NASA invites people on virtual ocean expedition, designs video game to map coral reefs

Amid the lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, the United State's national space agency NASA has come up with a video game for the people in self-quarantine at home. As per reports, the space agency has created a 'NeMO-Net' video game where the players can go on virtual ocean research expeditions looking for coral reefs to understand the depleting underwater ecosystems.

As per NASA's official press release, the NeMO-Net -- also known as the Neural Multi-Modal Observation and Training Network -- game's neural network has been designed by Principal investigator Ved Chirayath at Ames.

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About NeMO-Net Game

According to NASA, players in the video game can identify and classify coral reefs using 3D images while virtually navigating the ocean in their own research vessel - the Nautilius. Further, it uses real NASA data including 3D images of the ocean floor with corals, algae, and seagrass, captured from drones or aircraft on expeditions to Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa. Reportedly, the players' input will allow NASA to build a global coral map using its Pleiades supercomputer.

Further, on each "dive" into the game, the players will interact with real NASA data and learn about different types of corals. NASA's blog states, "Anyone, even a first-grader, can play this game and sort through these data to help us map one of the most beautiful forms of life we know of."

Currently, the NeMO-Net video game is available on the Apple App store-- all the iOS devices and Mac computers. Along with it, it will soon be released on the android systems. 

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Coral reefs to disappear?

Meanwhile, a new study carried out at Bangor University analysed the changes of 25 marine, 13 freshwater, and four land ecosystems to find out how long it would take for them to reach a critical point. As per the research, the Amazon Rainforest could be wiped out in about 49 years and the coral reefs could be bleached in the next 15 years. According to the researchers, once a 'tipping point' is triggered, large ecosystems could collapse much faster.

The study added that humanity needs to prepare for changes far sooner than expected as the rapid changes to the world's largest and most iconic ecosystems would impact the benefits which they provide us with, including everything from food and materials to the oxygen and water. In the light of such findings, NASA's video game on virtual ocean research offers to be more than just a playtime fun activity. 

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