Coral Bleaching Devastates Great Barrier Reef

Australia's Great Barrier Reef underwent its most severe mass bleaching event on record in early 2025, with surveys finding bleaching across 98% of monitored reefs. Ocean temperatures around Queensland ran 2-3 degrees above average through the summer. Scientists reported that recovery time between bleaching events had compressed to less than two years, leaving many reefs unable to recover before the next thermal stress event.