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| Photo from Catlin Seaview Survey |
Climate change has drastically changed how we view today’s
marine environment. It would not be surprising at all that coral reefs are
constantly threatened to be extinct after a century or earlier [1]. Rightfully
so, a team of innovative scientists are determined to race and change the
tides.
Catlin Seaview Survery, a pioneering scientific expedition,
aims to create a dynamic and reliable baseline record on the state of coral
reef ecosystems today. Equipped with an automated SVII camera, a diver can
capture 360-degree high resolution panoramic shots every three seconds at a
speed of 4 km/h [1]. Using a highly advanced image recognition software, the
myriad of GPS-located images can then be stitched together to form a 3D
structure of coral reefs. What is more fascinating is that they can be readily
accessed at Catlin Global Reef Record [2,3]. In turn, this may essentially empower
scientists, policy makers and the public in general to monitor changes on reef
ecosystems over time, find solutions on how to better protect them, and make
informed decisions.
The project commenced in 2012 in the Great Barrier Reef . As the first project was a success,
it has gone global and laid eyes on surveying the waters of Southeast Asia in 2014 [2]. Hopefully more
surveying will be done in the successive years to consistently monitor the
health of our coral reefs and understand its implications.
To know more about corals, visit SeaLifeBase.
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[1] Euro news (2015) Mapping the oceans’ coral reefs to try
and save them from extinction. http://www.euronews.com/2014/12/03/mapping-the-oceans-coral-reefs-to-try-and-save-them-from-extinction/
[Accessed 1/4/2015 ].
[2] Catlin Seaview Survey (2014) About the Catlin Seaview
Survey. http://catlinseaviewsurvey.com/about/ [Accessed 1/4/2015 ].
[3] Catlin Seaview Survey (2014). The science of the Catlin
Seaview Survey. http://catlinseaviewsurvey.com/science/ [Accessed 1/4/2015 ].
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