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On Saturday, June 19, 2010, oil spread northeast from the leaking Deepwater Horizon well in the Gulf of Mexico. The oil appears as a maze of silvery-gray ribbons in this photo-like image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite.
The location of the leaking well is marked with a white dot. North of the well, a spot of black may be smoke; reports from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration say that oil and gas continue to be captured and burned as part of the emergency response efforts.
The large image provided above is at MODIS’ maximum spatial resolution (level of detail). Twice-daily images of the Gulf of Mexico are available from the MODIS Rapid Response Team in additional resolutions and formats, including a georeferenced version that can be used in Google Earth.
References & Resources
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (2010, June 20). Deepwater Horizon Incident, Gulf of Mexico. National Ocean Service, Office of Response and Restoration. Retrieved June 21, 2010.
NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team. Caption by Rebecca Lindsey.
