Coral Health and Monitoring - NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory

A Bold and Unprecedented New Effort to Tackle the Vast Threats to Marine Ecosystems

AOML Communications — Wed, 15 Nov 2023 15:43:16 +0000

NOAA announced $4.2 million in funding awarded to a collaborative project entitled the Florida Regional Ecosystems Stressors Collaborative Assessment (FRESCA), co-led by NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic & Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) and the University of Miami, and involving seven different academic and research institutions.

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NOAA Scientists Return to Cheeca Rocks, Find Reef Completely Bleached

AOML Communications — Thu, 03 Aug 2023 00:29:14 +0000

The growing concerns of coral bleaching due to the ongoing marine heatwave across South Florida, the Gulf of Mexico, and the greater Caribbean led scientists at NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic & Meteorological Lab (AOML) to return to Cheeca Rocks on July 31st and August 1st, 2023.

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New study establishes monitoring framework for evaluating reef persistence under climate change and ocean acidification

AOML Communications — Fri, 27 Jan 2023 14:18:41 +0000

Coral scientists at NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) and University of Miami Cooperative Institute of Marine and Atmospheric Science (CIMAS) developed a new modeling approach, for evaluating coral reef persistence under climate change scenarios. Aiming to improve coral restoration efforts, this new user-friendly framework has been created as a helpful tool for coral reef scientists and managers to address the increasing vulnerability of these vital ecosystems.

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Coral Rescue in Miami Beach

AOML Communications — Mon, 08 Aug 2022 15:07:10 +0000

A team of coral researchers from the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the University of Miami (UM) rescued 43 coral colonies after a sea wall collapsed at Star Island, near Miami Beach. The rapid coral rescue effort occurred at one of NOAA’s regularly monitored research sites. While conducting a routine survey, scientists from […]

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Building Endurance to Beat the Heat: New Study Preps Corals for Warming Waters

AOML Communications — Fri, 25 Mar 2022 15:06:09 +0000

In a recent study published in the journal Coral Reefs, scientists at NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) found that staghorn coral (Acropora cervicornis) fragments exposed to an oscillating temperature treatment were better able to respond to heat stress caused by warming oceans.

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Monitoring Reefs in the Dry Tortugas | NOAA & CIMAS | Expedition 39

AOML Communications — Wed, 02 Mar 2022 19:40:49 +0000

A new video by the ANGARI Foundation, focuses on the efforts of NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorlogical Laboratory coral researchers to document climate-driven impacts–thermal stress, ocean acidification, and ecological changes–at coral reefs in the Dry Tortugas.

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Habitat Altering Processes Are Uncovered for Reefs in the Eastern Pacific

AOML Communications — Tue, 09 Nov 2021 17:03:41 +0000

Trying to predict how coral reefs will respond to warming oceans and a changing climate may be considered a daunting task for scientists. In the face of this challenge, scientists at AOML recently published a study that characterizes the organisms and processes that lead to coral reef accretion (build up) and bioerosion (break down) in the dynamic environments of the Gulf of Panama and Gulf of Chiriqui in the eastern Pacific.

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Coral Growth in Flower Garden Banks Approaches Threshold As Sea Temperatures Rise

AOML Communications — Wed, 16 Jun 2021 15:31:25 +0000

A recent study by researchers at NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory shows that coral growth observed in symmetrical brain corals (Pseudodiploria strigosa) and mountainous star corals (Orbicella faveolata) in the Flower Garden Banks reefs, in the Gulf of Mexico, are linked to warming sea surface temperatures.

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Ocean Chemistry & Ecosystems Division

Betty Huss — Fri, 21 Sep 2018 00:13:24 +0000

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Threatened Corals See Effects of Sedimentation Stress in Early Life Stages

AOML Communications — Sun, 01 Oct 2017 20:44:39 +0000

Coral scientists at NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) are in the process of analyzing data that may shed light on the sub-lethal effects of sedimentation stress in coral larvae. Scientists recently conducted a series of lab experiments aimed at assessing the effects of Port of Miami dredge sediments on the larval performance of the Caribbean threatened coral Orbicella faveolata (also known as the mountainous star coral). Preliminary analysis suggests significant effects of sedimentation on both the survival and settlement of coral larvae.

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