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Archive for the ‘leaking oil rig’ Category

Timor Sea Oil Slick: Growing Australian Disaster

Posted by feww on September 23, 2009

UPDATE: Australia Oil Well on Fire

Timor Sea: Terra Satellite Images (MODIS)

Background Information:

Oil Slick in the Timor Sea (Earth Observatory)

timorsea_tmo_2009260_1

timorsea_tmo_2009260_2
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.

Twice-daily images of the Timor Sea are available from the MODIS Rapid Response Team Website. Note that the slick will not be visible in every image; viewing conditions have to be perfect for a thin sheen of oil or droplets to be visible in photo-like satellite imagery. (See a previous image in this event for an explanation.)

NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data obtained from the Goddard Land Processes data archives (LAADS). Caption by Rebecca Lindsey.

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How Much Oil Pollution Is Too Much?

Posted by feww on September 7, 2009

Major Disaster in Timor Sea

Image of the Day: “The Water is an Orangy Color”

Will the Australian oil spill grow to an even bigger disaster  than Exxon Valdez?

water from Timor sea dispersal area
“The water is an ‘orangy’ color, the birds have gone and marine life is sick and dying.” —Commercial Fisherman, George Hamilton, who visited the dispersal area in Timor sea. Image is a frame grab from a video broadcast by ABCNews (Australia).  Image may be subject to copyright.

The oil spill will continue for many weeks, possibly months before the leak can be stopped.

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