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2024
Remotely Sensed Spectral Variability Predicts Reef Fish Diversity
Published in Ecological Indicators Abstract In terrestrial landscapes, the spectral variability hypothesis (SVH) enables estimation of species diversity from satellite data, thereby allowing biodiversity assessments to be upscaled. Whether the SVH works in the marine realm is an open question. …
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2024
Remotely sensed habitat diversity predicts species diversity on coral reefs
Published in Remote Sensing of Environment Abstract The ability to map coral reef biodiversity from orbit would greatly advance marine spatial planning. Presently, reef biodiversity is measured in situ by divers, but this method is inefficient and expensive. Remote sensing techniques …
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2023
The 2022 Hunga-Tonga Mega-tsunami: Near-Field Simulation of a Once-in-a-Century Event
Published in Science Advances Abstract The 2022 Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai eruption generated a once-in-a-century magnitude tsunami. The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai (HTHH) volcanic eruption in January 2022 generated a catastrophic tsunami and contends for the largest natural explosion in more than a …
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2022
Heat, human, hydrodynamic, and habitat drivers measured from space correlate with metrics of reef health across the South Pacific
Published in Coral Reefs Abstract Diver assessments can reveal much about coral reef condition, but fieldwork is expensive and challenging. To address this limitation to effective reef assessment, we identified predictive relationships between diver measurements of reef condition collected at 650 …
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2022
A New Foraminiferal Bioindicator for Long-Term Heat Stress on Coral Reefs
Published in Journal of Earth Science Abstract Coral reefs are in terminal decline. For conservation to be effective, naturally depauperate reefs must be distinguished from those recently degraded by humans. Traditional reef monitoring is time consuming and lacks the longevity to …
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2022
Tsunamigenic Potential of an Incipient Submarine Landslide in the Tiran Straits
Published in Geophysical Research Letters Abstract The Red Sea is a maritime rift. Tsunamigenic submarine landslides are common in these deep, steep-sided, and seismically active basins. Because the rift is narrow, tsunami formed on one margin dissipate little before impacting the opposite side. Red …
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2021
The Prospect of Global Coral Reef Bathymetry by Combining Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite-2 Altimetry With Multispectral Satellite Imagery
Published in Frontiers in Marine Science Abstract Empirical methods for estimating shallow-water bathymetry using passive multispectral satellite imagery are robust and globally applicable, in theory, but they require copious local measurements of water depth for algorithm calibration. Such calibration data have …
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2021
Global Reef Expedition Final Report
The Global Reef Expedition Final Report summarizes the findings from our 10-year research mission to survey and map coral reefs across the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans as well as the Red Sea. The Expedition involved hundreds of research scientists …
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2021
Multi-decadal atoll-island dynamics in the Indian Ocean Chagos Archipelago
Published in Global and Planetary Change Abstract This study calls upon recently discovered aerial photographs for two atolls in the Indian Ocean Chagos Archipelago. Pairing these vintage data with modern satellite imagery allows the coastline dynamics of a suite of islands …
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2021
Global Reef Expedition: Chagos Archipelago Final Report
The Khaled Bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation embarked on the Global Reef Expedition to assess the state of coral reefs around the world. This ambitious five-year scientific mission was designed to evaluate the status of the benthic and reef fish …
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2021
Tongan socio-environmental spatial layers for marine ecosystem management
Published in Pacific Conservation Biology Abstract Environmental conditions and anthropogenic impacts are key influences on ecological processes and associated ecosystem services. Effective management of Tonga’s marine ecosystems therefore depends on accurate and up-to-date knowledge of environmental and anthropogenic variables. Although …
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2020
Global Reef Expedition: The Republic of Palau Final Report
The Global Reef Expedition: The Republic of Palau Final Report provides a comprehensive summary of our findings from the Global Reef Expedition mission to assess the status of coral reefs and reef fish in Palau. It also includes recommendations that can help Palau continue …
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2020
Global Reef Expedition: Solomon Islands Final Report
The Global Reef Expedition: Solomon Islands Final Report provides a comprehensive summary of our findings from our research mission to assess the health and resiliency of coral reefs in the Solomon Islands along with recommendations for preserving these reefs into the future. …
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2020
Global Reef Expedition: New Caledonia Final Report
The Global Reef Expedition: New Caledonia Final Report provides a comprehensive summary of our findings from our research mission to assess the health and resiliency of coral reefs in New Caledonia along with recommendations for preserving these reefs into the …
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2020
Global Reef Expedition: Cook Islands Final Report
The Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation embarked on the Global Reef Expedition—the largest coral reef survey and mapping expedition in history—to study the coral reef crisis on a global scale. As part of the 5-year expedition, an international team …
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2020
Global Reef Expedition: Kingdom of Tonga Final Report
The Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation embarked on the Global Reef Expedition—the largest coral reef survey and mapping expedition in history—to study the coral reef crisis on a global scale. As part of the 5-year expedition, an international team …
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2019
Global Reef Expedition: French Polynesia Final Report
In April 2011 the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation embarked on the Global Reef Expedition—the largest coral reef survey and mapping expedition in history. As part of the 5-year Expedition, an international team of scientists worked with local partners …
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2019
National-scale marine bioregions for the Southwest Pacific
This scientific paper, by KSLOF scientists Alex Dempsey and Sam Purkis, shows how they used data-based methods to develop the first comprehensive oceanic and marine bioregions for the South Pacific. These marine bioregions enable the design of ecologically representative national marine protected areas in Pacific nations.
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2019
Building the most accurate, most comprehensive, coral reef maps
Maxar August 13, 2019 By Sam Purkis, PhD, Chief Scientist of the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation How the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation used Maxar satellite imagery to create the largest high-resolution maps of coral reefs …
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2019
High-resolution habitat and bathymetry maps for 65,000 sq. km of Earth’s remotest coral reefs
A study from scientists at the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation and the University of Miami offers a new way to accurately map coral reefs using a combination of Earth-orbiting satellites and field observations. Using this new method, the scientists mapped over 65,000 km2 of coral reefs and surrounding habitats–by far the largest collection of high-resolution coral reef maps ever made.
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2017
Coral Bleaching and Mortality in the Chagos Archipelago
Coral Bleaching and Mortality in the Chagos Archipelago Atoll Research Bulletin, November 2, 2017 By Charles Sheppard, Anne Sheppard, Andrew Mogg, Dan Bayley, Alexandra C. Dempsey, Ronan Roche, John Turner, Sam Purkis Abstract The atolls and coral banks of the Chagos …
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2017
Coral reef recovery in the Galapagos Islands: the northernmost islands (Darwin and Wenman)
Coral reef recovery in the Galapagos Islands: the northernmost islands (Darwin and Wenman) Coral Reefs June 2015, Volume 34 March 5, 2015 By Peter W. Glynn, Bernhard Riegl, Samuel Purkis, Jeremy M. Kerr. Tyler B. Smith Abstract The remote northernmost Galápagos Islands, Darwin and Wenman, exhibited well-developed coral communities in 1975, which were severely …
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2015
Diversity in the geomorphology of shallow-water carbonate depositional systems in the Saudi Arabian Red Sea
Highlights: A typology of Saudi Arabian Red Sea coral carbonate systems is developed. Using a GIS, sixteen system end-members are identified, mapped and tallied. Several types of carbonate system are present throughout the length of the Red Sea. Other carbonate …
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2014
Geomorphology: Large-scale carbonate platform development of Cay Sal Bank, Bahamas, and implications for associated reef geomorphology
This paper stems from our field research in the Bahamas conducted at the start of the Global Reef expedition. It discusses how Cay Sal Bank was formed how and why it differs from the rest of the Bahamas. The Bahama …
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2014
Red Sea Atlas
Over a four year period, the Living Oceans Foundation has been involved in a massive scale marine habitat research project in the Red Sea. The results are now published in this first-ever atlas of the Red Sea marine habitats and …
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2012
Red Sea Coral Reef Trajectories over 2 Decades Suggest Increasing Community Homogenization and Decline in Coral Size
Red Sea Coral Reef Trajectories over 2 Decades Suggest Increasing Community Homogenization and Decline in Coral Size Three independent line intercept transect surveys on northern Red Sea reef slopes conducted in 1988/9 and 1997/8 in Egypt and from 2006–9 in Saudi …
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2012
Diseases, Harmful Algae Blooms (HABs) and Their Effects on Gulf Coral Populations and Communities
Diseases, Harmful Algae Blooms (HABs) and Their Effects on Gulf Coral Populations and Communities Gulf coral populations exist in a harsh environment, which only allows a small subset of the typical Indo-Pacific fauna and flora to persist and/or form viable populations (Sheppard …
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2012
Red Sea Coral Reef Trajectories over 2 Decades Suggest Increasing Community Homogenization and Decline in Coral Size
Red Sea Coral Reef Trajectories over 2 Decades Suggest Increasing Community Homogenization and Decline in Coral Size Three independent line intercept transect surveys on northern Red Sea reef slopes conducted in 1988/9 and 1997/8 in Egypt and from 2006–9 in …
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2010
Farasan Islands Habitat Mapping in Saudi Arabia Using CASI and QuickBird Imagery
Farasan Islands Habitat Mapping in Saudi Arabia Using CASI and QuickBird Imagery Map products derived from remote sensing technology increase our understanding and ability to manage tropical marine environments. The enhanced mapping capabilities of hyperspectral sensors are well understood; yet technology uptake, particularly …