A La Jolla native has built a way for anyone in the world to explore the reefs and kelp forests off La Jolla Cove without getting wet.

Zachary Cabading, a recent graduate of UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography, launched an interactive 360° virtual tour of the Matlahuayl State Marine Reserve, the protected waters long known as the La Jolla Underwater Park. The project was his capstone in the Master of Advanced Studies in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation program.

The free tour, live at lajollaunderwater.com since Aug. 4, lets users navigate through underwater habitats, click into information about the ecology of the reserve, and get a spatial sense of how the kelp forests, surfgrass beds, reefs and sandy canyon floor connect as one ecosystem.

"I wanted to build a communications tool that could raise awareness of marine protected areas and connect people with the ocean (especially those who are not avid swimmers or divers)," Cabading wrote in a LinkedIn post on Aug. 10 announcing the project.

The tour is free.

He said traditional underwater photography doesn't give viewers a spatial understanding of an ecosystem, and that a virtual tour could connect people with underwater spaces "hiding in plain sight."

The reserve, protected since 1970, sits at the head of La Jolla Submarine Canyon's southern branch. More than 2 million people visit La Jolla Shores each year, according to the conservation group WILDCOAST, making the balance between public access and marine conservation a persistent local question. Cabading said he hopes the project shows other conservation organizations that virtual tours can immerse people in underwater spaces they're trying to protect.

Samantha Murray, one of Cabading's Scripps advisors, called the project "a much needed comms tool" in an Aug. 14 comment on his LinkedIn post, adding that it could "enhance ocean access and bring what's below the surface to everyone, regardless of where they live."

Scripps Oceanography announced the tour on its social media channels Tuesday, Aug. 18. Cabading has said he wants to create similar tours for other marine protected areas along the California coast.

Residents can explore the tour at lajollaunderwater.com.