higher than a sea-bird's eye view: coral reef remote sensing using satellites presented by mark...

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

Presented by Mark Eakin

Coordinator, NOAA Coral Reef Watch

LIVE INTERACTIVE LEARNING @ YOUR DESKTOP

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

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

Presented by Mark Eakin

Coordinator, NOAA Coral Reef Watch

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

Outline

Climate Change

• 2009 report from the US Global Change Research Program

• Climate Change impacts, focused on the United States

http://globalchange.gov/publications/reports/scientific-assessments/us-impacts

Climate Change


Climate Change andCoral 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.”








Outline

What is a coral reef?

Animal Vegetable Mineral

What is a coral reef?

All of the above!

Slide after of Joan Kleypas, NCAR

http://www.coris.noaa.gov/about/what_are/#Anchor-From-63388

Animal / Vegetable/ Mineral

Coral bleaching is caused by stress

What is coral bleaching?

Healthy coral

Bleached coral

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

Healthy coral with algae

Bleached coral without algae

http://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/education/tutorial/crw04_morebleaching.html

What is coral bleaching?

A. Nutrient enrichment (eutrophication).

B. Fish bites.

C. Lack of vitamin D.

D. High water temperature.

E. Too much homework.

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

Photos: AIMS and GBRMPAhttp://www.coris.noaa.gov/about/hazards/

What will stress a coral and cause bleaching?

Coming up next…

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

- NOAA satellites measure global ocean temperature and thermal stress

http://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite

Questions?








Outline

Measuring some property of an object without touching it.

http://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/education/tutorial/crw08_remotesensing.html

What is remote sensing?

Which of these treesis healthy?

Why do we think this treeis healthy?

• Our eyes sense the green color in the photo

• We interpret “green” as “healthy”

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

NOAA Satellites

NOAA’s POES satellites sense the Earth’s whole surface every day.

Ocean temperature is one thing they measure.

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.

Questions?








Outline

Remember…

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

http://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite

How warm is too warm?

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

How warm is too warm?

Bleaching threshold temperatures vary from ~27 – 33°C (81 – 91°F).

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

Coral Bleaching HotSpotsSatellite data show where temperature is above the bleaching threshold right now. Yellow/orange shows stressfully hot areas.

http://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/current/products_hotspot.html

Corals bleach when conditions get hot and stay hot

DHW are accumulated HotSpots ≥ 1for the preceding 12 weeks

Degree Heating Weeks(DHW)

http://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/current/products_dhw.html

DHW = 0 No Thermal StressDHW ≥ 4 Thermal Stress leading to significant bleaching DHW ≥ 8 Thermal Stress leading to wide spread

bleaching and significant mortality

Degree Heating Weeks

Bottom Line for Managers

Is my reef currently at risk for bleaching?

- Satellite data warn managers of bleaching

- Plan research, response, and monitoring

Questions?








Outline

Can corals recover?

-Yes, if the stress doesn’t 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

Photos: AIMSand GBRMPA

http://www.reefresilience.org/Toolkit_Coral/C2d_Recovery.html

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

Can corals recover?

-Corals can begin to recover after a few weeks

Jeff Miller, National Park Service

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

Over 90% bleached

Over 60% died

Newfound Reef

Yawzi Point

Mennebeck Bay

South Florida/Caribbean Network I&M Program

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)

2005 Bleaching in the Virgin Islands National Park

What else can thermal stress do to corals?

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

Photo: Caroline Rogers, USGS

Gain weight Get sick Turn orange

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

Bleaching and coral disease

- Bleaching leaves corals more vulnerable to disease

-Can quickly kill part or all of the coral colonyMarilyn E. Brandt, University of Miami

Questions?








Outline

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 lost15% more are under imminent threathttp://reefgis.reefbase.org

Hoegh-Guldberg, 1999. Climate change, coral bleaching, and the future of the world’s reefs. Marine and Freshwater Research 50(8), 839-866.

Coral bleaching threshold

Future Warming

Two-part Solution:1: lower global CO2 emissions

For coral bleaching stress, there is a huge difference between 1.5°C and 2°C increase.


Above even the highest future

scenario


– Shade reefs

– Cool reefs

– Improve water quality

– Reduce other stress (pollution, disease)

– Reduce overfishing

http://www.reefresilience.org/Toolkit_Coral/C1_Intro.html

Two-part Solution:2: increase reef resilience

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 worldhttp://coralreef.noaa.gov/outreach/protect/welcome.html

A B C

Hoegh-Guldberg et al., 2007. Coral reefs under rapid climate change and ocean acidification. Science 318, 1737 - 1742.

The Future of ReefsIs Up To Us

What Can YOU Do?

1. Don’t buy jewelry/souvenirs made from coral or other reef animals.

2. Reduce fertilizer use.

3. Be a responsible tourist.

4. Learn more about coral reefs.

5. Spread the word.

http://coralreef.noaa.gov/outreach/thingsyoucando.html

http://www.projectaware.org/english/templates/info.aspx?id=407

Questions?








Outline

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.html

http://www.osdpd.noaa.gov/PSB/EPS/SST/anom_anim.html

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

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

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.html

• Coral Reef Conservation Program– Central listing for coral education resources– http://coralreef.noaa.gov/outreach/welcome.html

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

Thank you to the sponsor of tonight's Web Seminar:

http://learningcenter.nsta.org

http://www.elluminate.com

National Science Teachers AssociationDr. Francis Q. Eberle, Executive Director

Zipporah Miller, Associate Executive Director Conferences and Programs

Al Byers, Assistant Executive Director e-Learning

LIVE INTERACTIVE LEARNING @ YOUR DESKTOP

NSTA Web SeminarsPaul Tingler, Director

Jeff Layman, Technical Coordinator

higher than a sea-bird's eye view: coral reef remote sensing using satellites presented by mark...

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