- Giants
- Our World in Data
- Oil spills from tankers
Oil spills from tankers
Our World in Data's bar chart drew 15.1K views on X: 0.5x its typical post and #126 of 139 Our World in Data charts we track by views. Read Oct 10, 2026.
Oil spills from tankers have fallen to less than one-thirtieth of the levels seen in the 1970s, We’ve all seen the dramatic images of vast parts of the ocean caked in oil; birds and other wildlife stuck in the thick, dark liquid. These spil
Why it spread
This post spread because it paired a dramatic, easy to grasp claim that oil spills from tankers have fallen to less than one thirtieth of 1970s levels with 171 likes, 45 reposts, 7 quotes, 19 saves and 15,117 views, helped by an independent author and a chart that explains itself.
What worked
- The post text leads with a striking comparison to the 1970s and then grounds it in vivid, familiar imagery of oil coated oceans and wildlife, which makes the finding feel important before the chart is even read.
- The chart is a bar chart with high self labelling and a visible source line, so viewers can understand the trend and trust the origin without extra explanation.
- The account is branded and the source reach sits in the top quarter, while the quote rate is above average, so the post reached an already receptive audience that was likely to discuss and share it.
What to borrow
We could use the same framing by taking one long run trend in our own data, stating the change as a simple fraction or multiple of an earlier period, and pairing it with a clearly labelled bar chart and a visible source line.
Careful
Do not copy the exact claim or treat the engagement as proof reckoning, since the numbers here are modest in absolute terms and the post benefits from a specific topic, an independent author and a top quarter source reach that our own posts may not have.
Written by our analysis model from the measured numbers above, not by Our World in Data.
Make it yours
Your numbers, in this bar chart.
Starts from the real numbers of "The amount of oil spilled from tankers has fallen dramatically in recent decades" by Our World in Data. Replace every number with yours before you post. Make one like this, step by step
Free pictures carry a small "Made with ViralChart" line. That line is how other people find us.
API · Max
Use this chart via API
On the Max plan you can pull this chart's numbers with the provenance of each one, as JSON or CSV, with its redraw spec, or call it from an agent over MCP. Chart id e6ed58e08de3.
Approximate values. Our two readings of this chart agreed only in part (confidence 0.43 of 1), so check the original before you quote a number. The API marks it lowConfidence, and ?min_confidence=0.5 leaves it out.
| Path | Returns | Plan | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GET | /api/v1/charts/e6ed58e08de3 | Title, publisher, date, form, point count; with a Max key, the data link | Open |
| GET | /api/v1/charts/e6ed58e08de3/data | Every point with its provenance and confidence, plus the redraw spec. Add ?format=csv for CSV | Max |
| GET | /api/v1/charts/e6ed58e08de3/render?view=1 | The draw-only view this page uses | Open |
| POST | /mcp | Tool get_chart_data with this id, for Claude, Cursor and other agents | Max |
curl -s https://viral-chart.com/api/v1/charts/e6ed58e08de3/data \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $VIRALCHART_KEY"claude mcp add --transport http viralchart https://viral-chart.com/mcp \
--header "Authorization: Bearer $VIRALCHART_KEY"60 requests a minute per key; over that you get 429 with Retry-After. Up to 5 keys per account, made on your account page and shown once. Without Max, the data route answers 402 with a link to the plans. The numbers describe a chart its publisher owns, and every file carries a license note.
More from Our World in Data
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Questions people ask
How far did Our World in Data's "Oil spills from tankers" chart travel?
15,117 views, 171 likes, 45 reposts and 19 saves on X, read Oct 10, 2026. A normal post from @OurWorldInData gets about 28.6K views.
What kind of chart is it?
A bar chart. Oil spilled from tankers has fallen dramatically.
Can I use Our World in Data's chart?
Use the format, not the picture. The chart, logo and design belong to Our World in Data. ViralChart redraws the chart type with your numbers and words, and credits the original publisher.