MC20: Oil On Water Sampling Photos from 2016-2018 Field Research

2016-2018 field research photos collected at the Mississippi Canyon lease block #20 (MC20) site of a chronic oil discharge. The data were part of a NOAA study on methods to estimate oil slick coverage and thickness using remote sensing platforms. Research was funded by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, and NOAA.

Use Cases

• Training computer vision models for oil slick detection based on the described collection of airborne and satellite imagery.
• Calibrating remote sensing thickness estimates based on the described surface oil characterization data.
• Studying chronic oil discharge patterns based on the multi-year (2016-2018) field research at the MC20 site.
• Developing environmental response applications based on the data's integration into NOAA's Environmental Response Management Applications (ERMA).

Strengths

• Multi-year temporal coverage from field research undertaken in 2016, 2017, and 2018.
• Data collection integrated multiple methods including satellite imagery, airborne imagery, and surface characterization.
• Research was funded by authoritative U.S. agencies including NOAA and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count and dataset scale are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect geographic and temporal bias inherent to the specific MC20 study site.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Commerce.

Collection Method

Synoptic collection of satellite imagery, airborne imagery, surface oil characterization, oil and water chemistry, and subsurface oil slick data at the MC20 site.

Time Range

2016-2018

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 22:33:07.018012; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Mississippi Canyon lease block #20 (MC20), Louisiana, North America.