Ships Seeking to Cross The Strait of Hormuz Have Been Under Fire. Now Oil Spills Are Visible From Space.

Attacks on shipping through the strait of Hormuz have created oil slicks that can be seen from space and are threatening to create an environmental disaster.

The oil slicks resulting on attacks on shipping can be seen from space and are threatening marine ecosystems, The Guardian reported.

"Since the Gulf is shallow, and summer is the least windy period of the year, atmospheric heat is rapidly translated into ocean heat. That heat kills corals, algae, fishes. There is no cold, deep water that could mix and buffer this heat," Bernhard Riegl, a marine biologist at Nova Southeastern University in Florida told the outlet.

"Everybody knows that oil in water is not good. The potential for additional damage is significant. There is no such thing as a 'clean war'. Not for the unlucky humans that are drawn into it, nor for the unlucky environment in which the conflict takes place," he said.

At the start of the Iran war in February, 20 percent of the world's oil supply was shipped through the strait. Since the start of the war, hostilities have engulfed much of the region, including the Strait of Hormuz. Iran, in retaliation for U.S. and Israeli strikes, has repeatedly lashed out at oil and gas infrastructure throughout the region.

As part of that strategy, Iran has also targeted shipping through the strait. In response, the U.S. has implemented a blockade of Iran in an attempt to cut it off. The result has been routine clashes in the strait.

Greenpeace has been tracking the number of oil spills around the strait since the war began. As of November 12, the organization says that there has been 540 oil spills.

"Adding together the daily mapped footprints [of the spills] gives a cumulative total of approximately 20,000 square kilometers – almost the size of Wales," Nina Noelle, a Greenpeace expert on environmental disaster relief, told The Guardian.

Reuters reported that attacks on shipping does not appear to be slowing down. The wire service reported that at least 10 ships were hit in the first 10 days ​of November. In October, there were 37 attacks on shipping which, according to Reuters, was the highest total for a month since the war began.

As of November 11, the International Maritime Organization has confirmed that there have been at least 134 incidents in the strait of Hormuz that have resulted in the deaths of at least 25 people. However, the organization notes that many of those incidents have not resulted in oil spills or any pollution.