Oceanographers created an algorithm that transforms underwater photos and reveals their amazing true colors

Scientists have created a computer algorithm that can take an underwater photograph and automatically readjust its colors to compensate for the distorting effect of water on light. Researchers Derya Akkaynak and Tali Trebitz started work on the technology – called Sea-thru -- more than three years ago. Akkaynak told Business Insider via email that Sea-thru's mission is to enable huge, artificial intelligence-powered analysis of underwater images. The algorithm effectively adjusts underwater images to make them look like they were taken in broad daylight, making them easier for AI software to analyze. "On underwater images, AI methods generally perform poorly or inconsistently, because water degrades images too severely for automated analysis," she said.