A discovery made this week 160 miles (260 kilometres) off the coast of Charleston: An enormous series of coral reefs that, combined, are nearly the length of Delaware. Scientists say it may have been growing on the ocean floor for as long as modern humans have been on the planet. “This finding changes where we thought corals could exist off the East Coast,” Erik Cordes, a Temple University biology professor and the expedition’s chief scientist, told The Washington Post.

“And the function of the reefs, in terms of recycling nutrients, is critical to fuel surface productivity and the fisheries we rely on. “This discovery is already changing our predictive models for corals, This will undoubtedly lead to new discoveries in the region once we can digest all of the information. That will take months to years.”

The find is about more than just raw science. The Trump administration wants to allow the energy industry to drill offshore, and researchers hope to be able to tell policymakers which areas should be off-limits. The find was made as part of DEEP SEARCH, a five-year project to explore the sea off the coast of Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina.