iCORAL™ Reef Monitoring Platform

iCORAL™ is the culmination of multiple years of SUSiE Expeditions. We set out on a simple mission: to establish high-resolution monitoring of coral reefs in the Exuma archipelago. Over the course of 5 Expeditions we met some amazing scientists, many genuinely concerned SCUBA divers, a family of Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, and the residents of one island country who directly depend on the health of their coral reefs. Out of this coalescence birthed iCORAL™ and the vision to connect the SCUBA Diving community with the Scientific Community, to monitor coral reefs globally, at a resolution and scale that’s critically needed but has not yet been achieved.

iCORAL™ is a collaborative effort between SUSiE and researchers at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. It is an innovative Coral Reef Monitoring Platform powered by recreational SCUBA divers that uses diver-collected images to produce high-resolution photomosaics used by scientists to monitor reef health. iCORAL™ is diver powered research, and the first platform capable of monitoring reefs at millimeter resolution, on a global scale, and in near real-time.

To learn more about iCORAL™ visit: www.icoral.org

Expertise I bring to this project: Customized Marine Research Solutions | Experiential Education & Citizen Science | Research Expeditions & Field Ops

The iCORAL™ Platform

iCORAL™ highlights

iCORAL™ Reef Monitoring Platform

iCORAL™ is an innovative Coral Reef Monitoring Platform that’s powered by recreational SCUBA divers. Developed by SUSiE, in collaboration with the University of Miami, RSMAS, iCORAL™ assembles diver-collected images to produce high-resolution photomosaics used by scientists to monitor reef health.

Photomosaic Technology for Reef Monitoring

Complex algorithms were created to accurately align numerous overlapping reef images into a single larger image called a Photomosaic. The resolution of the individual images is maintained across the entire mosaic, providing a spatially accurate, analyzable snapshot of 30+ sq. meter of coral reef with sub-millimeter resolution.

Laying the Foundation for iCORAL™

iCORAL™ officially launched in 2019, but the foundation was being laid years prior aboard SUSiE Expeditions. Students shown here installing a monitoring station in Exuma, Bahamas.

iCORAL™ Reef Monitoring Stations

Aluminum station markers are permanently epoxied into a non-living part of the reef. GPS coordinates are recorded and benthic maps constructed to aid in the repeated relocation of stations by divers to collect image data for iCORAL™.

iCORAL™ Photomosaic Protocols

SUSiE conducted numerous field trials to develop the diver protocols for iCORAL™. These protocols are currently being formalized into an online iCORAL™ certification course. The course will certify divers in the proper techniques for collecting and uploading imagery data to construct photomosaics for iCORAL™ reef monitoring.

iCORAL™ Divers

A vacationing SCUBA divers collecting imagery data for iCORAL™ while diving with Dive Exuma, in Georgetown, Bahamas. In 2019-2020, iCORAL™ is partnering with additional dive shops throughout the Caribbean to establish them as iCORAL™ Dive Centers.

iCORAL™ Expeditions | Caribbean 2019

iCORAL™ Expeditions are 5-day masterclass workshops for recreational SCUBA divers wanting to become involved with iCORAL™. The Expeditions serve to establish dive shops as iCORAL™ Dive Centers and build a team of divers to help beta-test components of the Platform.

iCORAL™ College Expeditions | Summer 2019

iCORAL™ College Expeditions are 10-day masterclass workshops for undergrad and graduate student SCUBA divers wanting to become involved with iCORAL™. These Expeditions serve to establish dive shops as iCORAL™ Dive Centers and build a team of college SCUBA divers to help beta-test components of the Platform.