Great Barrier Reef under threat: Unprecedented warming worries scientists

Scientists are raising the alarm as the world's largest reef is in danger. The water temperature around the Great Barrier Reef has increased to its highest level in the past 400 years over the last decade.

The Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest living ecosystem, lies about 1,500 miles off the coast of the Australian state of Queensland. Scientists from local universities drilled into the corals and analyzed samples, measuring summer water temperatures back to 1618. The results of these analyses are terrifying.

The results showed that the ocean water temperature was stable for hundreds of years and only began to rise around 1900 due to human activity. Since 2016, the Great Barrier Reef has experienced as many as five summer coral bleachings due to high temperatures, increasing the risk of its extinction. In this period, five of the six warmest years in four centuries have been recorded.

"The world is losing one of its icons," admitted Benjamin Henley, a scientist from the University of Melbourne and one of the co-authors of the report.

"I find that to be an absolute tragedy. It's hard to understand how that can happen on our watch in our lifetime. So it's very, very sad," he stated.

The American National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported that as of February 2023, at least 54 countries and regions have experienced mass reef bleaching.

Coral reefs protect shorelines from erosion, and thousands of fish species live in them. For many countries, these areas are an essential source of income from tourism.

The Great Barrier Reef is not currently on the UNESCO list of endangered world heritage sites, although the UN recommends its inclusion. Meanwhile, Australia has been lobbying for many years against placing the reef on this list, as it would reduce the country's tourism revenue. Currently, Australia owes $4.2 billion annually to the reef.