coastal and marine resources. Through the
emerging Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), NOAA is
working with its federal partners, more than 70 countries and the
European Commission to develop a global monitoring network that is as
integrated as the planet it observes, predicts and protects.
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On the Web:
NOAA: http://www.noaa.gov
NOAA Coral Reef Watch: http://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov
NOAA’s Coral Reef Conservation Program: http://www.coralreef.noaa.gov
------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------
C. Mark Eakin, Ph.D.
Coordinator, NOAA Coral Reef Watch
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Center for Satellite Applications and Research
Satellite Oceanography & Climate Division
e-mail: mark.eakin at noaa.gov
url: coralreefwatch.noaa.gov
E/RA31, SSMC1, Room 5308
1335 East West Hwy
Silver Spring, MD 20910-3226
301-713-2857 x109 Fax: 301-713-3136
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