It was reported that 67 percent of the northern part of the Great Barrier Reef in Australia suffered coral bleaching during the later half of 2017. Now, researchers have found that the reef this year been exposed to bleaching again. This time, the part in the middle was hit the hardest.
While El Niño was suspected to be a major contributor last year, there are currently no special weather phenomena that can be considered to have contributed to the additional bleaching seen now. The water is simply too hot for the corals to feel good.
How many of the corals will survive this time around remains to be seen, but usually, it takes around a decade for the corals to recover. But with current pace, it happens every year, making it impossible for the reefs to recover.