Australian Scientists Find Coral Bleaching in Great Barrier Reef’s Far North 

A diver observes the coral bleaching at Southern Great Barrier Reef, Keppel Islands, Australia, March 5, 2024. (AIMS/Renata Ferrari/Handout via Reuters)
A diver observes the coral bleaching at Southern Great Barrier Reef, Keppel Islands, Australia, March 5, 2024. (AIMS/Renata Ferrari/Handout via Reuters)
TT
20

Australian Scientists Find Coral Bleaching in Great Barrier Reef’s Far North 

A diver observes the coral bleaching at Southern Great Barrier Reef, Keppel Islands, Australia, March 5, 2024. (AIMS/Renata Ferrari/Handout via Reuters)
A diver observes the coral bleaching at Southern Great Barrier Reef, Keppel Islands, Australia, March 5, 2024. (AIMS/Renata Ferrari/Handout via Reuters)

Australian researchers have found coral bleaching around six islands in the far northern parts of the Great Barrier Reef, after a government agency said last week a major bleaching event was unfolding across the world's most extensive reef ecosystem.

Scientists at the James Cook University said on Friday they found only a few relatively healthy areas, mostly in deeper waters, after surveying sites at the Turtle Group National Park, about 10 km (6.2 miles) offshore the state of Queensland.

"It was quite devastating to see just how much bleaching there was, particularly in the shallows ... (but) they were all still at the stage of bleaching where they could still recover as long as the water temperatures decline in time," lead researcher Maya Srinivasan told Reuters.

Bleaching is triggered by warmer ocean waters, which cause corals to expel the colorful algae living in their tissues and turn white. A bleached coral can recover if waters cool but if ocean temperatures remain high for longer periods, it will die.

Stretching about 2,300 km (1,429 miles) along Australia's northeastern coast, the Great Barrier Reef has seen five mass bleaching events in eight years, which experts have tied to climate change.

The six islands in the Turtle Group were new additions to the university's monitoring program in the barrier reef and the data collected from here would help further analyze how corals are affected by bleaching, cyclones and floods, Srinivasan said.

"With climate change where there's predictions that these sorts of disturbance events will become more frequent and be of higher intensity ... it's becoming even more crucial than ever to have these long-term monitoring programs continue into the future," Srinivasan said.

Australia's Climate Council said the abrupt changes signal greater dangers for the reef and the possibility of crossing points of no return in the climate system.

"What's happening on the Reef right now could be described as an underwater bushfire," Climate Council Research Director Simon Bradshaw said.



7 California Men Charged in 'Largest Jewelry Heist' in US History

One of the rings stolen in the heist (FBI handout)
One of the rings stolen in the heist (FBI handout)
TT
20

7 California Men Charged in 'Largest Jewelry Heist' in US History

One of the rings stolen in the heist (FBI handout)
One of the rings stolen in the heist (FBI handout)

Seven men from California have been charged in the "largest jewelry heist in US history,” involving the theft of $100 million worth of gold, gems, and luxury watches, according to BBC.

The heist has been a mystery in California for nearly three years after a Brinks company truck transporting the jewelry was robbed at a remote stop as one driver slept inside, and another was having a meal.

The suspects tracked the truck as it left a jewelry show near San Francisco with 73 bags, officials said.

The next morning, they stole 24 bags when the truck was at a rest stop in Lebec, California, according to court documents.

The indictment does not say how they gained access to the truck.

Announcing the charges on Tuesday, the Department of Justice (DOJ) alleged that one of the suspects scouted a jewelry show near San Francisco for several days in 2022 and then robbed the truck with his accomplices in the early hours of 11 July.

A copy of the indictment says the defendants watched as a Brinks truck was loaded with jewels and then followed the truck for approximately 300 miles (485 km) from San Mateo to Lebec, California.

While the truck was parked at a stop in Lebec, the suspects allegedly stole 24 bags containing about $100 million in jewelry, the court document says.

Officials said the robbers did not use any weapons during the heist.

The robbery was discovered when the driver returned to the vehicle and saw that the exterior padlock was missing. Authorities believe it was sawed off.

The truck was on its way to another jewelry show in Pasadena, California.

Some of the jewels were recovered during the execution of search warrants on 16 June, according to a DOJ statement.

Jerry Kroll, an attorney who represents some of the jewelers whose merchandise was stolen, told the BBC he did not know how much had been recovered.