The scale and scope of the ongoing Deepwater Horizon oil spill has showcased the capability of earth observation satellites, most specifically the MODIS instrument aboard the Aqua satellite. Scientists have used the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer to detect the oil slick, which is often hidden in natural-color imagery. Scientists can custom tune the 36 spectral bands on the instrument in order to reveal the extent and trajectory of the slick as revealed in the image above from May 17.
The above image from June 12, illustrates that the leaking oil has reached the beaches and barrier islands of Alabama and the Panhandle of Florida.
The tools deployed to respond to this disaster are an unprecedented mix of imagery, GIS, and mobile mapping technologies. The national, international, and inter-state nature of the spill require unprecedented levels of collaboration to communicate and record the impacts of the spill.
Read more about the use of space radar to image oil slicks here.
