Australia's Great Barrier Reef in trouble due to warmer ocean currents

Australia's iconic Great Barrier Reef has once again begun to show new signs of coral bleaching. According to the government agency responsible or monitoring the Great Barrier Reef, there have been several signs of heat stress in multiple regions. This greatly increases the prospects of another major bleaching event. Warmer ocean currents According to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, a prolonged period of warm ocean currents has led to an increase of 2 to 3 degrees in temperature during the hottest month of the year on the reef. According to Dr David Wachenfeld, the authority's chief scientist, said in his weekly video update, the rise in temperatures is very concerning and it has only intensified in the last week. Several colonies of mostly Acropora showing signs of #coralbleaching in the lagoon of #OneTreeIsland in the Southern #GreatBarrierReef. Observed during fantastic coral field work with Emily Howells and Andy Davis pic.twitter.com/jmUYLOgJMS — Sebastian Schmidt-Roach (@maritechture) February 20, 2020 We’re starting to see coral bleaching on reefs off of Cairns, and conditions for coral don’t look like they’re getting any better for the next week.. #coralbleaching #GreatBarrierReef pic.twitter.com/Q4Yl5XOL90 — Lorna Howlett (@HowlettLorna) February 20, 2020 The marine park authority is using all its resource such as divers, helicopter patrols, and observations by the public to investigate the renewed bleaching. According to Mr Lyle Vail, who is the director of the Australian Museum's Lizard Island Research Station, he has observed a large per cent of the coral present in shallow waters display varying levels of coral bleaching. Read: Underwater Museum: Great Barrier Reef To Open Its 'Museum Of Underwater Art' In December, With Sculptures On The Seabed For Divers Read: Australian Court Bans Shark Culling In Queensland, Great Barrier Reef Our oceanographers are monitoring temperatures in seas @GBRMP_official with an autonomous @IMOS ocean glider to investigate an increase in marine temperatures. https://t.co/qecKpf65U6 — Australian Institute of Marine Science (@aims_gov_au) February 17, 2020 The Great Barrier Reef encompasses 2,300 kilometres in Australia's northeastern coast and spans an area that half the size of Texas. The reef only begun recovering after two consecutive years of hot waters led to massive coral bleaching in 2016 and 2017. (Image Credit: Pixabay) Read: Shark Bites 2 British Men On Australia’s Great Barrier Reef Read: Jennifer Lopez Thinks She Would Make A Great Batman And Robert Pattinson Agrees

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Australia's Great Barrier Reef in trouble due to warmer ocean currents

Australia's iconic Great Barrier Reef has once again begun to show new signs of coral bleaching due to warm ocean current raising the temperature.

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