INFORMATION

Coral reefs are in peril worldwide for a variety of reasons, including excessive sedimentation, eutrophication, bleaching due to high seawater temperature, overfishing, anchor damage, and boat grounding. Reefs in remote areas are declining due to reasons not yet well established. Mapping is an important first step in identifying these changes. However, the lack of geographic and thematic maps of coral reefs has been identified by a number of agencies and academic panels as a major weakness in our understanding of reefs and our ability to assess change.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) has the capability to produce digital image maps useful for conducting unprecedented detailed mapping of coral reef environments. The USGS Coastal and Marine Geology Program has funded a project to study geologic processes affecting coral reef habitats. A component of this project is to investigate the use of remotely sensed image and spatial data to help map and study coral reef environments. Interpretation of the remotely sensed data is corroborated by extensive field mapping and correlation with field measured distribution and density of coral cover. The focus of this web page deals with the remote sensing work done for the Pacific Ocean component of the USGS coral reef project.

Imagery

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