FLICKR, KELSEY ROBERTS, US GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
Pervasive coral bleaching is waning—albeit to varying extents—throughout the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reports in a statement released Monday (June 19). Researchers will diligently track temperature and bleaching data in the coming months to determine whether a worldwide bleaching event is subsiding, according to the statement.
A NOAA Coral Reef Watch status report on the bleaching event indicates that in April, areas throughout the Western Indian Ocean demonstrated no or low levels of bleach-inducing heat stress, “provid[ing] the first hint that the Third Global Coral Bleaching Event might be coming to an end.” According to the Coral Reef Watch’s latest satellite data (June 21), areas throughout the Western Indian Ocean are not currently experiencing any bleach-inducing heat stress.
The Great Barrier Reef, which experienced historically dire bleaching in 2016 is also currently in the clear as of April, according to the NOAA Coral Reef Watch status ...
