Mapping Coral From Outer Space to Undersea

Satellites, aircraft, drones and drop cameras are used to create maps 

in unprecedented detail for meaningful ocean habitat conservation

"We have taken to the skies to monitor coral reefs at scales never before possible, while making strides on the ground and in the sea to revolutionize coral conservation and restoration." - Joseph Pollock, Ph.D., Senior Coral Reef Resilience Scientist, TNC 

The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and partners are working to reveal and understand coral health at different scales to answer a range of vital questions for resource managers, governments, and conservationists. Scientists are collecting data using different technologies and platforms, each of which provides an important layer of information to inform marine conservation and management initiatives.

3D rendering of data from ASU's GAO for TNC in the DR. Image is built using a GAO depth map with color taken from just three of the >400 bands of light captured by the spectrometer aboard the GAO. 

Visualization by ASU.