Explore a map of coral reefs around the world and the extent of coral bleaching.

From 2023 to 2025, coral reefs experienced their fourth global bleaching event and the largest such event through 2025.

The world's largest coral, as seen from space

The world’s largest individual coral colony—measuring over 100 feet wide and 100 feet long—was discovered in the Solomon Islands. This coral is so large it can be seen from space, and is estimated to be between 300 and 500 years old. The coral's size and health provide hope amidst a global coral bleaching crisis, wherein three-quarters of coral reefs have experienced significant bleaching in recent decades. See the photos from space and learn more here.

About 76% of global coral species are found in the Coral Triangle—a region spanning the waters of Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, the Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste.

Explore coral reefs in Google's "street view"

Expanding its mission to map the world, Google Maps partnered with The Catlin Seaview Survey to introduce the first-ever underwater panoramas, making oceanic marvels like the Great Barrier Reef accessible to everyone. With Google Maps, the public...

Explore the history, structure, and species of Australia's Great Barrier Reef with this interactive journey narrated by Sir David Attenborough.

A simple infographic explaining how coral bleaching works

When corals are stressed by changes in conditions such as temperature, light, or nutrients, they expel the symbiotic algae living in their tissues, causing them to turn completely white.

The first coral reefs formed hundreds of millions of years ago from the carbonate skeletons deposited by hard corals.

View a collection of images and videos of coral reefs from around the world.

Climate change threatens coral reefs by disrupting the symbiotic relationship between corals and algae due to rising ocean temperatures.

Take a 3D underwater trip near the Great Barrier Reef

The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system, comprising more than 900 islands and almost 3,000 individual reefs. This video lets you tag along with divers as they explore the reef off the southern coast of Lady Elliot Island in full 3D (use the direction buttons in the upper left of the video, or your keypad).

Take an interactive tour through Australia's Great Barrier Reef, featuring spherical panoramas of marine wildlife, including manta rays, loggerhead turtles, and bottlenose dolphins.

View a collection of glass sculptures of corals threatened by fishing and deep-sea mining.

Can coral live in cold water?

Dive deep beyond the sunlit coral reefs, and you'll discover a world of deep-sea corals. This article from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) explores the ecosystems of deep-sea corals found way below the water's surface....

During coral bleaching, corals sacrifice their food source and expel colorful microorganisms to protect themselves, a phenomenon that resembles an organism's immune system attacking itself.

Coral reefs get their colors from zooxanthellae—photosynthetic algae that line corals' digestive tracts and provide them with sugars in exchange for a home within this protective tissue.

The three types of coral reefs—fringing, barrier, and atoll—are categorized by where they form.

Watch a diving expedition through the world's longest coral colony, which spans more than a football field and whose exact location is kept secret for its protection.

Deep water corals—located throughout the world's ocean basins at depths beyond 200 meters (660 feet)—slowly build small coral gardens in the dark with the help of underwater worms.

Why are coral reefs important?

Coral reefs are vital ecosystems that millions of people and countless species depend on. This two-minute video from London's Natural History Museum looks at the ecological and economic significance of coral reefs, including their biodiversity and...

Over 1 million fish, marine mammals, and invertebrate species depend on coral reefs for habitats, camouflage, and food.

Some corals absorb harmful ultraviolet radiation and re-emit it as visible light, thereby protecting symbiotic algae within their tissues and providing them with energy for photosynthesis.

The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration estimates that US commercial and recreational fisheries valued at $200M depend on coral reefs, which provide up to $1.8B in flood protection by absorbing 97% of wave energy.

Through coral IVF, researchers have collected coral eggs and sperm from healthy reefs, grown baby corals in lab pools, and then released them to help repopulate damaged or lost reefs.

View a map of the distribution of mineral resources on the seafloor

Polymetallic nodules are found in regions near the middle of the Pacific Ocean, along the eastern coast of South America, and along the western coast of Africa, while cobalt-rich crusts span significant portions of the Pacific tropics east of the Philippines. Polymetallic sulfide deposits occur at tectonic plate boundaries, including areas within national jurisdictions.

An analysis of fossilized reefs from northern Africa and Germany suggests that shallow water corals and photosynthetic algae formed the mutualistic partnership seen today between 419 and 359 million years ago.

As of 2026, the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt is the world's largest macroalgal bloom, with seaweed stretching from the Caribbean to West Africa.

Inside Australia's National Sea Simulator, scientists are cross-breeding coral species and using CRISPR to genetically engineer heat-resistant corals to withstand warming reefs worldwide.

Fish populations in the Great Barrier Reef have increased after installing waterproof speakers on the ocean floor that played recordings of sounds from healthy coral reefs.

Scientists have found that the Great Barrier Reef's microbiome includes an estimated 362,802 distinct viruses and 876 distinct bacterial and archaeal species—584 of which had never been documented before 2026.

Research has found that when their symbiotic algae are not producing oxygen via photosynthesis, corals twirl hairlike structures to circulate water and draw oxygen into their outer tissues.

View the biggest threats to biodiversity, according to the World Wildlife Fund, led by changes to species' environments, species overexploitation, and invasive species.

Take an interactive dive and see the animals that populate the oceans, from coral near the surface to shrimp-like organisms near the seafloor.

The ocean's ability to store carbon long-term is being hindered by marine heatwaves

More than 4,000 robotic floats with biogeochemical data sensors, including oxygen, pH, nitrate, suspended particles, chlorophyll, temperature, and conductivity, have been deployed as part of the Global Ocean Biogeochemical Array. They have identified changes to ecosystem structure affecting the ocean's ability to transport carbon from surface waters into the deep.

Starting with red, colorful objects will appear to lose their colors the deeper they are submerged because water scatters light, reducing the amount available to reflect off objects and be observed.

Explore a map of global native lands

This interactive map visualizes Indigenous territories across the world. Users can search by location, language, or tribe to explore the histories, cultures, and present-day communities connected to specific lands.

View a gallery of animals found on abyssal plains, hydrothermal vents, seamounts, and other deep-sea habitats.

When diving and snorkeling in environments containing reefs, avoid touching reefs, anchoring on them, or using sunscreen with active ingredients harmful to marine life.

View a map of the world's major earthquakes from 1956 to 2022, which can be used to identify tectonic plate boundaries.

Artificial coral reefs have been 3D printed from nontoxic, biodegradable terracotta clay, which coral polyps have used as a foundation for rebuilding marine ecosystems.

Track individual sharks around the world in real time.

Aerial photos of red tide off the Gulf Coast

The toxic algae grows naturally in warmer oceans in small amounts and is typically harmless. With extended warm periods and unusually-high additions of nutrients from run-off, the algae blooms extensively, posing health risks to wildlife and humans...

Explore a world map of Mars

The yellows spots scattered across the map indicate meteor impacts while the red regions represent volcanoes and their associated lava flows. The varying shades of brown indicate cratered highlands and midlands, which make up most of the southern hemisphere.

Coral reefs are built by thousands of coral polyps—tiny animals whose mouths both consume food and expel waste.

An interactive of the deep sea

Synthetic pheromones may protect coral reefs by attracting their predators

Researchers in Australia and Japan have developed these nontoxic chemicals to attract crown-of-thorns starfish, which consume corals that make up the Great Barrier Reef. As of 2026, synthetic pheromones have been shown to be effective in lab trials, and future field trials will attempt to lure starfish into areas for mass removal.

Explore an interactive atlas of worldwide critical mineral production

This tool from the US Geological Survey tracks the production over over 90 minerals in 180 countries. For a selected country, you can see how many critical minerals it produces, where else those minerals are produced, and what each mineral is used for.

Underwater nighttime photos capture the ocean's diversity

Self-taught photographer Steven Kovacs explores Palm Beach's ocean after sunset, capturing tiny sea creatures in deep waters. Over eight years, he's dived into Florida's eastern coast, drifting from 0 to 100 feet, photographing rarely seen larval fish. Lacking formal marine biology training, Kovacs collaborates globally to identify species like cusk eels and the female blanket octopus, known for its revealing membrane. Check out his photos here.

The Council on Foreign Relations maps conflicts to watch in 2026

This interactive map highlights conflicts to watch in 2026, rating each by likelihood and potential impact and allowing users to explore detailed background on every potential hotspot.

View maps of seafloor topography, earthquakes, and volcanic activity, which scientists use to create outlines of Earth's tectonic plates.

A map of extreme weather events and their links to climate change

To track how the evidence on this fast-moving topic is stacking up, Carbon Brief has mapped every extreme-weather attribution study published to date. Read more about the findings from the comprehensive analysis.