Paradise in PerilCoral Bleaching across the CNMI

In 2013 and 2014 the western Pacific ocean experienced nearly unprecedented warming as part of an El Nino event. Increase in sea surface temperature is often associated with coral bleaching, so the Marine Monitoring Team (MMT) for the CNMI Bureau of Environmental and Coastal Quality (BECQ) organized a research expedition to the northern volcanic islands of the CNMI to determine what effect the increased SSTs were having on the coral and other marine life in these largely uninhabited ecological treasures. This story map shows the results of the MMT's findings and will hopefully promote awareness of coral habitat threats in throughout the entire CNMI.