Image:
GULF OF MEXICO - The vessel "A Whale" conducts a shakedown voyage to evaluate its oil skimming capabilities on open water as part of the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill response July 4, 2010. The converted tank ship is being evaluated by its owner, TMT, to gauge the effectiveness of its oil recovery systems. The ship was recently converted in Lisbon, Portugal, in June with the hope that it could dramatically increase the amount of oil recovered from the BP oil spill. U.S. Coast Guard photo.
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Looks to me like the boom is to help calm the water on the left side of the ship and the skimmed water is coming out on the right side......
Except this photo doesn't have the boom...on the left side...