Posts Tagged ‘Timor Sea Oil Slick’

Another new image of the oil slick in the Timor Sea, details below.

More than two months after a blowout at a newly dug oil well, crude oil and gas condensate continued to leak into the Timor Sea, between northwest Australia and Indonesia. According to news reports, the company responsible for the leaking well has tried to cap it three times without success.

This image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite shows the Timor Sea on October 28, 2009. The top image shows a regional view of the area around the damaged oil platform (location indicated by a small circle), and the bottom image shows a close-up view of the oil slick. The oil slick appears as patches and streaks of dark blue compared to the surrounding ocean, which is a washed-out blue.

A sheen of oil on the surface of the ocean may only produce a slight darkening that is usually imperceptible in natural-color (photo-like) satellite images such as this one. When such slicks appear in the sunglint region of the image, however, they can become visible. The sunglint area is the part of the image where the mirror-like reflection of the Sun washes out the scene. For an explanation of why oil slicks become visible in sunglint, see the August 30 image of this event.

Updated view of the oil slick in the Timor sea.

What was probably a sheen of oil calmed the waters of the Timor Sea and darkened the mirror-like reflection of the Sun when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this image on September 17, 2009. The top image shows the wider area, with part of Western Australia at lower right. The colorful water near the shore is probably a mixture of sediment and phytoplankton. The bottom image is a close up of the area outlined in white.

The oil was leaking from a well that was damaged during drilling on August 21. According to news reports, chemicals that help the oil disperse are being dropped on the slick from airplanes. The light-colored streaks may be some combination of oil and dispersant.

An image of an oil slick in the Timor Sea is visible from the MODIS instrument aboard the Terra satellite.

A damaged oil well northwest of Western Australia continued to leak fuel into the Timor Sea in the first week of September 2009. This natural-color image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite shows the area affected by the oil slick on September 3. Compared to an image captured on August 30, the area affected appears larger, but that doesn’t automatically mean there is more oil. According to news reports, chemicals that help the oil disperse are being dropped on the slick from airplanes. The light-colored streaks may be some combination of oil and dispersant. To the southeast, the colorful water is probably a mixture of sediment and phytoplankton.