Today's map: Forensic Oceanography, A Research by Charles Heller, Lorenzo Pezzani, and Situ Studio

Forensic Architecture recently posted an interesting map entitled Forensic Oceanography (FO), part of a research conducted by this think lab. Forensic Oceanography consists of an investigation into the conditions that have caused death of more than 1500 persons fleeing Libya across the Central Mediterranean in the Spring of 2011. Precisely, this Forensic Oceanography, designed  by Charles Heller, Lorenzo Pezzani and Situ Studio, is the result of a research on spatial analysis of migrant boat path until the death of the migrants at sea during the international military intervention in Libya and in the aftermath of the Tunisian uprising.

Forensic Oceanography | © Charles Heller, Lorenzo Pezzani, Situ Studio.
Originally appeared on Forensic Architecture.

As Forensic Oceanography explains:

Amongst the several cases of deaths of migrants at sea reported by the press and documented by FO in the course of its research, one particular event has been the main focus of the project so far. In the case of what is now referred to as the "left-to-die boat," 72 migrants fleeing Tripoli by boat on the early morning of 27 March 2011 ran out of fuel and were left to drift for 14 days until they landed back on the Libyan coast. With no water or food on-board, only nine of the migrants survived. In several interviews, these survivors recounted the various points of contacts they had with the external world during this ordeal. This included describing the aircraft that flew over them, the distress call they sent out via satellite telephone and their visual sightings of a military helicopter which provided a few packets of biscuits and bottles of water and a military ship which failed to provide any assistance whatsoever. Despite the significant naval and aerial presence in the area due to the military intervention in Libya and despite the distress signals sent out to all vessels in the area by the Italian Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre, none of those who had contacts with the boat intervened in a way that could have averted the tragic fate of the migrants.

Suggested articles: Aircraft carrier left us to die, say Migrants | Jack Shenker || The Guardian, Sunday 8 May 2011

In an article posted on May, 2011, Jack Shenker reported in a article entitled Aircraft carrier left us to die, say migrants, The Guardian, that this migrant boat was trying to reach Lampedusa but was left to drift in Mediterranean for 16 days, despite alarm being raised causing the death of dozen people. An illustration tracing the route of the boat supplements this written report.

The route of the boat | Aircraft carrier left us to die, say migrants | Jack Shenker || The Guardian.
Originally appeared on The Guardian.

This map is quite simple featuring the departure, the destination and the tragedy including dates.

Another map, this time much more detailed and interactive, was published Thursday 29 March, 2012, still on The Guardian. Paddy Allen offers, in this article entitled Migrant Boat Tragedy — Interactive, a very in-depth spatial analysis on this tragedy. You are invited to click on the buttons below to read the official report of what happened day by day: the progression of this path on the map unveiled at each click completed with an detailed report.

Early Spring ı Early spring 2011. Why the migrants had to leave | © Paddy Allen/The Guardian.
Originally appeared on The Guardian.

Suggested article: Migrant boat tragedy - Interactive | Paddy Allen || The Guardian, Thursday 29 March, 2012.

Waiting to die ı "We were just waiting for our own time or turn to die" | Paddy Allen/The Guardian.
Originally appeared on The Guardian.

Back to Forensic Oceanography, this map is an example of the possibility that can offer technologies and media in such tragedies. In effect, the aim of this project is to devise ways in which a wide range of technologies and media might be used to document violations of human rights at sea and increase accountability in the future. At least, it opens new ways and possibilities for cartography using all the technologies now accessible to researchers, designers and users.
To design this map, Forensic Oceanography used a wide range of digital mapping and modelling technologies, which included the use of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery, geospatial mapping, and drift modelling.
Below a video filmed by Charles Heller showing the interview of a migrant conducted by Lorenzo Pezzani.


Credit: Charles Heller, Lorenzo Pezzani, and Situ Studio. This video appeared on Vimeo.

Forensic Architecture?

As derived from its Latin source, forensics is the art of the forum; the practice and skill of presenting an argument before a professional, political, or legal gathering.
Forensics includes not only the speech acts of humans, but also the interpreted speech of things, mediated by an expert or a set of technologies. The art of forensics thus includes both field-work and forum-work. Although forensics is generally understood as the application of science in service to the law, that is to say, as an investigative tool within the field, forensics is also a tool of persuasion that uses science rhetorically to speak within public and legal forums.
The project of Forensic Architecture brings different modes of technical modelling and analysis to bear upon violations of human rights and the laws of war as they are registered in and by space. We go on field studies to examine architectural, urban or infrastructure damage, but we also examine the remnants of violence as captured by different media — satellite imagery and other remote sensing technologies, GPS mapping, photography, activist and media footage, ground penetrating radar, mobile phone videos, CCTV footage, maps, and eyewitness reports.
Through the synthesis of these acts of human and technological witnessing we seek to recreate a chain of events and elaborate upon their consequences; making legible the multiple forces at play within sites of violence. Once this data is compiled and cross-referenced it can be used by courts, tribunals, and human rights organisations — the multiple forums of international justice.

Forensic Architecture is composed of Eyal Weizman, Susan Schuppli, Thomas Keenan, Anselm Franke, Adrian Lahoud, John Palmesino, Alessandro Petti, Srdjan Jovanovic Weiss.