SkyTruth’s Cerulean Oil Slick Detection Now Integrated into Skylight
A new layer of satellite insight brings unseen pollution into focus, strengthening the path from detection to accountability.
Another layer of satellite-derived intelligence is now available in Skylight—this time, focused not on vessel movement, but on the pollution vessels may leave behind.
SkyTruth’s Cerulean, a global system for tracking ocean oil pollution, is now fully integrated into the platform. Cerulean applies AI to publicly available radar imagery from Sentinel-1, detecting likely oil slicks and identifying nearby vessels or infrastructure that may be responsible. It’s also available as a free, public online map, allowing anyone with an internet connection to monitor and investigate oil pollution at sea.
Unlike other data sources in Skylight, Cerulean reveals a different kind of behavior. It highlights potential pollution that threatens biodiversity, harms coastal communities, and often goes unseen.
Skylight users can now instantly check whether a vessel has been linked to Cerulean oil slick detections. When there’s a match, users gain direct access to the vessel’s comprehensive Cerulean Source Profile, which includes a complete oil slick history, suspicious behavior patterns such as AIS off events, pollution within marine protected areas and national waters, and known detention records.
This integration brings Cerulean’s satellite-based detection capabilities directly into the operational workflows of those on the frontlines. By helping connect the dots faster, it strengthens the path from detection to accountability.
This marks SkyTruth’s first programmatic API deployment, making Cerulean’s detections available in real time within Skylight. The integration arrives alongside Cerulean’s largest frontend update to date, aimed at answering one question: Who’s most likely responsible for this slick? The new Source Profiles give marine analysts, investigators, and those working to protect our ocean a clearer picture and greater confidence in their next steps.
As with other satellite layers in Skylight, Cerulean data strengthens decision-making by offering a new dimension of visibility. And as enforcement grows more complex, that kind of perspective can make all the difference.
