Space technology to monitor plastic marine litter

Monitoring this plastic can be very difficult from Earth’s surface, as it is impossible to see much of the ocean at once. But satellites with very high-resolution cameras and wide fields of view are changing our ability to monitor plastic waste, and ESA's Discovery & Preparation is supporting studies that investigate the best way of doing so.

The map of plastic concentrations is based on a graphic in 'A global inventory of small floating plastic debris' by Erik van Sebille et al. The map of plastic transportation is based on an Infobase Publishing map.