Battle of the Coral Sea

Examples of Battle of the Coral Sea in the following topics:

• Coral Sea and Midway

  • The Battle of the Coral Sea and the Battle of Midway were strategic triumphs for the Allies and marked the critical point in halting Japanese expansion during World War II.
  • The Battle of the Coral Sea, May 4-8, 1942, was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II between the Imperial Japanese Navy and Allied naval and air forces from the United States and Australia.
  • Now aware of the presence of U.S. carriers in the area, the Japanese fleet carriers entered the Coral Sea with the intention of finding and destroying the Allied naval forces.
  • Between June 4 and 7, 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea, the United States Navy decisively deflected an Imperial Japanese Navy attack against Midway Atoll, inflicting irreparable damage on the Japanese fleet.
  • Examine the importance of the Battle of the Coral Sea and the Battle of Midway Island as turning points for the Allies.

• Nimitz in the Central Pacific

  • As rapidly as ships, men, and material became available, Nimitz shifted to the offensive and defeated the Japanese navy in the Battle of the Coral Sea (May 4-8, 1942), the pivotal Battle of Midway (June 4-7, 1942), and in the Solomon Islands Campaign.
  • Prior to the Battle of the Coral Sea, Nimitz and and his staff discussed deciphered messages and agreed that the Japanese were likely initiating a major operation in the Southwest Pacific in early May with Port Moresby as the probable target.
  • Nimitz, after consultation with Admiral Ernest King, Commander in Chief of the United States Fleet, decided to contest the Japanese operation by sending all four of the Pacific fleet's available aircraft carriers to the Coral Sea.
  • Although the Coral Sea area was under MacArthur's command, Rear Admiral Fletcher (commanding Task Force 17) and Vice Admiral William F. 
  • Halsey (commanding Task Force 16) were directed to continue to report to Nimitz while in the Coral Sea area, not to MacArthur.

• The Guadalcanal Campaign

  • The Guadalcanal Campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and code-named Operation Watchtower, was a military campaign fought between August 7, 1942 and February 9, 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in the Pacific theater of World War II.
  • Further attempts by the Japanese to continue their strategic initiative and offensively extend their outer defensive perimeter in the south and central Pacific were thwarted at the naval battles of Coral Sea (May 1941) and Midway (June 1941) respectively.
  • Allied concern grew when, in early July 1942, the IJN began constructing a large airfield at Lunga Point on nearby Guadalcanal—from such a base Japanese long-range bombers would threaten the sea lines of communication from the West Coast of the Americas to the populous East Coast of Australia.
  • Three major land battles, seven large naval battles, and continual, almost daily aerial battles culminated in the decisive Naval Battle of Guadalcanal in early November 1942.
  • The last Japanese attempt to bombard Henderson Field from the sea and land with enough troops to retake it was defeated.

• Marine Biomes

  • Within the ocean, coral reefs are a second kind of marine biome.
  • The majority of organisms in the aphotic zone include sea cucumbers and other organisms that survive on the nutrients contained in the dead bodies of organisms in the photic zone.
  • Due to the dead organisms that fall from the upper layers of the ocean, this nutrient-rich portion of the ocean allows a diversity of life to exist, including fungi, sponges, sea anemones, marine worms, sea stars, fishes, and bacteria.
  • Corals evolved to survive at the upper limit of ocean water temperature.
  • Coral reefs are formed by the calcium carbonate skeletons of coral organisms, which are marine invertebrates in the phylum Cnidaria.

• Sea Coral and Sea Anemone Zooxanthellae

  • Zooxanthellae refers to a variety of species that form symbiotic relationships with other marine organisms, particularly coral.
  • The genus Symbiodinium encompasses the largest and most prevalent group of endosymbiotic dinoflagellates known to science.
  • These unicellular algae commonly reside in the endoderm of tropical cnidarians such as corals, sea anemones, and jellyfish, where they translocate products of photosynthesis to the host and in turn receive inorganic nutrients (e.g.
  • These dinoflagellates are therefore among the most abundant eukaryotic microbes found in coral reef ecosystems.
  • The successful culturing of swimming gymnodinioid cells from coral led to the discovery that "zooxanthellae" were actually dinoflagellates.

• Protists as Primary Producers, Food Sources, and Symbionts

  • Protists function as sources of food for organisms on land and sea.
  • Some protist species are essential components of the food chain and are generators of biomass.
  • In this symbiotic relationship, these protists provide nutrients for the coral polyps that house them, giving corals a boost of energy to secrete a calcium carbonate skeleton .
  • In turn, the corals provide the protists with a protected environment and the compounds needed for photosynthesis.
  • Protists do not only create food sources for sea-dwelling organisms.

• Class Anthozoa

  • Examples include sea anemones, sea pens, and corals, with an estimated number of 6,100 described species.
  • Sea anemones are usually brightly colored and can attain a size of 1.8 to 10 cm in diameter.
  • The mouth of a sea anemone is surrounded by tentacles that bear cnidocytes.
  • Another type of anthozoan that forms an important mutualistic relationship is reef building coral.
  • The coral gains photosynthetic capability, while the zooxanthellae benefit by using nitrogenous waste and carbon dioxide produced by the cnidarian host.

• Marine Habitats

  • Marine life partially depends on the saltwater that is in the sea ("marine" comes from the Latin "mare," meaning sea or ocean).
  • In addition, in the open ocean there are surface waters, deep sea and sea floor.
  • An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea.
  • Reefs are built up by corals and other calcium-depositing animals, usually on top of a rocky outcrop on the ocean floor.
  • Coral reefs also support a huge community of life, including the corals themselves, their symbiotic zooxanthellae, tropical fish, and many other organisms.

• The Role of Species within Communities

  • An example is the photosynthetic corals of the coral reef .
  • The exoskeletons of living and dead coral make up most of the reef structure, which protects many other species from waves and ocean currents.
  • The intertidal sea star, Pisaster ochraceus, of the northwestern United States is a keystone species .
  • Coral is the foundation species of coral reef ecosystems.
  • The Pisaster ochraceus sea star is a keystone species.

• The Battle of Leyte Gulf

  • The Battle of Leyte Gulf is generally considered the largest naval battle of World War II and possibly the largest naval battle in history.
  • The Battle of Leyte Gulf, also called the Battles for Leyte Gulf, and formerly known as the Second Battle of the Philippine Sea, is generally considered to be the largest naval battle of World War II and, by some criteria, possibly the largest naval battle in history.
  • The Battle of Leyte Gulf consisted of four separate major engagements between the opposing forces: the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea, the Battle of Surigao Strait, the Battle of Cape Engaño, and the Battle of Samar; there were also other lesser actions.
  • Also worth noting is the fact that at this battle Japan had fewer aircraft than the Allied Forces had sea vessels, a clear demonstration of the difference in power of the two sides at this point of the war.
  • Identify the notable facts and the four major engagements of the Battle of Leyte Gulf.