Coral Reef Health - Coral calcification and paleoclimatology

This project is aimed at understanding how coral growth has responded to past changes in regional climate across northern Ningaloo and the Pilbara region by analysing the physical and geochemical composition of cores collected from massive coral (Porites spp.). X-ray images of the sliced coral cores provide us with information on seasonal and inter-annual changes in the density and rate of vertical extension from which we can calculate annual rates of coral growth, or more precisely, 'calcification'.Coral cores from massive Porites spp. were collected from sites across northern Ningaloo (Tantabiddi and Coral Bay in July 2013) and the western Pilbara (Onslow to the Dampier peninsula in April 2014).

本项目旨在通过分析块状滨珊瑚（Porites spp.）钻芯的物理与地球化学组成，探究宁格鲁海岸北部及皮尔巴拉地区过往区域气候变化对珊瑚生长的响应。对切割后的珊瑚钻芯开展X射线成像，可获取其密度与垂直延伸速率的季节及年际变化信息，借此可计算珊瑚年生长速率，更准确地说，即「钙化速率」。本次研究所用块状滨珊瑚钻芯分别于2013年7月采自宁格鲁海岸北部的坦塔比迪（Tantabiddi）与珊瑚湾（Coral Bay），以及2014年4月采自皮尔巴拉西部的昂斯洛（Onslow）至丹皮尔半岛（Dampier peninsula）区域。