Oil Spill Science and Technology, 2nd Edition

5.15. Routine Surveillance

One of the applications of oil spill remote sensing equipment is to detect and map slicks resulting from illegal discharges of oil from ships and offshore platforms. Historically this has always been performed using visual techniques but in the past decade has increasingly been turned over to aircraft with some instrumentation. Typical instrumentation includes SLAR, IR/UV scanner, and cameras. This sensor package is economical compared to more ideal packages and greatly improves capability beyond just visual observation. Limitations include: limited ability to “look into” ship wakes, limited night operations, and inability to positively identify oil slicks. Recent additions such as improved SLAR systems, better display ...