File photo: A man snorkels in an area called the "Coral Gardens" near Lady Elliot Island, on the Great Barrier Reef, northeast of Bundaberg town in Queensland, Australia, June 11, 2015. (REUTERS/David Gray)
The Great Barrier Reef has just gotten even cooler thanks to a fresh discovery.
Marine biologist Johnny Gaskell discovered an incredible “Blue Hole” in the heart of the Great Barrier Reef when searching on Google Maps.
“A blue hole is an underwater sinkhole formed by the erosion of carbonate rocks and appears as a dark blue circle of water in the ocean,” explained Amusing Planet .
“Owing to their depth, blue holes appear darkish blue because of greater absorption of sunlight which increases with increase in depth. This creates a dramatic contrast with the lighter blue of the shallows around them and forms a natural outline that can be easily seen from the surface.”
The Whitsundays local said, after spotting the natural phenomena, he decided to see what dwelled within.
“What we found inside was hard to believe considering five months ago a Cat 4 cyclone went straight over the top of it. At around 15m-20m deep there was huge Birdsnest Corals (Seriatopora) and super elongate Staghorn Corals (Acropora) both of which were among the biggest and most delicate colonies I’ve ever seen,” he wrote on Instagram.
“Totally unaffected by the cyclone. The position of this deep hole within the lagoon walls has obviously protected these corals for decades. We may very well be the first to ever dive Gaskell’s Blue Hole as it was so far offshore and hidden deep within one of the Great Barrier Reef’s biggest lagoons.”
Shocking 'blue hole' discovered in the Great Barrier Reef
