Google and GoPro just announced a new camera for filming virtual reality videos

Google just announced a new virtual reality video platform called "Jump" onstage at its Google I/O conference on Thursday.

Jump is a 360-degree video platform that transforms raw footage into VR video, with the hope of making it easier for people to record and create seamless, spherical 3D virtual reality videos.

GoPro has partnered with Google to create the first Jump-compatible camera rig for filming virtual reality videos, and the device is said to feature "beautiful accurate depth correct stereo" video.

GoPro's Jump-compatible camera, which it is calling the "360-Degree Camera Array," will link up 16 individual GoPro Hero4 cameras to capture and record the spherical video. There's no pricing or release date information for the camera rig, but Google said that GoPro will reveal more in July.

So how will you watch these immersive Jump videos?

Google is making Jump videos viewable on YouTube, so you'll be able to view the 360-degree videos from within the popular web player and app, and likely through the Google Cardboard virtual reality viewer as well.

Google first dabbled with virtual reality last year when it announced Cardboard, a low-cost virtual reality viewer that allowed you to slot your smartphone into the VR viewer. Google handed out Google Cardboard to everyone at last year's Google I/O conference, and the search giant announced that today over 1 million people have used the device.

Google also announced a new and improved version of Google Cardboard at this year's conference, a version which can accommodate larger-sized phones and which supports both Android and iPhones.

Google also announced "Expeditions" on Thursday. It's Google's new educational package for Google Cardboard, giving teachers and students a tidy collection of Google Cardboard viewers so the class can go on virtual field trips.