Higher than a Sea-Bird's Eye View: Coral Reef Remote Sensing Using Satellites

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Higher than a Sea-Bird's Eye View Coral Reef
Remote Sensing Using Satellites
LIVE INTERACTIVE LEARNING _at_ YOUR DESKTOP

• Presented by Mark Eakin
• Coordinator, NOAA Coral Reef Watch

Tuesday, December 15, 2009
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Higher than a Sea-Bird's Eye View Coral Reef
Remote Sensing Using Satellites

• Presented by Mark Eakin
• Coordinator, NOAA Coral Reef Watch

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Outline

1. Climate change and coral reefs
2. Introduction to coral bleaching
3. Remote sensing basics
4. NOAA satellites pinpoint bleaching risk
5. After corals bleach
6. What does the future hold?
7. Classroom resources

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Outline

1. Climate change and coral reefs
2. Introduction to coral bleaching
3. Remote sensing basics
4. NOAA satellites pinpoint bleaching risk
5. After corals bleach
6. What does the future hold?
7. Classroom resources

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Climate Change

• 2009 report from the US Global Change Research
  Program
• Climate Change impacts, focused on the United
  States

http//globalchange.gov/publications/reports/scien
tific-assessments/us-impacts
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Climate Change
http//globalchange.gov/publications/reports/scien
tific-assessments/us-impacts
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Climate Change and Coral Reefs

• Higher water temperatures and ocean
  acidification due to increasing atmospheric
  carbon dioxide will present major additional
  stresses to coral reefs, resulting in significant
  die-offs and limited recovery.

http//globalchange.gov/publications/reports/scien
tific-assessments/us-impacts
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Outline

1. Climate change and coral reefs
2. Introduction to coral bleaching
3. Remote sensing basics
4. NOAA satellites pinpoint bleaching risk
5. After corals bleach
6. What does the future hold?
7. Classroom resources

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What is a coral reef?
Animal
Vegetable
Mineral
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What is a coral reef?
All of the above!
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Animal / Vegetable/ Mineral
Slide after of Joan Kleypas, NCAR
http//www.coris.noaa.gov/about/what_are/Anchor-F
rom-63388
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What is coral bleaching?
Healthy coral
Bleached coral

• Coral bleaching is caused by stress

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What is coral bleaching?
Healthy coral with algae
Bleached coral without algae

• - Corals expel their zooxanthellae
• - The coral tissue is clear, so you see the white
  limestone skeleton underneath

http//coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/education
/tutorial/crw04_morebleaching.html
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What will stress a coral and cause bleaching?

1. Nutrient enrichment (eutrophication).
2. Fish bites.
3. Lack of vitamin D.
4. High water temperature.
5. Too much homework.

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What will stress a coral and cause bleaching?

• High light or UV levels
• Cold temperatures
• Low salinity from coastal runoff or heavy rain
• Exposure to air during very low tides
• Most important high water temperature

http//www.coris.noaa.gov/about/hazards/
Photos AIMS and GBRMPA
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Coming up next

• If water gets 1 or 2C higher than the summer
  average, corals get stressed and bleach
• NOAA satellites measure global ocean temperature
  and thermal stress

http//coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite
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Questions?
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Outline

1. Climate change and coral reefs
2. Introduction to coral bleaching
3. Remote sensing basics
4. NOAA satellites pinpoint bleaching risk
5. After corals bleach
6. What does the future hold?
7. Classroom resources

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What is remote sensing?

• Measuring some property of an object without
  touching it.

http//coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/education
/tutorial/crw08_remotesensing.html
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Which of these trees is healthy?
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Why do we think this tree is healthy?

• Our eyes sense the green color in the photo
• We interpret green as healthy

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NOAA Satellites

• Polar-orbiting satellites have a constant orbit
  while the earth rotates under them.

NOAAs POES satellites sense the Earths whole
surface every day. Ocean temperature is one
thing they measure.
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How do we measure the temperature of the ocean
from 850km above the surface?

• If you stand next to a fire, you can feel the
  heat on your skin.
• This is infrared radiation.
• Satellites carry a sensor to detect this
  radiation.

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Questions?
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Outline

1. Climate change and coral reefs
2. Introduction to coral bleaching
3. Remote sensing basics
4. NOAA satellites pinpoint bleaching risk
5. After corals bleach
6. What does the future hold?
7. Classroom resources

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Remember

• If water gets 1 or 2C higher than the summer
  average, corals get stressed and bleach

http//coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite
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How warm is too warm?

• How hot do you think the ocean has to get before
  corals start to bleach?

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How warm is too warm?

• Bleaching threshold temperatures vary from 27
  33C (81 91F).

Corals from naturally warmer areas are adapted to
high temperatures, and have a higher bleaching
threshold.
http//coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/education
/tutorial/crw22_bleachingthreshold.html
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Coral Bleaching HotSpots

• Satellite data show where temperature is above
  the bleaching threshold right now. Yellow/orange
  shows stressfully hot areas.

http//coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/current/p
roducts_hotspot.html
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Degree Heating Weeks (DHW)
Corals bleach when conditions get hot and
stay hot DHW are accumulated HotSpots 1 for
the preceding 12 weeks
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Degree Heating Weeks
DHW 0 No Thermal Stress DHW 4 Thermal Stress
leading to significant bleaching DHW 8 Thermal
Stress leading to wide spread bleaching and
significant mortality
http//coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/current/p
roducts_dhw.html
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Bottom Line for Managers
Is my reef currently at risk for bleaching?

• Satellite data warn managers of bleaching
• Plan research, response, and monitoring

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Questions?
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Outline

1. Climate change and coral reefs
2. Introduction to coral bleaching
3. Remote sensing basics
4. NOAA satellites pinpoint bleaching risk
5. After corals bleach
6. What does the future hold?
7. Classroom resources

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Can corals recover?
Photos AIMS and GBRMPA

• Yes, if the stress doesnt last too long
• Some corals can eat more zooplankton to help
  survive the lack of zooxanthellae
• Some species are more resistant to bleaching, and
  more able to recover

http//www.reefresilience.org/Toolkit_Coral/C2d_Re
covery.html
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Can corals recover?

• Corals may eventually regain color by
  repopulating their zooxanthellae
• Algae may come from the water column
• Or they may come from reproduction of the few
  cells that remain in the coral

Jeff Miller, National Park Service
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Can corals recover?

• Corals can begin to recover after a few weeks

Jeff Miller, National Park Service
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Does bleaching kill corals?

• Yes, if the stress is severe
• Some of the polyps in a colony might die
• If the bleaching is really severe, whole colonies
  might die
• Bleaching in Puerto Rico killed an 800-year-old
  star coral colony in 2005

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2005 Bleaching in the Virgin Islands National Park
Mennebeck Bay
Over 90 bleached Over 60 died
Yawzi Point
Newfound Reef
J. Miller et al. 2009. Coral disease following
massive bleaching in 2005 causes 60 decline in
coral cover on reefs in the US Virgin Islands
Coral Reefs, DOI 10.1007/s00338-009-0531-7)
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What else can thermal stress do to corals?
Photo Caroline Rogers, USGS

• Question what is something that happens to
  people when they are highly stressed?

Gain weight
Get sick
Turn orange
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What else can thermal stress do to corals?
Photo Caroline Rogers, USGS

• Question what is something that happens to
  people when they are highly stressed?

Get sick
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Bleaching and coral disease

• Bleaching leaves corals more vulnerable to
  disease
• Can quickly kill part or all of the coral colony

Marilyn E. Brandt, University of Miami
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Questions?
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Outline

1. Climate change and coral reefs
2. Introduction to coral bleaching
3. Remote sensing basics
4. NOAA satellites pinpoint bleaching risk
5. After corals bleach
6. What does the future hold?
7. Classroom resources

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A Worldwide Crisis
Bleaching has already happened around the world.
(map shows all bleaching reports since
1963) Adds to other stress (fishing,
pollution, etc.) 19 of reefs have been lost 15
more are under imminent threat
http//reefgis.reefbase.org
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Future Warming
Coral bleaching threshold
Hoegh-Guldberg, 1999. Climate change, coral
bleaching, and the future of the worlds reefs.
Marine and Freshwater Research 50(8), 839-866.
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Two-part Solution1 lower global CO2 emissions
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Two-part Solution1 lower global CO2 emissions
For coral bleaching stress, there is a huge
difference between 1.5C and 2C increase.
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Two-part Solution1 lower global CO2 emissions
Above even the highest future scenario
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Two-part Solution2 increase reef resilience

• Shade reefs
• Cool reefs
• Improve water quality
• Reduce other stress (pollution, disease)
• Reduce overfishing

http//www.reefresilience.org/Toolkit_Coral/C1_Int
ro.html
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Coral Reefs AreToo Valuable to Lose

• Not just a nice place to visit on vacation!
• Over 375 billion in fish, seafood, tourism, and
  coastal protection worldwide
• 0.5 to 1 Billion people directly depend on
  healthy reefs for their food and livelihood
• Highest marine biodiversity in the world

http//coralreef.noaa.gov/outreach/protect/welcome
.html
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The Future of ReefsIs Up To Us
Hoegh-Guldberg et al., 2007. Coral reefs under
rapid climate change and ocean acidification.
Science 318, 1737 - 1742.
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What Can YOU Do?

• Dont buy jewelry/souvenirs made from coral or
  other reef animals.
• Reduce fertilizer use.
• Be a responsible tourist.
• Learn more about coral reefs.
• Spread the word.
• http//coralreef.noaa.gov/outreach/thingsyoucando.
  html
• http//www.projectaware.org/english/templates/info
  .aspx?id407

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Questions?
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Outline

1. Climate change and coral reefs
2. Introduction to coral bleaching
3. Remote sensing basics
4. NOAA satellites pinpoint bleaching risk
5. After corals bleach
6. What does the future hold?
7. Classroom resources

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Satellite Data and Animations(website
demonstration)

• NOAA Coral Reef Watch website
• provides current conditions, data, Google Earth,
  etc.
• Anomaly animation shows ENSO status, etc.
• http//coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/index.htm
  l
• http//www.osdpd.noaa.gov/PSB/EPS/SST/anom_anim.ht
  ml

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Google Earth

• Fun, interactive tool
• Also teaches geography!
• See where conditions are right for coral
  bleaching right now.
• Live links to data on the web.

http//coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/ge/index.
html
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Google Earth

• Fun, interactive tool
• Also teaches tropical geography!
• See where conditions are right for coral
  bleaching right now.
• Live links to data on the web.

http//coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/ge/index.
html
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Classroom Resources

• Satellite data/coral bleaching
• Lesson plans, data activity, tutorial
• http//coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/education
  /index.html
• Ocean education
• Tutorial and online resources for corals
• http//oceanservice.noaa.gov/education/welcome.htm
  l
• Coral Reef Conservation Program
• Central listing for coral education resources
• http//coralreef.noaa.gov/outreach/welcome.html

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Summary

• Corals are animal, vegetable, AND mineral
• Climate change is warming coastal waters
• Hot water bleaches corals
• NOAA satellites pinpoint bleaching risk
• Corals may die after bleaching
• We need to act now to save coral reefs

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Thank you to the sponsor of tonight's Web Seminar
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http//learningcenter.nsta.org
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http//www.elluminate.com
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National Science Teachers Association Dr. Francis
Q. Eberle, Executive Director Zipporah Miller,
Associate Executive Director Conferences and
Programs Al Byers, Assistant Executive Director
e-Learning
NSTA Web Seminars Paul Tingler, Director Jeff
Layman, Technical Coordinator
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