Scientists discover 500 metre-tall skyscraper coral reef at Australia's Great Barrier Reef

The detached reef, taller than the Empire State Building, was discovered at the northern end of the Great Barrier Reef off Cape York in Queensland

Australian scientists have discovered a detached reef more than 500 metres high - taller than the Empire State Building - at the northern end of the Great Barrier Reef.

The blade-like" vertical reef about 130km off Cape York, Australia's north-eastern tip, was found during a 3D seabed mapping exercise conducted from a ship owned by the Californian non-profit Schmidt Ocean Institute.