1. How can they protect the environment and bomb the reef at the same time?

2. And some parts of the reef had lost more than half of the coral to bleaching.

3. The researchers hope to investigate even deeper into the reef ecosystem.

4. One option is to let the reef heal by itself, which would take a long time but be less complicated.

5. Another option is to carry out some repairs to the reef, which would be more costly and complicated, she said.

6. And the Australian government plans to spent $1.5 billion on protecting the reef over the next decade.

7. The Philippines filed its case in 2013, after China seized a reef over which both countries claim sovereignty.

8. About 95 percent of the coral in the southern portion of the reef has survived.