Scientists in Australia have revealed unprecedented¹ damage to the Great Barrier Reef.

来自澳大利亚的科学家日前透露，大堡礁正遭受前所未有的破坏。

Mass bleaching² is occurring on the Great Barrier Reef for the second consecutive³ year, they said.

他们称，大堡礁连续第二年发生大面积白化。

Bleaching happens when algae⁴ that lives in the coral is expelled due to stress caused by extreme changes in temperatures, turning the coral white and putting it at risk of dying.

白化指的是，当气温极端变化带来的压力驱逐了生活在珊瑚中的藻类时，珊瑚会变成白色并面临死亡的风险。

Marine⁵ Park Authority director of reef recovery David Wachenfeld said: "How this event unfolds will depend very much on local weather conditions over the next few weeks."

海洋公园管理局负责珊瑚恢复的主管戴维·瓦亨费尔德称：“事情接下来会如何发展主要取决于未来数周内当地的天气情况。”

"Climate change is the single greatest threat to the Great Barrier Reef," said Prof Morgan Pratchett, from Queensland's James Cook University. "It all comes down to what the governments in Australia and around the world do in terms of mitigating⁶ further rises in temperatures."

来自昆士兰州詹姆斯库克大学的摩根·普拉切特教授表示：“气候变化是大堡礁的最大威胁。这一切都归结于澳大利亚和世界各国政府在减缓全球变暖方面的作为。”

The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest collection of coral reefs, with 400 types of coral, 1,500 species of fish and 4,000 mollusc species.

大堡礁是世界最大的珊瑚礁群，这里生活着400种珊瑚、1500种鱼类和4000种软体动物。