Advanced Technologies

Slick Technology Helps Detect Oil

NASA IS TEAMING WITH INDUSTRY TO IDENTIFY marine oil seeps to offer clues on oil deposits. This can save companies millions of dollars in unnecessary ocean surveys.

The Commercial Remote Sensing Program at John C. Stennis Space Center in Mississippi is working with a Rockville, Maryland, company. Through the Earth Observation Commercial Applications Program (EOCAP) at Stennis, the Earth Satellite Corporation (EarthSat) is using remote-sensing technology to help identify the oil seeps in the Gulf of Mexico.

"Oil seep detection is a market that has not been addressed by any other EOCAP partnerships," said Mark Mick, EOCAP manager at Stennis. "I also think it is a good application for remote-sensing technology."

Remote sensing uses sensors mounted on aircraft or satellites to look at Earth's surface. Oil migrates naturally through cracks from deposits deep below the ocean floor, releasing oil into the world's surface waters. These marine oil seeps offer clues as to where oil deposits may be located in ocean basins. Marine oil seeps occur naturally and are manifest as oil slicks on the ocean's surface.

To detect oil seeps, EarthSat uses radar satellite data from RadarSat International, a joint NASA-Canadian Space Agency mission in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada, and at times from radar data of the European Space Agency and the U.S. Landsat Thematic Mapper. The radar data measure changes in the texture of the ocean surface, which differs noticeably if an oil slick is present. The very thin oil layer on the water dampens the small (capillary) waves, making the radar image appear dark. Oil companies may use this information to identify areas with potential hydrocarbon deposits and plan their seismic exploratory activities.

The advantages to companies of EarthSat's spaceborne radar survey technique are that it is less expensive than aerial surveys and it allows oil companies to concentrate their explorations in areas that are most likely to be rich in oil. A satellite survey of an area of the ocean costs tens of thousands of dollars, while a typical seismic survey has a price tag of hundreds of millions of dollars. "If you find oil seeping out of the ocean floor, it makes the decision to spend millions of dollars on a seismic survey much easier," Roger Mitchell, EarthSat vice president, said.

For more information, contact Lanee Cooksey at Stennis Space Center. Call: 228/688-3341.
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The two-dimensional sun-shaded relief of Green Canyon sea floor shows oil slicks overlain on top.