Widespread coral bleaching affected these Siderastrea Radians at Buck Island, St. Croix, US Virgin Islands, in October 2005. Learn more... |
In October 2005, heat stress values in the eastern Caribbean were associated with a massive coral bleaching event. Learn more... |
Status levels are defined in terms of the HotSpot and Degree Heating Weeks (DHW) products:
Status Level |
Definition |
Description |
No Stress |
HotSpot ≤ 0 |
corals are not currently experiencing any thermal stress |
Bleaching Watch |
0 < HotSpot < 1 |
temperatures are above normal summer maximum, but corals are not yet stressed |
Bleaching Warning |
1 ≤ HotSpot and |
corals are experiencing a low-level buildup of thermal stress |
Bleaching Alert Level 1 |
1 ≤ HotSpot and |
corals are currently stressed, accumulating to a level where bleaching is expected |
Bleaching Alert Level 2 |
1 ≤ HotSpot and DHW ≥ 8 |
corals are currently stressed, accumulating to a level where widespread bleaching and some coral mortality is expected |
This figure shows the locations monitored by the SBA system. The number of sites will expand in the coming years, to improve global coverage. Courtesy ReefBase Learn more... |
E-mail alerts are available for all of the reef sites. An automated e-mail will be sent to a subscriber when the thermal stress level changes at the reef site. For more information visit our subscription page.
For more information on all of NOAA's coral activities, visit the Coral Reef Conservation Program: http://www.coralreef.noaa.gov