Oil Spill Monitoring and Prediction Method Using SAR

Abstract

In this paper, we introduce the oil spill detection and it’s movement prediction techniques using SAR. In order to detect the oil slicks in the SAR image, the theoretically calculated backscattering value was used as the threshold value. In addition, various wave spectrum models are applied to calculate the optimal threshold value. The detected results were used as initial input values for the movement prediction model. In this model, wind and tidal current are used as external force and coefficient values calculated by using modified equation are applied. To assess the performance of this technology, we applied it to the 2007 Hebei Spirit oil spill. This technique showed higher prediction accuracy than the generally recommended empirical formula. Especially, it shows the possibility of inverse tracking the first spill location using the oil slicks detected in the satellite image.