All coral reefs could die by the end of the century, new research shows. Before-and-after photos show what that would look like.
Coral reefs cover less than 1% of Earth's surface, but provide a home to over 25% of all marine life. They could disappear within decades.
We've put the heat equivalent of 3.6 billion Hiroshima bomb explosions into the oceans. The water was hotter last year than ever in recorded history.
Warmer oceans kill coral, fish, and seabirds, while supercharging hurricanes and melting polar glaciers.
A giant 'blob' of hot water more than twice the size of California threatens the survival of fish and coral near New Zealand
A 386,000-square-mile chunk of the Pacific Ocean east of New Zealand is 10 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than average in what could be a marine heat wave.
The Great Barrier Reef is at a critical tipping point. Experts say if global warming worsens, we could could lose this world wonder as early as 2050.
Scientists reproduced Atlantic coral in a laboratory for the first time. Aquarium-grown coral could save America's 'Great Barrier Reef.'
Techniques perfected on Pacific coral could help repopulate Atlantic coral reefs, too. Here's what the successful efforts look like.
As our planet and its oceans warm, coral reefs worldwide are experiencing bleaching — when the corals expel their food source and turn ghostly white.
Australian scientists at QUT have used $750,000 in funding from Google to build RangerBot, an underwater robot — the robot will be able to identify predatory crown-of-thorns starfish, which are destroying the Great Barrier Reef, and kill them without damaging the rest of the marine ecosystem.
Up to 50% of the world's coral has died, but scientists are figuring out how to regrow reefs — here's what the process looks like
Reefs cover less than 1% of the ocean floor, yet 25% of fish species spend some part of their lives in them, making corals essential to ocean health. Estimates of the overall economic value of reefs suggest they contribute between $30 billion and more than $375 billion to the world economy annually.
Hawaii is about to ban some of the most popular sunscreens because they could be killing off coral reefs
Hawaii is about to become the first US state to ban the chemicals oxybenzone and octinoxate in sunscreens, because they can bleach and kill corals and mess with their reproductive abilities.
Coral reefs provide crucial protection for coastal cities — without them, flood damage could double, a new study finds
Reefs help buffer against storm surge and waves that would otherwise damage coasts. Without living coral reefs, flooding damage around the world would double, a cost increase of $4 billion annually. Flooding could quadruple if the loss of reefs is combined with sea-level rise.
Half of the Great Barrier Reef has died since 2016 — but Australia's $400 million attempt to save it doesn't address the main problem
Australia plans to spend more than $379 million to save the Great Barrier Reef. But experts think that since these initiatives don't fight climate change, they won't be enough to save the coral reefs.
UNESCO considered putting it on the "in danger" list last year due to recent widespread destruction but voted against it.
Currently, we are facing the worst bleaching of coral reefs ever known in history, but what would happen if ultimately all the coral reefs died off?
Half of the Great Barrier Reef has died since 2016 — here's what happens if all coral reefs on Earth die off
Without coral reefs, there could be a rippling ecosystem collapse in the oceans, with devastating effects on the planet.
A new study found that coral bleaching events, which can kill reefs, are happening too fast for reefs to recover. The ocean is also losing oxygen.
The goal of improving the reef is unrealistic after back-to-back bleaching events in 2016 and 2017, contributing to the worst coral die-off ever recorded.
‘Last year was bad enough, this is a disaster,’ says one expert as Australia Research Council finds fresh damage across 8,000km
New research has shown a major coral die-off has caused reef growth rates to collapse.
A mass bleaching event on the Great Barrier Reef this year killed more corals than ever before, with more than two-thirds destroyed across large areas