“The Great Barrier Reef of Australia passed away in 2016 after a long illness. It was 25 million years old.”

This is what Outside Online started off by saying in their "Obituary to the Great Barrier Reef." The famous Reef covers 1,400 miles, contains hundreds of islands, 3,000 unique reef systems, and is home to 600 different species of coral. On October 11^th of this week, a few publications released articles that claimed that the Great Barrier Reef was officially pronounced extinct. These articles went viral instantly, causing quite a stir of social media. But what state is the Great Barrier Reef actually in? Is it really too late to save this massively essential ecosystem?

The short answer is, well, not really. An article from the Huffington Post put it best; “Dying and dead are two very different things.” After the obituary articles were published, the scientific community was horrified to see how far away it is from the truth. They even went as far to say that it was “wildly irresponsible” of these publications to release such information to the public.

But why all the ruckus?

Coral scientists, who have spent their careers studying this complex ecosystem, have made a significant distinction between rumored extinction and the serious danger that the Reef is facing currently.

Throughout late 2015 and most of 2016, the Great Barrier Reef experienced a very large-scale, bleaching event, which affected nearly 93% of the coral that resides in the area. Bleaching events have occurred previously, including one during 1998, but this most recent bleaching was the cause of even greater concern. The publications, Outside Online being the most well-known, took bleaching to mean that the 93% of affected coral was no longer alive, thus unable to support the other species.

This, however, is very far from the truth. In an interview with the LA Times, Kim Cobb of Georgia Tech explained what this bleaching event really means for the Great Barrier Reef, and it all starts with algae. The coral populations within the Reef feed off photosynthetic algae in order to survive. In response, the algae gives the coral is vibrant coloring that we know the Great Barrier Reef to be famous for. However, when the water temperatures become too warm, as was the case for the last nine months, the algae becomes temperamental and destructive. To avoid harm from the algae, species of coral spit out algae. In the process, the coral also loses all of its coloring. The results are widespread areas of white-looking coral, which actually isn’t white at all. Coral itself is naturally transparent, so without the coloring from algae, we can see straight through to the coral’s skeletal structure.

Good news? Bleaching doesn’t actually mean the widespread death of 93% of the coral that resides in the Great Barrier Reef!

Bad news? If the water temperatures don’t start to cool down, the coral will starve itself of nutrients and die.

The important thing to remember from all of this though is not to lose hope. Past research has shown that coral can and has recovered fully from the brink of extinction, and even in locations that have faced much higher rates of bleaching and later starvation, there are still species that have survived and gone on to thrive. With the help of environmental protection and close observation, we can try to reverse the damage that has already been done and come up with solutions that ensure a bright and long future for the Great Barrier Reef.