London-based insurer Catlin Group is sponsoring a major scientific expedition to study the composition and health of sections of the Great Barrier Reef.

The Catlin Seaview Survey will use leading authorities on oceanography and climate change to strengthen the understanding of how climate change and other environmental changes are likely to affect ocean ecosystems.

It will be led by the Director of the Global Change Institute at the University of Queensland, Ove Hoegh-Guldberg.

Catlin recently completed its three-year sponsorship of an Arctic survey. The new Catlin Seaview Survey of the Great Barrier Reef will begin in September.

About 50,000 360-degree panoramas from the survey will eventually be accessible on Google Earth and Google Maps. The project will also have a dedicated YouTube channel.