Researchers have created the first complete map of the world's coral reefs.Development of the map was led by scientists at Arizona State University.They partnered with coral reef scientists, universities, non-profit organizations and private groups across the world.The online map is designed to be a coral conservation tool that can also support ocean planning and coral science activities.Called the Allen Coral Atlas, the map was named after Microsoft's late co-founder, Paul Allen.Allen's private company, Vulcan Inc., started providing financial support to the project in 2017.The idea came out of an effort by researcher Ruth Gates of Hawaii to create "super coral" to help save reefs.When announcing the launch of the map recently, the creators said it is the first worldwide, detailed map of its kind.It gives users the ability to see detailed information about local reefs, including different kinds of undersea structures like sand, rocks, seagrass and coral.
