NASA participated for the first time in Norway's annual oil spill cleanup exercise in the North Sea on June 8 through 11. Scientists flew a specialized NASA airborne instrument called the Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) on NASA's C-20A piloted research aircraft to monitor a controlled release of oil into the sea, testing the radar's ability to distinguish between more and less damaging types of oil slicks.
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Norway's annual Oil on Water exercises allow personnel and equipment to hone their response to oil spills. In this photo from the 2010 exercise, a rescue boat checks the placement of booms by a fishing boat that participated in the cleanup drill. A boom is a floating barrier that fences in spilled oil.
Credit: NOFO
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