Pacific Coral Reef Erosion Data from Bioerosion Monitoring Units

NOAA's National Coral Reef Monitoring Program provides erosion and accretion rates from Bioerosion Monitoring Units deployed at select Pacific Ocean sites. This dataset contains the first run of BMUs, with units constructed from clean coral skeletons and left on reefs for three-year periods. Analysis was conducted using computed tomography scanners at NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory.

Use Cases

• Calculating annual erosion rates by analyzing changes in BMU internal volume and mass.
• Assessing reef accretion by measuring the volume of non-original carbonate material on BMU exteriors.
• Studying macroboring activity from organisms like sponges and annelids through internal volume loss.
• Monitoring long-term changes in reef structure at established sites in the Hawaiian and Mariana Archipelagos.

Strengths

• Data is derived from a standardized 3-year deployment protocol for Bioerosion Monitoring Units.
• Analysis uses industrial computed tomography scanning for precise density, volume, and mass measurements.
• Collection represents the first produced run of BMUs, establishing a baseline protocol.
• Cross-platform presence on NASA EarthData and Data.gov signals institutional importance.

Limitations

• Exact row count, column names, and dataset size are unknown across all sources.
• The protocol was amended after this first run, indicating potential methodological evolution.
• Spatial coverage is limited to Wake Island and the Hawaiian and Mariana Archipelagos.

Provenance

Source

NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC), Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP).

Collection Method

Bioerosion Monitoring Units (BMUs) constructed from coral skeletons were deployed for 3 years, then analyzed via CT scanning.

Time Range

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Freshness

2026-03-05 23:29:04.719609

Geography

Wake Island and the Hawaiian and Mariana Archipelagos in the Pacific Ocean.