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An island located 550 miles off the coast of Honolulu has virtually disappeared as a result of a devastating hurricane.
East Island is part of the French frigate Shoals in Papahanaumokuakea National Marine Monument, and the researchers knew that the island was besieged by rising sea levels.
"The sea level is rising all over the world, these sandy islands are becoming more and more vulnerable as the ocean rises," said Chip Fletcher, professor of earth sciences at University of Hawaii at Manoa told CNN. "If the ocean climbed very slowly, these islands could potentially adapt, but the rapid rise in sea level, as it happens because of global warming, puts these islands out of balance."
However, a process that should take years, if not decades, has been accelerated with the help of Hurricane Walaka earlier this month.
The strong winds of the storm quickly eroded the island and, although the area is uninhabited, the French frigate banks and the East Island are a haven for two highly endangered species, the Green sea turtles and Hawaiian monk seals.
The before and after satellite images show that the eastern sand band is almost completely submerged and only the contour of the area below the shallow water remains.
Image Credit: US Fish and Wildlife Service
"This is a final flaw in the wall of the ecosystem diversity network of this planet being dismantled," Fletcher said. Honolulu Civil Beat.
96% of Hawaiian sea turtles nest in the shoals of the French frigate and a vast majority nests in the east of the island, according to Charles Littnan, a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) conservation biologist.
Fortunately, seals have already weathered the storms in the Pacific and most turtles have left for the season, but researchers will not be certain of the extent of the damage until they have done a thorough study of the region.
Although climate change has not caused Hurricane Walaka, sea-level rise is accompanied by an increase in storms, which exposes vulnerable regions such as that Frigate Shoals at a high risk of erosion that could devastate local ecosystems.
"The message is that climate change is real and is happening now," said Randy Kosaki, Deputy Superintendent of Research and Field Operations for NOAA, Honolulu Civil Beat. "It is now mysterious whether East Island will come back or not, and even if it does, the process could take several years and its stability is uncertain."
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By Kay Vandette, Earth.com Editor
Image credit: Dan Link / USFWS
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