Corals of Australia's Great Barrier Reef
Click on image for full size
Credit: UNC
Acidic Ocean Water Impacts Corals and Other Marine Life
Even the clams and corals that live at the bottom of the sea are affected by greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. That’s because there’s a greenhouse gas that is getting into the ocean. Carbon dioxide gets into the air when we burn oil, coal, and gas. And it can become dissolved in seawater. This makes the oceans more acidic, which could spell trouble for ocean life because the mineral of their shells dissolves in acid.
Seawater has become only slightly more acidic over the past 150 years. It will get more acidic in the future, but very slowly. Even this small change can make a big difference for many different types of ocean life.
Scientists are very interested in learning more about how this will affect corals. Corals build large reefs that become a home for so many other animals. If corals can't grow the reef, then many animals might not be able to find a reef home.
Shop Windows to the Universe Science Store!
The
Summer 2010 issue of The Earth Scientist, available in our
online store, includes articles on rivers and snow, classroom planetariums, satellites and oceanography, hands-on astronomy, and global warming.
You might also be interested in:
Only a tiny amount of the gases in Earth’s atmosphere are greenhouse gases. But they have a huge effect on climate. There are several different types of greenhouse gases, but they all have something in
...more
Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a kind of gas. There isn't that much carbon dioxide in Earth's atmosphere, but it is still very important. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas. That means it helps trap heat coming
...more
Have you ever taken your temperature to see if you are getting sick? Scientists have been taking the Earth's temperature and have found that it is getting warmer. During the past 100 years, the Earth's
...more
Leaders from the countries of the world are heading to Copenhagen, Denmark in December 2009 to decide how the world will deal with climate change. They will make decisions about how to send less greenhouse
...more
How do you know to pack your bathing suit and sunhat for a trip to a tropical island or pack warm sweaters and coats for a trip to Alaska? If you know a little about regional climates, then you know what
...more
Some satellites study Earth from space. Some of them study our atmosphere and weather. Some take pictures of clouds. Others use special instruments to make measurements of temperature, humidity, or the
...more
To figure out what the Earth might be like in the future, scientists need to know how Earth reacts to changes. Models help scientists to better understand how the Earth works and how it will react to climate
...more
