Oil Spill Seen from All Angles: Big Pics

May 12, 2010 -- By now, we've all seen the images of the oil washing ashore following the spill that resulted from the explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig April 20. The image above, however, provides a rare glimpse of what the oil leak looks like around 5,000 feet below the surface of the Gulf of Mexico.

In this photo, one of many released by oil rig owner BP recently, we see the main oil leak from the perspective of one of BP's remotely operated vehicles. These vehicles -- essentially underwater robots -- have been instrumental in relaying information about the leak to technicians, who are using the submersibles' video and sonar capabilities to monitor the situation.

The robots are used not only for reconnaissance, but also to perform tasks using "manipulators," which are basically robotic arms, at depths that no human could safely reach.

So far, engineers' efforts to contain the oil spill have failed, and the leak continues to spout oil into the ocean at a rate of around 200,000 gallons a day.

High above the Chandeleur Islands, La., we see oil booms surrounding the shoreline to keep oil from washing up. Hundreds of thousands of feet of booms have so far been deployed by BP as well as state and federal officials.

Despite the efforts, oil has reached the popular fishing destination, and the site has since been closed to the public to better facilitate recovery operations.

The Chandeleur Islands encompass the Breton National Wildlife Refuge. Although they're essentially uninhabited for most of the year, the islands are a critical breeding ground for pelicans and migrating point for other birds.

While it may be difficult to detect the presence of the oil simply by glancing at aerial photos, on land it's a different story.

In this photo, we see oil soaked into the sands on the South Pass of the Mississippi River. Oil first made its way ashore on April 29. As the spill grows, more oil reaches the coastline, steadily traveling up and down the Gulf Coast.

To aid in cleanup efforts in environmentally sensitive areas, BP has enlisted more than 11,000 workers to try to mitigate any damage to local ecosystems. The cost of the oil spill and subsequent recovery operations could be upwards of tens of billions of dollars.

Image credits: © BP P.L.C.