The NOAA Coral Reef Watch (CRW) Coral Bleaching Thermal Stress Outlook indicates that the potential for coral bleaching in the Caribbean in 2009 has lessened. While there continues to be an elevated potential for higher than normal temperatures in 2009, severe thermal stress is less likely than earlier outlooks indicated. There is still some potential for thermal stress that may lead to bleaching along the Pacific coast of Mexico and islands in the equatorial central Pacific Ocean. So far, it appears unlikely that bleaching will be severe in those areas either.