El Nino and its Impact on Coral Reefs
Introduction
When individuals think of El Nino, they think of heavy wind, heavy rain, and the hot and cold temperatures in the wrong seasons. However, El Nino impacts are more than on humans and their surroundings. El Nino impacts the sea as well. The changes El Nino brings to our weather brings changes to ocean temperature. Changes in the ocean impact all forms of life in the ocean. It brings changes to fishes (affecting migration patterns), changes to aquatic vegetation growth, changes in the rest of the food chain , and most importantly changes (even death) to coral reefs. Coral reefs are more than collectable items, but they are a source of food, shelter and protection for most fishes and other forms of life in the ocean. During El Nino, coral reefs are damaged by the change of temperature. This leaves fishes homeless and in danger.
What is El Nino
El Nino is a disruption of the ocean off the coast of South America. El Nino starts when all the cold water on the bottom of the ocean does not come up to the surface because the trade winds blow differently during El Nino years. Instead, the warm water stays on top and becomes overheated. Then the water warms the jet streams, as well as sending more moisture into the air. El Nino has many important consequences for all the weather around the globe. For example, Illinois might be warm during its winter, and Brazil might be cold during its summer. Rainfall follows the warm water eastward. This is associated with flooding in Peru and droughts occurring in Australia. This kind of weather change is caused by El Nino. An El Nino may occur every three to seven years . It begins with a change in the trade winds. El Nino can last from a few months up to two years . It can be predicted a year before it happens. The warming of the ocean water begins in the Pacific and moves towards the coast of South America. During a period of time that may last a year. A full blown El Nino starts in early December. El Nino effects continue for many months. (El Nino Theme Page, 1996).
History
No one knows exactly when the El Nino occurred, but ice core records from the Andes in Peru suggest these climate fluctuations have been part of Earth's weather cycle for
Mark Cane, scientist at Columbia University, discusses numerous places around the world that suffer famine and fires due to the effects of El Nino, even mentioning an occurrence here in the United States of an extreme snow storm caused by this event1. According to NOAA, El Nino occurs every 2-7 years and is detected by satellites, buoys, and sea level analysis . If scientists are aware of when El Nino is occurring then they are also aware of what changes in weather it is causing and can therefore connect these disasters to the event. It is
El Nino is both an atmospheric and oceanic phenomenon affecting weather patterns all around the world. It is complemented by La Nina in a cycle that occurs approximately every 4 years, varying as much as every two years to every six years (Wang 1999, 3331). La Nina has almost the opposite effect, however differs in its strength and duration randomly, as does El Nino (Fedorov 2000, 1998). The cycle is often paraphrased as ENSO, standing for El Nino-Southern Oscillation (Flugel 1997, 3230). It is called this because the El Nino phenomenon is especially strong in the Southern Hemisphere, and has greater effects in areas of the pacific near the equator. Although ENSO is prominent in certain areas, it alters weather patterns all around the world. The El Nino pattern can be quite random with and approximate range of 2 to 6 years per cycle, and is a loaded gun believed to be triggered by western winds (Fedorov 2000, 1997). Many scientists are now looking to the past for answers, so the El Nino cycle can be predicted for the years to come. New discoveries have recently been made on El Nino's history, and possible future.
Volcanoes- the ash emitted during the eruptions cool the global temperature, in their absence the temperature has been on the rise.
Climate change has been affecting coral reefs in a negative way. If the climate continues to get warmer more of our coral reef become bleached, the structure of the reefs will become weak, and algae that keeps coral healthy will die. In the essay, “A framework for understanding Climate change impacts on Coral Reefs” by Joshua Clinner (2016), he emphasizes our climate change has become one of the long-term threats to coral reef. The article “Climate change and human impacts are damaging the world’s coral reefs”, which didn’t include an author (2001), states that the sea temperatures throughout the tropics has increased dramatically leaving much of the coral unhealthy. Spencer Hall (2008), discussed in his article “Coral Reefs and Climate Change”, how the increase in climate change puts a lot of stress on coral reefs because they are very sensitive to the change of temperature. Rigel B (2003) states in his essay, “Climate Change and Coral Reefs”, that coral reef has already been negatively impacted by
Global warming was the main reason for the occurrence. The water of the Gulf and Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean were h...
The Effects of Global Warming on the Great Barrier Reef Introduction Coral reefs around the world are in danger. One of the causes is global warming, which has been increasing the temperature of the ocean water, resulting in coral bleaching. This essay will focus on damage occurring to the Great Barrier Reef. What is a Coral Reef? A coral reef is a ridge formed in shallow ocean water by accumulated calcium-containing exoskeletons of coral animals, certain red algae, and mollusks.
Humans have a very large effect on the ecosystems of coral reefs. Sensitivity of coral reefs causes them to be more susceptible to harmful anthropogenic practices. Some of these are sedimentation, global warming, recreational activities, poison fishing, blast fishing practices, water pollution, and coral mining. All of these very different practices can effectively end up with the same results; the mortality of coral reefs around the world. Coral reefs are an important ecosystem of the world, and support many different industries and millions of people.
The coral reefs of the world are of vast importance because they host 25% of all marine life on the planet. Now that corals have been briefly described, we can see why the effects of climate change damage coral reef systems. Ocean acidification is a result of climate change. Acidification is caused by an increase in carbon dioxide in our oceans and leads to a decrease in the pH levels of seawater. This pH decrease reduces the ability of corals to make their hard skeletons.
An El Nino happens in intervals of 3-7 years. The formation of this is related to the Pacific Southern Oscillation which is also the cycling of the Pacific Ocean circulation. The Pacific Southern Oscillation (the change of atmospheric pressures) happens when the easterly trade winds collapse, weaken, or even reverse. As this happens, the upwelling stops. The slight weakening of the winds cause a small change in sea surface temperatures, and the wind and pressure changes increase. The warm water of the western Pacific Ocean flow eastward and sea surface temperatures increase on the western coast of South America. When this occurs, the wet weather conditions (originally in the western Pacific) move east, and dry conditions (normally in the east) appear in the west.
It will change the water cycle due to warmer temperatures. Some areas will get more precipitation and storms, while others will get nothing and have serious droughts. Warming to a few degrees will cause glaciers to melt and sea ice to melt, leading to a lot of damage. This damage would lead the levels of the oceans to rise and would cause damage to coastal cities and islands. This would cause serious problems for the different species living in the oceans and could cause some disease.
Located in tropical ocean waters, coral reefs provide priceless resources to both human and marine life. The leading natural cause of destruction among the coral reefs is global warming. Other natural causes are earthquakes, hurricanes, cyclones, and typhoons. The destruction to the coral reefs from these natural disasters is minimal compared to the dangers caused by man. Man-made destruction has a much wider impact on the health of the coral reefs. This destruction includes over-fishing, damage from anchors, aquarium industry, overgrowth of seaweed, and being smothered by sediments.
As defined by the Oxford dictionary, climate change is, “a change in global or regional climate patterns, in particular a change apparent from the mid to late 20th century onwards and attributed largely to the increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide produced by the use of fossil fuels.” (Oxford Dictionaries) Moreover, evidence of climate change can be found all over the world, and in many different forms, but is especially prevalent in certain regions. For instance, in Southeast Asia, specifically the nation of the Philippines, signs of climate change can be observed frequently, if not regularly. One major ...
Climate change is evidenced through shifts in the weather patterns such as winds, humidity and temperatures over certain durations. Natural climate changes occur less frequently and they are triggered by factors related to geographical aspects as well as solar radiation. The earth’s movement on the orbit triggers changes in climate, causing some areas to have higher temperatures than usual, while others are significantly cold depending on the position of the earth on the orbit. The heat from the sun causes changes in the stratospheric ozone and it increases the amount of greenhouse gases. Heat from the oceanic crust also contributes to warming as a result of episodic hydrothermal venting (Liao & Sandeberg, 2012).
Climate change is an occurrence of a change from patterns in weather which also affects land surfaces and ice sheets in global or regional areas. When climate change occurs, it continues for several decades. Climate change can often occur when there has recently been a volcano, such changes in the patterns of sun radiation or internal variability.
Climate change is triggering major changes in our planet. A simple rise or fall in general temperature can have a large effect on precipitation patterns and the frequency of storms. The rise in the sea level, which has been accounted for and is constantly rising has been the result of melting of ice and glaciers.