Stanford Scientists Accidentally Discover How to Revive Bleached Coral in Just Seven Weeks

A happy accident at Stanford University just gave coral reefs a fighting chance. When a healthy coral fragment slipped and touched a bleached one in a lab tank, the two turned out to be genetic clones, and their tissues fused together. Within 36 hours, algae was flowing from the healthy coral into the bleached one through what researchers call a“nutrient highway.”Seven weeks later, the bleached coral was fully revived.

The discovery, led by scientist Danny Collins, carries a clear message: bleached corals aren’t a lost cause. There is one catch, though. The technique only works between genetically identical corals, so the team is now testing whether the algae can be extracted and delivered to bleached corals at scale. They’re also upfront that the real solution is stopping the warming oceans that cause bleaching in the first place.

Even with the caveats, this is a rare dose of hope in climate science, and it all started because someone was paying attention when something unexpected happened in a tank. So what do you think: is accidental science the best science? Tell us in the comments.