Darren Li Chong Youne Li Shing Hiung

Bio

My project involves understanding how heatwaves affect Australian marine resources, in particular coral reefs along the Great Barrier Reef. One key factor underpinning our current understanding revolves around the definition of marine heatwaves, which are typically measured as temperatures that fall above a particular threshold derived from a baseline climatology. Under global warming, our oceans will become selective for more thermally resistant corals, thus rendering the original threshold to define marine heatwaves obsolete. My aim is to optimize the choice of this threshold in a warming climate so that we can better understand both the present and future risks that marine heatwaves pose to our Australian reefs.