Australia Says Majority of , the Great Barrier Reef Is Bleached.<br />NPR reports over 90% of Australia's <br />Great Barrier Reef surveyed in <br />2022 was bleached.<br />A direct result of global warming, this is the <br />first time researchers have found bleaching to occur <br />in the coral reef during a La Niña weather pattern.<br />which generally brings <br />cooler temperatures <br />to the Pacific Ocean.<br />Per NPR, bleaching events in the <br />previous six years have caused <br />extensive damage to at least two-thirds <br />of the once remarkable coral reef.<br />Bleaching in coral reefs occurs <br />as a heat stress response.<br />Experts are hopeful that much <br />of the coral will recover from such <br />bleaching events over time.<br />The early indications <br />are that the mortality won't be very high. , David Wachenfeld, chief scientist at the Great Barrier Reef Marine Authority, via NPR.<br />We are hoping that we will see most of the coral that is bleached recover... , David Wachenfeld, chief scientist at the Great Barrier Reef Marine Authority, via NPR.<br />...and we will end up with an event rather more like 2020 when, yes, there was mass bleaching, but there was low mortality. , David Wachenfeld, chief scientist at the Great Barrier Reef Marine Authority, via NPR.<br />Officials say the bleaching events of <br />2016 and 2017 caused "quite high <br />levels of coral mortality.".<br />Last December was the hottest on record <br />for the Great Barrier Reef since 1900
