Ocean acidification impacts coral reefs

• Main Author: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: English
• Published: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 2012
• Subjects: Coral reef; Ocean acidification; Educação Superior::Ciências Biológicas::Ecologia::Ecologia de Ecossistemas; Calcium carbonate; Educação Superior::Ciências Exatas e da Terra::Oceanografia::Interação entre os Organismos Marinhos e os Parâmetros Ambientais; Educação Básica::Ensino Médio::Biologia::Diversidade da vida e hereditariedade
• Online Access: http://objetoseducacionais2.mec.gov.br/handle/mec/20981

The ocean is absorbing large amounts of carbon dioxide—a natural process. However as carbon dioxide enters the ocean it reacts with water to form acid. Subsequent chemical reactions that try to maintain a normal pH level in the ocean end up reducing the amount of calcium carbonate—a component in the skeletons of many organisms such as corals lobsters clams and pteropods. Without calcium carbonate these organisms cannot properly grown and reproduce. This animation shows model data of how the availability of calcium carbonate is predicted to decrease over the next century at a depth of 10 meters in the ocean—where most corals occur. Areas that are deep red are sufficiently acidic to dissolve calcium carbonate-based organisms. Most areas currently have enough calcium carbonate to support corals and other organisms but all areas are predicted to decline by the year 2100 compared to pre-industrial values Educação Superior::Ciências Biológicas::Ecologia Ensino Médio::Biologia Educação Superior::Ciências Exatas e da Terra::Oceanografia