APNewsBreak New technology speeds massive coral reef survey

Researchers at the XL Catlin Global Reef Record told The Associated Press that creating the virtual reality scenes allows hundreds of thousands of images to be analyzed within weeks rather than years.

Coral reefs are essential to food supplies, natural environment and coastal economies the world over, according to scientists who attended this week's International Coral Reef Symposium in Hawaii.

Scientists have never before captured such a comprehensive picture of reef health — and they hope it will lead to the discovery of new phenomena on reefs, said Ruth Gates, president of the International Society for Reef Studies and director of the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology.

Hoegh-Guldberg said the scientific community needs to get the average person excited about saving reefs and have those people share their passion with the world's leaders to influence policy change.