Avery Paxton

(she / her)

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The bow of the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Duane, a decommissioned ship deliberately sunk off Florida to serve as an artificial reef. Stephen Frink via Getty Images

Not all underwater reefs are made of coral − the US has created artificial reefs from sunken ships, radio towers, boxcars and even voting machines

Avery Paxton, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and D'amy Steward, University of Guam

Artificial reefs are structures that humans put in place underwater that create habitat for sea life. A new study shows for the first time how much of the US ocean floor they cover.
A school of grunts on a sunken World War II German submarine in the Atlantic Ocean off North Carolina. Karen Doody/Stocktrek Images via Getty Images

Shipwrecks teem with underwater life, from microbes to sharks

Avery Paxton, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

When ships sink, they add artificial structures to the seafloor that can quickly become diverse, ecologically important underwater communities.

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