Coral reefs become first environmental system on Earth to pass climate "tipping point," report says

Coral reefs around the globe have for years suffered publicly in warming oceans, periodically making headlines when iconic underwater landscapes lose their colors and wither during repeated mass bleaching events caused by climate change. Now, reefs are the first environmental system on Earth to pass a climate "tipping point," according to a new report by climate scientists who call the situation an "unprecedented crisis."

Researchers at the University of Exeter's Global Systems Institute in England have released their second Global Tipping Points report, which examines some of the fundamental processes that support life on this planet in terms of their proximity to benchmarks that may signal permanent damage.

"Tipping points represent critical thresholds in Earth's climate system w