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The rising acidity of the oceans threatens coral reefs by making it harder for corals to build their skeletons. A new study details how ocean acidification affects coral skeletons, enabling scientists to predict more precisely where corals will be most vulnerable. Corals grow their skeletons upward toward sunlight, thickening and reinforcing them.
The new research shows that ocean acidification impedes the thickening process -- decreasing the skeletons' density and leaving them more vulnerable to breaking. The scientists developed a numerical model simulating the skeletal growth mechanism and coupled it with projected changes in ocean acidity. The results show that by the start of the next century, declines in coral skeletal density will occur on many coral reefs.Image credit: Hannah Barkley