On 19 November 2002, the Prestige oil tanker suffered a hull breach off the northwest coast of Spain, near Galicia, releasing vast amounts of oil into the Atlantic. The ensuing spill spread rapidly, damaging marine life and the local fishing industry, while coating beaches with thick oil. These Envisat and ERS satellite images, captured from November 2002 to March 2003, display the extent of oil slicks along various coastal regions. The sequence begins with the northeastern coast of Spain, followed by the Cantabria region with Santander town visible as a cluster of bright dots. It continues over the Asturias region where Gijón appears similarly, then over the Spanish and French coasts. Subsequent images cover the Asturias region again, the Galicia regions, another view of the Asturian region, the Spanish and French coasts (Aquitaine), and additional views of the Galicia and Asturias regions.

• Image 1: Satellite: Envisat ASAR Wide Swath, Acquisition Date: 20 November 2002, coverage: 400x300 km
• Image 2: Satellite: ERS SAR, Acquisition Date: 16 December 2002, Orbit 40028
• Image 3: Satellite: ERS SAR, Acquisition Date: 19 December 2002, Orbit 40071
• Image 4: Satellite: Envisat ASAR, Acquisition Date: 19 November 2002, Orbit: 4206
• Image 5: Satellite: Envisat ASAR, Acquisition Date: 07 January 2003, Orbit: 4471
• Image 6: Satellite: Envisat ASAR, Acquisition Date: 07 February 2003, Orbit: 4922
• Image 7: Satellite: ERS SAR, Acquisition Date: 08 February 2003, Orbit 4080, Frame 2727
• Image 8: Satellite: Envisat ASAR, Acquisition Date: 08 February 2003, Orbit: 4936
• Image 9: Satellite: ERS SAR, Acquisition Date: 08 March 2003, Orbit: 41209, Frame 873
• Image 10: Satellite: ERS SAR, Acquisition Date: 12 March2003, Orbit 41259, Frame 2727