This is actually a great way to visualize the size of pretty much anything within the scale range of 10^-1 to 10^2 miles across. Nothing humanizes a distance more than seeing it directly in comparison to what you experience every day.
Well the concept of projecting something onto a non-native locale for comparison purposes is not exactly groundbreaking. So I'm not sure it really matters which came first.
Call me "old fashioned", but I actually find the simpler Google Maps based visualization more effective in conveying the scale.
I thought the exact opposite. I'm in Chicago and the spill covers a 1/3 to 1/2 of Lake Michigan. After zooming out though, it clearly would cover Lake Erie or Lake Ontario. The thing that was put in perspective for me was the shear size of the Atlantic.
Interestingly enough the geolocation based off my IP actually puts me and virtually everywhere important around me (at least important to me) in the clear spots in the middle.
Until it forms into little tarballs, and then sinks below the surface of the water. Combined with the "safe" dispersant BP is using to thin the oil, it helps the whole sinking process go faster.
The size of this overlay is more so a depiction of the "core" spill. The slick above and below water extends to a much larger area, and also moves around daily.
