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AlUla: Symphony Under the Stars

The majestic Arch Rock area of Madakheel in AlUla
The majestic Arch Rock area of Madakheel in AlUla
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AlUla: Symphony Under the Stars

The majestic Arch Rock area of Madakheel in AlUla
The majestic Arch Rock area of Madakheel in AlUla

Saudi Arabia’s AlUla is set to host on Friday “Symphony under the Stars,” a musical performance in the majestic Arch Rock area of Madakheel.

The performance will star Italian pianist and composer, Dardust, who is well-known for combining the minimalist piano world with European influenced visual effects.

In this performance, the majestic Arch Rock is the natural theater for the cutting-edge concert, creating a seamless connection between natural heritage, stars and an astonishing lighting design.

Dardust has created a new composition just for the event, dedicated to the spectacular skies of AlUla.

The set design is conceived as a natural expansion of the Arch Rock, inviting the audience to look up at the sky blanketed with stars.

Located in an elegant stage set in the center of the arch, the musicians produce a dialogue between landscape and night-sky, classical music and visual effects.

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Varieties

Parts of Great Barrier Reef Suffer Highest Coral Mortality on Record

FILE PHOTO: Peter Gash, owner and manager of the Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort, snorkels during an inspection of the reef's condition in an area called the 'Coral Gardens' located at Lady Elliot Island, north-east of the town of Bundaberg in Queensland, Australia, June 11, 2015. REUTERS/David Gray/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Peter Gash, owner and manager of the Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort, snorkels during an inspection of the reef's condition in an area called the 'Coral Gardens' located at Lady Elliot Island, north-east of the town of Bundaberg in Queensland, Australia, June 11, 2015. REUTERS/David Gray/File Photo
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Parts of Great Barrier Reef Suffer Highest Coral Mortality on Record

FILE PHOTO: Peter Gash, owner and manager of the Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort, snorkels during an inspection of the reef's condition in an area called the 'Coral Gardens' located at Lady Elliot Island, north-east of the town of Bundaberg in Queensland, Australia, June 11, 2015. REUTERS/David Gray/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Peter Gash, owner and manager of the Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort, snorkels during an inspection of the reef's condition in an area called the 'Coral Gardens' located at Lady Elliot Island, north-east of the town of Bundaberg in Queensland, Australia, June 11, 2015. REUTERS/David Gray/File Photo

Parts of the Great Barrier Reef have suffered the highest coral mortality on record, Australian research showed Tuesday, with scientists fearing the rest of it has suffered a similar fate.
The Australian Institute of Marine Science said surveys of 12 reefs found up to 72 percent coral mortality, thanks to a summer of mass bleaching, two cyclones, and flooding, reported AFP.
In one northern section of the reef, about a third of hard coral had died, the "largest annual decline" in 39 years of government monitoring, the agency said.
Often dubbed the world's largest living structure, the Great Barrier Reef is a 2,300 kilometer (1,400-mile) expanse of tropical corals that house a stunning array of biodiversity.
But repeated mass bleaching events have threatened to rob the tourist drawcard of its wonder, turning banks of once-vibrant corals into a sickly shade of white.
Bleaching occurs when water temperatures rise and the coral expels microscopic algae, known as zooxanthellae, to survive.
If high temperatures persist, the coral can eventually turn white and die.
This year had already been confirmed as the fifth mass bleaching on the reef in the past eight years.
But this latest survey also found a rapid growing type of coral -- known as acropora -- had suffered the highest rate of death.
This coral is quick to grow, but one of the first to bleach.
'Worst fears'
Lead researcher Mike Emslie told public broadcaster ABC the past summer was "one of the most severe events" across the Great Barrier Reef, with heat stress levels surpassing previous events.
"These are serious impacts. These are serious losses," he said.
WWF-Australia's head of oceans Richard Leck said the initial surveys confirmed his "worst fears".
"The Great Barrier Reef can bounce back but there are limits to its resilience," he said.
"It can't get repeatedly hammered like this. We are fast approaching a tipping point."
Leck added the area surveyed was "relatively small" and feared that when the full report was released next year "similar levels of mortality" would be observed.
He said that it reinforced Australia's need to commit to stronger emission reduction targets of at least 90 percent below 2005 levels by 2035 and move away from fossil fuels.
The country is one of the world's largest gas and coal exporters and has only recently set targets to become carbon neutral.