Scientists have mapped the largest deep-sea coral reef, stretching hundreds of kilometers off the Atlantic Ocean in U.S. waters.
The reef extends approximately 500 kilometers from Florida to South Carolina, with some areas reaching up to 110 kilometers in width. Its total area is nearly three times that of Yellowstone National Park.
Mr. Derek Sowers, the head of the mapping team at the Ocean Exploration Trust and lead author of the study, told USA Today: “Essentially, this is the largest deep-sea coral reef system recorded to date.” He referred to it as a “massive” and “wonderful” ecosystem.
An alfonsino fish swimming above the cold-water coral reef off the southeastern coast of the U.S. (Photo: NOAA).
This achievement was reported in a paper published by the scientific journal Geomatics. The article details the years-long campaign by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and its partners.
The reef is composed of cold-water corals, formed over long periods from the skeletal material of stony corals and sediments retained by broken corals.
According to The Guardian, although researchers have known about the existence of corals off the Atlantic coast since 1960, the extent of the coral reef remained a mystery until new underwater mapping technologies created 3D images of the ocean floor.
“About 75% of the world’s oceans remain unmapped at high resolution, and approximately 50% of U.S. waters are currently unmapped,” Mr. Sowers noted.
The aforementioned reef is found at depths ranging from 200 to 1,000 meters, where sunlight does not penetrate. Scientists state that deep-sea reefs provide habitats for sharks, swordfish, starfish, octopuses, shrimp, and many other fish species.
Tropical reefs are more widely known to scientists and divers because they are more accessible. The Great Barrier Reef in Australia, the largest tropical reef system in the world, stretches approximately 2,300 kilometers.
According to Mr. Sowers, the search of the ocean floor will continue. He predicts that even larger coral reefs will be discovered in the future.
