Oil Platform in the Strait of Hormuz

January 29, 2012

Oil Platform in the Strait of Hormuz

Photographer: Saeid Aghaei; Saeid's Web site
Summary Author: Saeid Aghaei; Jim Foster

The photo above shows a semi-submersible oil platform that's stuck in the mud and muck of the Strait of Hormuz. In early April of 2008, a powerful storm tore it from its mooring along the coast of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the Persian Gulf and, after crossing the Strait of Hormuz, dumped it just offshore of Qeshm Island, south of Iran. This particular platform is owned by the UAE. These huge platforms are used to facilitate the drilling of oil, to extract and process oil and natural gas and for the temporary storage of these products until they can be brought to shore for refining and marketing. The semi-submersible platform pictured above is perhaps the most common type of drilling platform. They're primarily employed for exploratory purposes in water more than 400 ft (120 m) deep. Oil platforms are among the largest movable, manufactured structures in the world -- some of the bigger ones displace 44,000 tons (40,000 metric tons) of seawater. Anchors needed to hold them in a fixed position may each weigh 10 tons (9 metric tons). Photo taken from an amusement park on Qeshm island on March 28 , 2011 -- about three years after the platform was initially dislodged.

Photo details: EOS 300D camera; 139mm focal length; f/7.1 aperture; 1/2500 sec. exposure time; ISO 200; sRGB Color Space.