. 24/7 Space News .
WATER WORLD
Great Barrier Reef almost drowned; climate implications
by Staff Writers
Sydney, Australia (SPX) Jan 10, 2017


Acropora coral less than 2m under sea-level at One Tree Reef, One Tree Island. Image courtesy University of Sydney. For a larger version of this image please go here.

An analysis of the Great Barrier Reef during a time prior to it becoming the modern shallow reef has found the World Heritage Listed 'wonder' almost drowned because of rapid sea-level rise from melting glaciers and polar ice sheets - with implications for conservation in an era of climate change.

The University of Sydney-led international research shows the Great Barrier Reef is resilient, with shallow reef growth recommencing once the rapid sea-level rise stabilised during the Last Interglacial period more than 125,000 years ago.

However a range of pressures on the modern reef - including pesticide run-off, warming sea temperatures and dredging from mining operations - combined with predicted sea-level rises could threaten the reef's survival.

The research has been published in the peer-reviewed Global and Planetary Change.

Geologists consider the Last Interglacial to be an important comparative period because temperatures and sea levels were higher than now but similar to where the Earth might be headed if CO2 emissions remain unchecked.

Lead author Dr Belinda Dechnik from the Geocoastal Research Group in the School of Geosciences undertook the research - which included analysis of unexposed reef now up to 40 metres below sea-level - as part of her PhD.

"This provides the first snapshot of this paleo-reef against a background of rapid environmental change, including possible mass ice-sheet collapse," Dr Dechnik said.

The research also provided an accurate identification of the age of the fossil reef that grew before the modern Great Barrier Reef, some 129,000-121,000 years ago.

"The Great Barrier Reef is like a sponge cake - the modern reef is just the last layer," Dr Dechnik explained.

To study the ancient reef layer, researchers analysed specimens from the 1970s stored at Geosciences Australia in Canberra and in 2015 cored samples directly from the reef (the subject of an upcoming paper), which was made possible with an Australian Research Council grant as part of its Discovery Program.

University of Sydney Associate Professor Jody Webster, who supervised Dr Dechnik's PhD, said the research was the most comprehensive investigation of this second-last layer; a novel finding was the climate-change impact.

"This stage of the reef appears to have come close to drowning and therefore almost died due to major environmental changes," Associate Professor Webster said.

Dr Dechnik said it was expected that the rate of future sea-level rises resulting from climate change may not be as extreme as experienced previously but it could still be significant. In addition, it was expected that sea levels on the Great Barrier Reef could get as high as six metres - the same level as during the Last Interglacial - depending on the trajectory of mass ice sheet collapse.

"The findings highlight the importance of increasing the reef's resilience now," Dr Dechnik said.

"In combination with climate change predictions by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and in the absence of improvements to reef management and human impacts, sea-level pressures could tip the reef over the edge, potentially drowning it for good," Dr Dechnik said.

The paper, "The evolution of the Great Barrier Reef during the Last Interglacial Period," was published over the Christmas-New Year break in the journal Global and Planetary Change


Comment on this article using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


.


Related Links
University of Sydney
Water News - Science, Technology and Politics






Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

Previous Report
WATER WORLD
Are tiny grazers the new hope for Caribbean reefs
Panama City, Panama (SPX) Jan 10, 2017
Thirty years ago a mysterious disease wiped out long-spined black sea urchins across the Caribbean, leading to massive algal overgrowth that smothered already overfished coral reefs. Now, marine biologists at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) report that smaller sea urchins and parrotfish may be taking the place of the large sea urchins, restoring the balance on degraded reefs. ... read more


WATER WORLD
Emerging tech aims to improve life for handicapped

Hubble provides interstellar road map for Voyagers' galactic trek

NASA Assigns Upcoming Space Station Crew Members

Tech outlook dampened by political uncertainty

WATER WORLD
Arianespace to launch JCSAT-17 for SKY Perfect JSAT

Arianespace looks to the future with confidence

Mission contracts secure Commercial Crew operations for coming years

SpaceX concluded accident investigation, to start launching rockets again

WATER WORLD
New Year yields interesting bright soil for Opportunity rover

Hues in a Crater Slope

3-D images reveal features of Martian polar ice caps

Odyssey recovering from precautionary pause in activity

WATER WORLD
China Space Plan to Develop "Strength and Size"

Beijing's space program soars in 2016

China Plans to Launch 1st Mars Probe by 2020 - State Council Information Office

China to expand int'l cooperation on space sciences

WATER WORLD
OneWeb announces key funding from SoftBank Group and other investors

Airbus DS and Energia eye new medium-class satellite platform

Space as a Driver for Socio-Economic Sustainable Development

SoftBank delivers first $1 bn of Trump pledge, to space firm

WATER WORLD
Scientists make grocery bags out of shrimp shells

2-D materials enhance a 3-D world

New active filaments mimic biology to transport nano-cargo

Researchers reveal world's most precise metronome

WATER WORLD
Could dark streaks in Venusian clouds be microbial life

Hubble detects 'exocomets' taking the plunge into a young star

Between a rock and a hard place: can garnet planets be habitable

The blob can learn and teach

WATER WORLD
Lowell Observatory to renovate Pluto discovery telescope

Flying observatory makes observations of Jupiter previously only possible from space

York U research identifies icy ridges on Pluto

Exploring Pluto and the Wild Back Yonder









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.