Oil slick seen from space. In this south-looking view, the oil slick is seen as a bright swirl above left of centre. The swirling is due to large-scale eddy formation as the water runs from the Arabian Sea (top left) into the Gulf of Oman (bottom). The Omani coast is at top right, with Ra's al Hadd (the easternmost point of the Arabian Peninsula) just above the slick. The slick appears bright as it smoothes out the surface waves on the sea, increasing the surface reflectivity. This photograph was taken from Shuttle Atlantis during Mission STS-45 of 24 March to 2 April 1992.