Many people are familiar with—or have at least heard of—the Mariana Trench. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, this crescent-shaped feature on Earth’s crust is the deepest part of the world’s ocean, reaching a maximum depth of 36,070 feet (10,994 meters) in an area known as “Challenger Deep.”

In 2013, Amanda Alker—then a student at Florida Atlantic University—came to BIOS as part of the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program. This annual opportunity provides funding for undergraduate students to conduct supervised research at dozens of U.S.-based research institutes and universities. During her four months at BIOS, Alker investigated antibiotic resistance in bacteria associated with Bermuda’s largest sewage outfall.

Over two days in late August, a team of nearly 30 scientists, engineers, technicians and project managers met at BIOS to plan their approach for the next phase of the three-year COral Reef Airborne Laboratory (CORAL) project.

A molecular facility will enhance sample processing for researchers and experiential learning for students

Coral reefs present scientists with a unique challenge. How do you accurately measure ecosystem processes—such as photosynthesis and calcification—within a system that changes over the course of a day and between days (depending on water flow, tides, sunlight, and weather, among other factors) and that also contains a variety of reef types and habitats (such as rim reefs, in-shore reefs, and deep water reefs)?

Understanding our planet and how it functions, as well as the impacts that human activities have on it, requires frequent and extended forays into the field to yield valuable data and observations. The COral Reef Airborne Laboratory (CORAL) investigation is a prime example. The three-year mission, funded by the NASA Earth Venture Suborbital-2 program, is conducting airborne remote sensing campaigns, along with in-water field validation activities, across four coral reef regions in the western and central Pacific Ocean.

Since its beginning in 1903 as a field station for students and scientists at Harvard University and New York University, BIOS has hosted hundreds of students from colleges and universities around the world. Over the years, students conducting research at BIOS have used their experiences as springboards for acceptance into graduate degree programs, a variety of technical and research positions (both at BIOS and abroad), and—frequently—a scientific publication in a peer-reviewed journal.

When scientists study coral reefs, they are often interested in figuring out key components of reef health; specifically, primary production—or photosynthesis—and calcification, the rate at which new reef growth occurs. For decades this has meant time and labor-intensive fieldwork, with scientists documenting global reef condition and linking what they see underwater with lab-based experiments and measurements.

Five years of data collected on reefs and offshore in Bermuda shows that coral reef chemistry – and perhaps the future success of corals – is tied not only to the human carbon emissions causing systematic ocean acidification, but also to seasonal and decadal cycles in the open waters of the Atlantic, and the balance of biochemical processes in the coral reef community.

Elevated ocean temperatures have threatened coral reefs around the world for over a year, but this October marked a tipping point.  NOAA scientists declared the onset of a global coral reef bleaching event impacting coral reefs in every ocean basin, and projected the bleaching will only intensify in 2016. This is the third such global bleaching event in history.