Here at SkyTruth, we are always looking for new ways to visualize the environmental impact of human activity, so we’ve been playing with LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) data and digital elevation models (DEMs). We thought it would be interesting, and potentially useful, to create a profile of the terrain of a mine before and […]
Remember that 92-mile-long bilge dump off Congo and Angola that caught our attention back in April? The bright spot at the left end of the slick is likely the vessel that caused it. But the ASAR imagery left an important question unanswered: Who was responsible for this pollution? With the generous help of our new […]
If you haven’t met the Frack Family yet, check out this video! SkyTruth Reports: Meet The Frack Family from SkyTruth on Vimeo. Yolandita presents the imaginary Frack Family and their dog Rocky of Beaver County, PA who help us to visualize the staggering quantity of chemicals that were used in a typical frack job (hydraulic […]
If you’ve read our “What’s In My Frack Fluid” article, posted by David last week, you were probably disturbed to find out how much of the ingredients used in a typical hydraulic fracturing operation are unknown. We thought it might be a good idea to illustrate what 133 tons of chemicals (including 65 tons of […]
Let’s consider a typical hydraulic fracturing (fracking) operation at a natural-gas well in Beaver County, Pennsylvania. This particular frack site is right in the middle of Marcellus Shale country and lies along the state’s western border, in a rural community similar to many throughout the mid-Atlantic region. The nearest house is approximately 300 feet away […]