A huge coral colony stretching more than 1.5 kilometers (0.93 miles) along the outer reef of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands has been identified by researchers, making it one of the largest known coral colonies ever recorded.

The remarkable rose coral (Pachyseris) colony extends 1.56 kilometers (0.97 miles) in length—the equivalent of approximately 100 buses parked end to end—and occupies the outer reef slope between depths of 14 and 65 meters (46 and 213 feet).

Local dive operator Dieter Gerhard first spotted extensive areas of the coral more than 30 years ago, but it wasn’t until researchers began mapping the reef that they realized just how extensive the formation was and that the sections may be connected as one enormous colony.