Monday, November 06, 2000

Key Largo, FL -- Coral reefs are the tropical rain forests of the sea, and like rainforests they are threatened by development activities and over-harvesting. In addition, coral reefs are threatened by pollution. This triple assault threatens a majority of coral reefs worldwide. To better understand these growing threats to coral reefs, scientists will live underwater in Aquarius from November 6 to 15, to study nutrient dynamics, photosynthesis, and how pollution may affect corals.

Aquarius is an underwater laboratory that allows scientists to live and work on the seafloor for extended periods of time using a special technique call saturation diving. The underwater laboratory is located in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, in 60 feet of water, 3.5 miles offshore. Owned by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and operated by the University of North Carolina at Wilmington (UNCW), Aquarius is the only underwater research platform of its kind in the world. The last time an underwater laboratory program conducted 10 or more missions in one season was over 15 years ago in Hydrolab, the predecessor to Aquarius that operated in the U.S. Virgin Islands.



Surprisingly, the mechanisms that allow corals to absorb nutrients from the surrounding water are not well understood. Dr. Christopher Finelli, assistant professor at the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium (LUMCON), will lead a team to live and work underwater for 10 days in Aquarius to conduct sophisticated experiments to measure water chemistry, water flow around corals, and coral biology related to how they absorb nutrients.



The Finelli-led team includes Dr. David Wethey (University of South Carolina) and Dr. Dean Pentcheff (University of South Carolina), and represents work started in 1999. The

scientists will specifically study how large-scale patterns of water movement (such as that caused by the Gulf Stream and the tides) and smaller scale events (like wave action and turbulence generated by currents on the bottom) are directly experienced by coral surfaces.

Water motion and nutrient concentrations ultimately affect the sizes and shapes of corals. Large patterns of water movement will be measured using plaster models placed in a wide range of locations around the reef; the plaster models dissolve at rates proportional to the flow of water around them. Small spatial scale patterns will be measured using instruments that can measure the flow of heat around and between brass models of corals with different shapes and textures. A newly developed device will be used to measure photosynthesis by corals, directly on the bottom. Photosynthesis is a key physiological parameter of coral health.



Taken together, results from this mission will help scientists and managers predict how reefs respond to chemicals (like nutrient pollution), natural system variation (like tides and upwelling events), and possibly even climate change.

A full mission year is planned for 2001. The next press release will be issued in December.



For additional information:

Dr. Steven Miller, NURC/UNCW center director, smiller@gate.net , 305-451-0233.

Mark Ward, NURC Public Affairs: markeward@aol.com: 407-975-6569

Follow the current mission by accessing http://www.uncwil.edu/nurc/aquarius