NOAA Reports Largest Coral Bleaching Event in History

(MENAFN) The world’s coral reefs are undergoing the fourth and most severe global bleaching event ever recorded, as per the latest data from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

From January 2023 to April 2025, 83.7% of the planet’s coral reef area has experienced bleaching-level heat stress, affecting reefs in over 83 countries and territories.

NOAA described this event as the largest to date, surpassing the previous record set between 2014 and 2017, when 68.2% of the world’s reefs were impacted.

Coral bleaching occurs when rising ocean temperatures cause the expulsion of algae from coral tissues. Though corals can recover if environmental stressors subside, the current widespread damage poses significant concerns.

The first two global bleaching events took place in 1998 and 2010, according to NOAA.

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