Imagine being able to get an up-close look at one of Florida’s reefs without having to get wet.
U.S. government scientists are in the Florida Keys this week learning to use underwater cameras to take rotating 360-degree panoramic shots of the reefs there.
According to the researchers, the images will provide a window into ecosystems that are still difficult and costly to explore for long stretches of time.
Some of those images, they say, should be available online this week at maps.google.com/oceans.
About 400,000 images have been produced so far of reefs off Australia and in the Caribbean, but this is the first time the technology is being used in U.S. waters.
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