Deep within the South Pacific, scientists have explored a uncommon stretch of pristine corals formed like roses off the coast of Tahiti. The reef is considered one of many largest discovered at such depths and appears untouched by local weather change or human actions.
Laetitia Hedouin stated she first noticed the corals throughout a leisure dive with a neighborhood diving membership months earlier.
“When I went there for the first time I thought Wow! we need to study that reef. There’s something special about that reef,” stated Hedouin a researcher on the French National Center for Scientific Research in Moorea French Polynesia
What struck Hedouin was that the corals appeared wholesome and weren’t affected by a bleaching occasion in 2019. Corals are tiny animals that develop and kind reefs in oceans around the globe.
Globally, coral reefs have been depleted from overfishing and air pollution. Climate change can also be harming delicate corals, together with these in areas neighboring the newly found reef, with extreme bleaching attributable to hotter waters.
Between 2009 and 2018, 14 of the worlds corals had been killed in keeping with a 2020 report by the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Project.
The newfound reef stretching 2 miles 3 kilometers was studied late final 12 months throughout a dive expedition supported by UNESCO. Unlike many of the worlds mapped corals, that are present in comparatively shallow waters. This one was deeper, between 115 toes 35 meters to 230 toes 70 meters.
Exploring such depths posed a problem the deeper a diver goes underwater, the shorter period of time may be safely spent at every depth. The staff was outfitted with particular tanks and did 200 hours of diving to check the reef together with taking images measurements and samples of the coral
“The reef is in a spot where many researchers haven’t spent a lot of time in,” stated former National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration oceanographer Mark Eakin.
“We’ll be seeing more of these discoveries as the technology is applied to these locations. We may find some bigger ones somewhere but I think this is always going to be an unusual reef,” Eakin added.
“The recent volcanic eruption in Tonga that triggered tsunami waves across the Pacific has not affected the reef off Tahiti,” stated Hedouin.
Hedouin hopes the analysis can assist consultants perceive how the reef has been resilient to local weather change and human pressures and what position these deeper corals may play within the ocean ecosystem. More dives are deliberate within the coming months
We know little or no in regards to the ocean and there’s nonetheless a lot that must be recorded must be measured stated Julian Barbiere the top of UNESCO’s marine coverage and regional coordination
