A. Often hailed as the 'rainforests of the sea', coral reefs are among the most biodiverse and productive ecosystems on Earth. These vibrant underwater cities, built by tiny animals called coral polyps, provide a habitat for approximately 25% of all marine species, despite covering less than 1% of the ocean floor. Their immense value extends to humanity, offering coastal protection from storms, supporting fisheries that feed millions, and generating billions in tourism revenue. However, this critical ecosystem is facing an existential threat. While the phenomenon of coral bleaching due to rising sea temperatures is widely publicised, a more insidious and equally destructive threat is altering ocean chemistry itself: ocean acidification. B. The fundamental cause of ocean acidification is the same driver behind climate change: the exponential increase of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere. The ocean acts as a massive carbon sink, absorbing approximately a quarter of the CO2 emitted by human activities annually. When CO2 dissolves in seawater, it undergoes a series of chemical reactions, the primary result of which is the formation of carbonic acid (H2CO3). This wea…
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