This satellite video shows how cargo-ship backlogs in Southern California ports surged from 0 to 100 in 2 years

• Satellite data from Spire Maritime shows how the shipping backlog in California has progressed.
• Backlogs at ports in Los Angeles and Long Beach have broken multiple records this year.

Look no further than satellite data to see how $4 in Southern California surged in the past two years.

Before the pandemic, the ports in Long Beach and Los Angeles typically averaged zero to one ships at anchor, waiting to dock and unload. The highest backlog that the ports, which are responsible for nearly half of all US imports, had seen was 17 ships, according to the executive director of $4

Time-lapsed data from $4, a vessel-tracking company, tells the story of how the backlogs grew to $4

The graphics, which were recreated from satellite Automated Identificatuin System (AIS) data, show cargo ships as red dots, while all other vessels, including cruise ships, tugboats, as well as personal ships, are shown in blue. Each dot on the graphic represents individual vessel's location based on their AIS receiver.

In the satellite data from November 2019, it appears to show only two cargo ships that have not yet docked at the ports. The ports typically encounter more demand in the three months leading up to the holiday shopping season.

November 2019

At the onset of the pandemic, COVID-19 shutdowns slowed port traffic, as well as the locations' capacity for unloading and reloading vessels. But, by the latter half of 2020, panic-buying and surging demand for tech as well as household products buoyed maritime traffic at the same time as the holiday-shopping season.

In a satellite depiction from the same month a year later, it shows what appears to be over 10 vessels waiting outside the ports.

November 2020

Backlogs truly began to pick up in 2021. The ports in Los Angeles and Long Beach hit multiple fresh records this year, as $4, while the ports were still working to recover from COVID-19 setbacks.

In February, the ports $4 waiting to dock. The red dot groupings appear to show the ships waiting in $4 that provide clear shipping lanes for incoming and outgoing traffic.

February 2021

Seven months later, that number $4 - a sign the shipping crisis was here to stay. Consumers were hit with a $4 of anything from toilet paper and diapers to furniture and cars, while $4 to offset record shipping prices.

September 2021

Nearly two years later, a backlog of two ships has turned into about 100 ships - a crisis that has spawned an $4 and forced the $4.

Experts predict the $4 in the coming months, as retailers prepare for the peak holiday shopping season.

October 2021

The backlog is not $4 according to industry officials.