. Cold-water Coral Reefs: out of sight - no longer out of mind. UNEP-WCMC Biodiversity Series 22. Cold-water coral reefs Multibeam technology has opened new avenues for better understanding of seabed topography and the sedi- mentary environment. National authorities and industry have used this technology both to search for resources of economic interest and to document environmental hazards. This mapping tool is now used to detect cold- water coral reefs that can be recognized by characteristic physical backscatter properties and morphological characteristics (Figure 28 and Figure 7A|. However
. Cold-water Coral Reefs: out of sight - no longer out of mind. UNEP-WCMC Biodiversity Series 22. Cold-water coral reefs Multibeam technology has opened new avenues for better understanding of seabed topography and the sedi- mentary environment. National authorities and industry have used this technology both to search for resources of economic interest and to document environmental hazards. This mapping tool is now used to detect cold- water coral reefs that can be recognized by characteristic physical backscatter properties and morphological characteristics (Figure 28 and Figure 7A|. However, to differentiate reefs from rocks and other seabed features, ground truthing through visual inspection using towed or mobile camera system carriers is necessary to properly calibrate and interpret multibeam datasets. A number of companies and research groups are developing software tools to support identification of seabed features such as coral reefs (Huvenne et al., 2002). The integration of multibeam data into ROV navi- gational systems is another challenge. Such systems make it possible to navigate the ROV on the multibeam map in real time. The future application of such combined systems will be a great step forward in enabling the mapping of the full extent and distribution of coral reefs at reasonable costs. EDUCATION AND OUTREACH The new discoveries of cold-water coral ecosystems made by interdisciplinary teams of scientists using state- of-the-art sampling and observation technologies, coupled with the real-time capabilities of the Internet, offer rich opportunities to capture the interest of the general public. In order to stimulate interest in the Earth's nature and our responsibility for the environment, it is important to improve and increase the dissemination of science to schools and undergraduate students. This is especially so for cold-water coral ecosystems as they are generally located several hundred metres deep - and therefore out of sight. Obtaining good
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