Hey! Where’s the beef in that coral reef?
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.
Coral reefs are colorful ecosystems filled with life on the shallow surfaces of the ocean. But can they do more than provide a habitat for fish?
Mohommad Ghiasian and team explored how coral reefs keep ocean waves at bay. Do they work like dams, preventing the water from flooding?
They built artificial reefs using coral skeletons, wood, and plastic. Then, they put them in a giant tank that created waves of three different heights! Immediately after the wave passed, the researchers measured the water levels with gauges. They also measured water levels in tanks without reefs.
Results? The coral reefs reduced wave height by more than a THIRD. They also reduced wave energy by more than SIXTY percent. Coral reefs really are protecting our coastal cities!
Now that’s REEF-reshing! Let’s make protecting CORAL REEFS our CORE beLIEF!
Reference: Ghiasian, M., Carrick, J., Rhode-Barbarigos, L., Haus, B. K., Baker, A. C., & Lirman, D. (2020). Dissipation of wave energy by a hybrid artificial reef in a wave simulator: implications for coastal resilience and shoreline protection. Limnology and Oceanography: Methods, 19(1), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1002/lom3.10400