Most importantly, the goal of the program is to enable people around the world to explore the ocean while also conducting the first detailed study of the composition and health of coral reefs. Hence, the first underwater panoramic images were added to Google Maps with the help of Catlin Seaview Survey scientific expedition, which hoped that the up-close view of underwater wonders would inspire people to protect them.
Describing the essence of the project, the executive said, “This is a crucial decade for coral reefs,” Catlin project director Richard Vevers informed AFP while providing a preview of the Google reef mapping project. “We need to be recording them as fast as we can and involving people to halt the decline, which is alarming at the moment.”
Underwater scene near Heron Island, courtesy of Google Street View. (Google Street View / September 27, 2012)
Another executive expounded on the beauty of this exploration, said, “With these vibrant and stunning photos you do not have to be a scuba diver — or even know how to swim — to explore and experience six of the ocean’s most incredible living coral reefs,” Brian McClendon, VP of Google Maps and Earth, said in a blog post announcing the feature. “Now, anyone can become the next virtual Jacques Cousteau and dive with sea turtles, fish and manta rays in Australia, the Philippines, and Hawaii.”
A turtle swims by Google’s undersea camera at Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. (Credit: Google)
As a matter of fact, in one of the locations — Heron Island on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia — you can take a virtual stroll along the beach, wade into the water, dive below the surface, swim with sea turtles, zoom in to examine incredible corals, and then walk back out out of the water and back on the beach. It is the virtual vacation of my dreams.
The images were collected by a small team of Catlin Seaview Survey, a group that wants to create a visual record of the ocean for scientific purposes. The team used a special camera to capture panoramic imagery combined together at Google Maps and in a special Street View online gallery to let people swim along without getting wet. The survey is deploying teams in different ocean spots around the world, including those represented in the Google Street View Oceans collection.
Some other vital locations in the Oceans collection include Lady Elliott Island on the Great Barrier Reef, the Molokini Crater off Maui, Hawaii; and Hanauma Bay in Oahu, Hawaii; and the Apo Islands in the Philippines.
In order to enjoy the experiences available to users recorded at the Great Barrier Reef is the chance to find a sea turtle swimming among a school of fish, follow a manta ray, or witness a sunset at the reef. Virtual vacationers yearning for a Hawaiian adventure can go snorkeling in Oahu’s Hanauma Bay or drift over the corral and brightly colored fish in Maui’s Molokini crater.
Besides, it is worth noting the effort, “We have published images in seven continents, down the Amazon and in the Arctic,” said Google Oceans Program manager Jenifer Austin Foulkes.
In addition, a channel at the Google+ social network devoted to the Catlin expedition, which has the potential to discover new species of marine creatures during a “deep reef” phase, has attracted about 1.4 million followers.
Undersea imagery could be seen online at maps.google.com/ocean.
“This is a project that can engage people,” Vevers said. “We need to bridge the gap between scientific understanding and public awareness… We need people to be able to experience the ocean,” she added.
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