Sunscreen’s coral-killing mechanism uncovered

Scientists have revealed how the sunscreen compound oxybenzone kills corals and other marine invertebrates: under UV light, the animals convert the normally benign compound into a potent phototoxin.

Oxybenzone is one of the most common UV-light protecting agents in sunscreens. But it has been linked to coral bleaching, a process during which corals expel their symbiotic algae, making them prone to disease and starvation. This is why Hawaii, Palau as well as some other regions have banned oxybenzone-containing sunscreens.