The discovery of the world's largest known deep-sea coral reef habitat is mapped by NOAA
Located off the Southeast United States, the Blake Plateau is an unusual, broad, flat feature with a steep drop-off into the very deep sea. The work of NOAA Ocean Exploration and partners on the Blake Plateau is of particular interest to the National Ocean Mapping, Exploration, and Characterization Council (NOMEC), as the data collected about the important resources on the Blake Plateau will help inform their sustainable use and management. Video courtesy of NOAA Ocean Exploration, Windows to the Deep 2021.
As featured on
Scientists have mapped the largest coral reef deep in the ocean, stretching hundreds of miles off the U.S. coast. Researchers have known since the 1960s that some coral were present off the Atlantic coast, but the reef's size remained a mystery until new technology made it possible to map the ocean floor in 3D.