Figure 1. OSIS correctly predicted the trajectory of the initial release of oil
Figure 2. Side-Looking Airborne Radar (SLAR) image of the SEA EMPRESS at 23:02 on 15 February. The figure shows trajectory of the oil (dark feature) heading towards Linney Head where it beached in the early in agreement with predictions made by OSIS (fig.1)
Figure 3. Summary of the peak oil concentrations in the water column at 1-5 m depth below the seasurface generated by NATURAL dispersion before application of dispersant. This demonstrates that even in the absence of chemical dispersant operation the marine environment is subjected to dispersed oil.
Figure 4. Summary of the peak oil concentrations in the water column at 1-5 m depth below the oil which had been sprayed with dispersant. Before dispersant application <2 ppm concentrations of dispersed oil were restricted to the top 1 m of the water column. Following treatment with dispersant 1-10 ppm level oil concen-trations were seen to penetrate down to 5 m indicating a successful dispersant operation.
Figure 5. Clay, diatom and oil droplets under phase contrast (a) and UV epifluorescence (b) . The oil droplets fluoresce under UV fluorescence and can be distinguished from the mineral fines.
