More than 84pc of the world’s coral reefs have been affected by extreme heat stress in what has now become the most widespread coral bleaching event on record, scientists confirmed on Tuesday.

The world's coral reefs are facing severe bleaching due to record-high ocean temperatures. This environmental crisis, primarily caused by climate change, has impacted 84% of reef areas, with significant mortality observed in regions like the Caribbean and Australia's Great Barrier Reef.

Harmful bleaching of the world's coral has grown to include 84% of the ocean's reefs in the most intense event of its kind in recorded history, scientists say.