Australian Coral Reef dying due to heat following 400-year temperature record
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00:00The world's largest living structure is under threat.
00:03A new study shows water temperatures in and around Australia's Great Barrier Reef have
00:08hit a 400-year high, concluding human-induced climate change is to blame.
00:14Scientists used coral samples to reconstruct sea temperatures dating back as far as the
00:1817th century.
00:19What that showed is the recent really warm years that we've been having where the corals
00:26on the Great Barrier Reef have bleached, they are unprecedented in that 400 years.
00:32We should be extremely concerned about the future of the reef as we know it.
00:39Coral bleaching occurs when water temperatures rise by more than one degree Celsius, causing
00:44the coral to shed nutrients and colour.
00:47If the temperature stays high, the coral, which supports some of the most biodiverse
00:51ecosystems on the planet, can die.
00:55And it's not just around Australia that sea temperatures are rising.
00:58In the French Mediterranean, waters recently reached over 30 degrees Celsius, that's four
01:02degrees above what's considered normal.
01:08The rise in temperature of the Mediterranean will lead to both a rise in its level, which
01:13will be reflected in the coastline, but also to its evaporation, creating more potential
01:18for rainfall.
01:21It comes as the Copernicus Climate Change Service has released new data showing the
01:26earth experienced its hottest day ever in July.
01:29Experts say 2024 is shaping up to be the warmest year on record.