Oil Detection of Sanchi (Oil Tanker) Collision Using Satellite SAR Data

Abstract

Hong Kong-owned CF crystal cargo ship and Iranian oil tanker Sanchi break the East China Sea on January 6, 2018. The accident caused a big fire in the oil tanker, and the tanker floated and sank with the explosion on January 14th. The oil tanker Sanchi was carrying 136,000 tons of condensate. After the sinking, oil was leaked at a rapid rate, causing serious environmental damage to nearby fishing grounds. The oil that is released into seawater due to the collision or explosion between ships is a major factor that has a serious impact on the marine ecosystem. Therefore, it is essential to monitor the oil location and spreading area quickly when the oil is spilled. Satellite images are very important for understanding the oil spilled on the sea surface. This is because satellites can be monitored at high resolution over a wide range and are also very useful for detecting oil spilled in seawater by measuring the reflection characteristics of various wavelength ranges depending on the sensor. In this study, the oil leaked from the Sanchi oil tanker was detected using microwave ALOS-2 SAR and optical Sentinel-2 satellite images, and at the same time oil flow was detected through GOCI satellite images.