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In 2015 and 2016 the Southern Hemisphere was hit by back-to-back heat waves caused by the El Nino weather pattern.
在2015年和2016年，南半球遭受了连续热浪，原因是厄尔尼诺气候模式。
That one-two punch of warm weather did significant damage to some sensitive coral reef systems of the Indian Ocean.
连续两次暖气候重击对印度洋敏感的珊瑚礁系统产生了深远的损害。
We lost up to 50 percent of all corals, now three years ago in 2016. This is mainly the branching corals, so we're talking about acropora, for examples.
我们当时损失了多达50%的珊瑚，那是2016年，三年前的事情，主要是分枝状珊瑚，比如我们谈论的是轴孔珊瑚。
Acropora corals are an important building block of reefs.
轴孔珊瑚是构成礁的主要组成部分。
Heat waves happen even without climate change, but coral reefs used to have years to recover.
热浪甚至在没有气候变化的时刻发生，但珊瑚礁却需要几年来恢复。
But Catherine Head from the Zoological Society of London says that with the new reality of climate change, heat waves come more often and are more intense.
但来自伦敦动物学会的卡瑟琳·海德称根据如今的气候变化情况，热浪会变得更为平常，更加严重。
So if these heat waves become more frequent as they are predicted to do, then the reefs simply won't have a chance to recover.
所以如果这些热浪如他们预期的那样变得更加频繁，那么这些珊瑚根本没有机会恢复。
Head was part of a research team that was recently in the Indian Ocean gauging the damage done by the consecutive heat waves.
海德是一项研究小组成员，如今他们正在印度洋测量连续热浪带来的损害。
The staghorn corals for instance which are known to be more weedy species were highly impacted. So 86 percent of the Staghorn corals
比如很弱不禁风的鹿角珊瑚，它们的受影响程度非常高，86%的鹿角珊瑚
were actually affected by these heat waves, whereas some of the more robust corals were less affected.
被热浪影响，然而一些更强壮的珊瑚受影响较小。
The concern is that losing corals means we lose a significant amount of the ocean's diversity.
目前的担忧是，损失珊瑚意味着我们损失了大量海洋多样性。
So we will see a reduction in the diversity of the fish and the invertebrates which live on the reefs
我们会看到靠珊瑚礁为食的鱼类和无脊椎动物多样性的减少，
and perhaps also a reduction in the structural complexity of the reef. So some corals contribute more to the calcium carbonate structure than others.
或许也会看到珊瑚礁的复杂结构也会减少，许多珊瑚比其它东西更能够形成碳酸钙结构。
And that's what causes this really complex, really interesting, integral structure.
这也就是形成这一复杂，有趣，整体结构的原因。
And despite efforts to revive dying reefs, coral reefs are slowly disappearing.
尽管我们做出了复活奄奄一息珊瑚礁的努力，珊瑚礁还是在慢慢消失。
So there are predictions which say perhaps reefs may go functionally extinct by about 2050 should the emissions continue as they are at the moment,
目前预测的是珊瑚礁或许在大约2050年前功能性灭绝，如果排放量还如现在一样继续的话，
but really it depends how much we can reduce our carbon emissions
但这也依靠我们能够减少多少碳排放，
as per the Paris Climate Change Agreement to keep sea surface temperatures below 2 degrees.
根据巴黎气候变化条约的规定，将海洋温度的升高控制在两度以内。
But right now, scientists say the world isn't doing what's necessary to prevent a devastating rise in sea temperatures.
但如今，科学家称这个世界没有做出必要努力来避免海洋温度升高。
Kevin Enochs, VOA news
凯文·恩尼克斯，VOA新闻
