Scientists in the southwestern Pacific Ocean have discovered the largest coral ever recorded. It's so big it can be seen from space.
A National Geographic team on an expedition in the Solomon Islands found the coral in October. The Solomons are a cluster of hundreds of islands located northeast of Australia.
Using a tape measure, scientists found that the coral colony spans about 111 feet wide, 104 feet long and 18 feet high — large enough to fit two full-sized basketball courts side by side. It's also longer than the world’s largest animal, the blue whale.
Researchers say the coral is estimated to be about 300 to 500 years old and is three times larger than the previous record-holder named “Big Momma” in American Samoa.
But it had never been recorded, and the local community did not know it existed.
This mega coral — mostly brown but with splashes of bright yellows, blues and reds — is covered with ripples of waves that mirror the ocean’s surface. It provides essential habitat, shelter and breeding grounds for a variety of species from shrimp and crabs to fish.
The Solomon Islands have nearly 500 species of hard and soft corals.
