\n
![\"EarthSnap\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/earthsnap-banner-news.webp.webp\")
\n<\/a><\/p>\n
Carra Williams, working with the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO<\/a>), used neutron computed tomography (NCT) to study coral fossils in three dimensions. <\/p>\n The study reveals fine details within the coral\u2019s structure without damaging it, offering a fresh window into Earth\u2019s climate history.<\/p>\n \u201cThis method opens the door to recovering climate information from coral samples once written off as too altered to be useful,\u201d said Williams.<\/p>\n Coral fossils hold climate clues<\/p>\n Corals build skeletons<\/a> from aragonite, a mineral that gradually transforms into calcite over time. This natural change often erases critical chemical information about the ocean\u2019s temperature and chemistry when the coral grew. <\/p>\n Such degradation has long made ancient corals unreliable for reconstructing past climates.<\/p>\n Williams and her team used neutron computed tomography at ANSTO\u2019s DINGO imaging instrument to locate surviving pockets of original aragonite inside damaged fossils. <\/p>\n These preserved sections carry the chemical signals that reveal sea-level changes and ocean conditions stretching back hundreds of thousands of years.<\/p>\n \u201cBy seeing inside the fossils in 3D, we can distinguish the original coral mineral, aragonite, from its altered form, calcite,\u201d said Williams. \u201cThe aragonite retains the best signals of past ocean and climate conditions in coral that are available to us.\u201d<\/p>\n Hidden signals in old corals<\/p>\n In simple terms, NCT directs beams of neutrons from ANSTO\u2019s OPAL research reactor through coral fossils, creating detailed internal images much like medical CT scans. These images expose hidden mineral structures that X-rays cannot detect.<\/p>\n The scans revealed untouched aragonite zones inside fossils thought too weathered for study. \u201cThis is like finding intact pages in an otherwise weathered book,\u201d said Williams. <\/p>\n \u201cThose rare sections of original aragonite allow us to extend and strengthen our records of how reefs and oceans responded to major environmental changes in the past.\u201d<\/p>\n Her findings show that even corals once considered useless can still provide crucial climate data, helping scientists assess how today\u2019s reefs might react to modern warming and sea-level rise.<\/p>\n Rewriting reef history with neutrons<\/p>\n Professor Jody Webster, an expert on coral reef history, supervised the project. He believes the technique could change how scientists reconstruct ancient climates<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cCoral reefs are one of the most sensitive archives of environmental change,\u201d said Webster. \u201cBy using neutrons to look inside their fossils, we can unlock data that has been hidden for millennia.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis will help us understand the thresholds and tipping points reefs faced in the past \u2013 vital knowledge as human-driven climate change accelerates.\u201d<\/p>\n This marks the first time NCT has been used to screen fossil corals for climate and dating studies. Unlike X-rays, neutrons are particularly sensitive to hydrogen, allowing precise identification of aragonite, which holds more water and organic matter than calcite. <\/p>\n The technique provides a clear three-dimensional mineral map without cutting the coral open.<\/p>\n Tracing 600,000 years of coral reefs<\/p>\n The study examined four coral samples. These included a modern coral from One Tree Reef at the University of Sydney\u2019s research station on One Tree Island. <\/p>\n The team also studied three fossils: one from Muschu Island in Papua New Guinea dated to about 1,650 years ago, another from the Late Pleistocene at Ashmore Reef more than 40,000 years old, and a Mid-Pleistocene specimen from the Great Barrier Reef<\/a> around 600,000 years old.<\/p>\n The findings, published in\u00a0Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems\u00a0by the American Geophysical Union, mark an important collaboration between the University of Sydney and ANSTO. <\/p>\n The work demonstrates the power of combining advanced nuclear imaging with Earth science to uncover hidden histories. Through the eyes of neutrons, the silent fossils of ancient reefs are speaking again.<\/p>\n Each coral skeleton becomes a storyteller, revealing how oceans shifted, warmed, and adapted over ages. Williams\u2019s research does more than read the past; it gives humanity the knowledge to face what lies ahead.<\/p>\n Past reefs guide future oceans<\/p>\n Understanding ancient reefs goes beyond curiosity. These fossils reveal how ecosystems responded to natural warming and cooling over millennia.<\/p>\n That context helps scientists model today\u2019s rapid changes with greater accuracy. If corals once survived gradual shifts in sea temperature<\/a>, can they withstand the sudden pace of human-driven climate change?<\/p>\n The data extracted through NCT could strengthen climate models that guide conservation efforts.<\/p>\n It pinpoints periods when reefs collapsed or rebounded, offering valuable lessons for restoration strategies today. Coral records might even help forecast ocean acidification and its long-term effects on marine biodiversity.<\/p>\n Expanding the reach of neutrons<\/p>\n The potential applications of this technology extend well beyond coral research. Archaeologists, paleontologists, and materials scientists can use NCT to examine delicate samples without destroying them. <\/p>\n For geoscientists, it opens new opportunities to explore fossils<\/a> once thought too degraded for meaningful study.<\/p>\n Williams hopes the technique will become a standard tool in paleoclimate research. She plans to refine the imaging process to detect even smaller patches of aragonite in highly altered corals. <\/p>\n Her vision reflects a growing scientific movement: using non-invasive imaging to preserve and interpret the fragile record of Earth\u2019s history.<\/p>\n Coral fossils connect past and future<\/p>\n This collaboration between the University of Sydney<\/a> and ANSTO shows how curiosity-driven research can reshape understanding. <\/p>\n The project bridges generations of geological time, connecting the fossilized whispers of ancient reefs to the urgent voices of climate scientists today.<\/p>\n By revealing what lies beneath the surface, Williams has offered science a new lens. Her work reminds us that even the most weathered pages of Earth\u2019s story still hold lines waiting to be read.<\/p>\n The study is published in the journal Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u2014\u2013<\/p>\n Like what you read? Subscribe to our newsletter<\/a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.\u00a0<\/p>\n Check us out on EarthSnap<\/a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls<\/a> and Earth.com.<\/p>\n \u2014\u2013<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The story of our planet lies hidden in unexpected places. Among them, coral fossils serve as delicate time…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":65194,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[242,85,46,141],"class_list":["post-65193","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-environment","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65193","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=65193"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65193\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/65194"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=65193"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=65193"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=65193"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}