A recent study by SkyTruth, a satellite monitoring organization, has revealed that oil slicks cover approximately 1.58 million square kilometers of the ocean each year. This estimate comes from satellite imagery collected between 2023 and 2025 using SkyTruth’s Cerulean monitoring system, which identified 22,775 separate oil slicks during that time. The study found that 81% of the polluted ocean surface area is caused by ships, while 18% is attributed to offshore oil and gas infrastructure. The research highlights several regions with high levels of oil pollution, including the Red Sea, the Persian Gulf, the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea, the coasts of West Africa, and the waters around Indonesia. Among the ships responsible for the pollution, cargo ships and oil tankers are the main contributors, making up 50% and 31% of the sources, respectively. However, the report notes a lack of transparency, as information about the owners of more than half of the polluting vessels is missing, making it difficult to hold them accountable. Despite the overall high levels of pollution, marine protected areas generally have lower concentrations of oil slicks compared to surrounding waters. However, some of these protected areas still face threats, particularly in the Black Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, where vulnerable ecosystems are being affected. The study also points out a significant challenge in monitoring pollution in the open ocean, where satellite coverage is limited. This lack of coverage creates a major blind spot, making it harder to track and address oil pollution in these remote areas. The findings underscore the need for improved transparency and monitoring systems to better understand and address the scale of oil pollution from maritime and offshore activities. While the study provides a comprehensive view of current pollution patterns, it also highlights the limitations of current technology in covering all affected areas.