Natural and unnatural oil slicks in the Gulf of Mexico: OIL SLICKS IN THE GULF OF MEXICO

MacDonald, I. R.; Garcia-Pineda, O.; Beet, A.; Daneshgar Asl, S.; Feng, L.; Graettinger, G.; French-McCay, D.; Holmes, J.; Hu, C.; Huffer, F.; Leifer, I.; Muller-Karger, F.; Solow, A.; Silva, M.; Swayze, G.

doi:10.1002/2015JC011062

Title: Natural and unnatural oil slicks in the Gulf of Mexico: OIL SLICKS IN THE GULF OF MEXICO

Journal Article · Mon Dec 28 00:00:00 EST 2015 · Journal of Geophysical Research. Oceans

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1002/2015JC011062· OSTI ID:1236079

MacDonald, I. R. ^[1]; Garcia-Pineda, O. ^[1]; Beet, A. ^[2]; Daneshgar Asl, S. ^[1]; Feng, L. ^[3]; Graettinger, G. ^[4]; French-McCay, D. ^[5]; Holmes, J. ^[6]; Hu, C. ^[3]; Huffer, F. ^[1]; Leifer, I. ^[7]; Muller-Karger, F. ^[3]; Solow, A. ^[2]; Silva, M. ^[1]; Swayze, G. ^[8]

Florida State University, Dept. of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Science, Tallahassee Florida USA
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole Massachusetts USA
University of South Florida, Dept. of Marine Science, St. Petersburg Florida USA
NOAA OR&R, Seattle Washington USA
RPS ASA, South Kingstown Rhode Island USA
Abt Associates, Boulder Colorado USA
Bubbleology Research International, Solvang California USA
U.S. Geological Survey, Lakewood Colorado USA

When wind speeds are 2–10 m s^-1, reflective contrasts in the ocean surface make oil slicks visible to synthetic aperture radar (SAR) under all sky conditions. Neural network analysis of satellite SAR images quantified the magnitude and distribution of surface oil in the Gulf of Mexico from persistent,natural seeps and from the Deep water Horizon (DWH) discharge. This analysis identified 914 natural oil seep zones across the entire Gulf of Mexico in pre-2010 data. Their ~0.1 mm slicks covered an aggregated average of 775 km². Assuming an average volume of 77.5 m³ over an 8–24 h lifespan per oil slick, the floating oil indicates a surface flux of 2.5–9.4 X 10⁴ m³ yr^-1. Oil from natural slicks was regionally concentrated: 68%, 25%, 7%, and <1% of the total was observed in the NW, SW, NE, and SE Gulf, respectively. This reflects differences in basin history and hydrocarbon generation. SAR images from 2010 showed that the 87 day DWH discharge produced a surface-oil footprint fundamentally different from background seepage, with an average ocean area of 11,200 km²(SD 5028) and a volume of 22,600 m³(SD 5411). Peak magnitudes of oil were detected during equivalent, ~14 day intervals around 23 May and 18 June, when wind speeds remained <5ms^-1. Over this interval, aggregated volume of floating oil decreased by 21%; area covered increased by 49% (p < 0.1), potentially altering its ecological impact. Furthermore, the most likely causes were increased applications of dispersant and surface burning operations.

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Research Organization:: Texas A & M Univ., Corpus Christi, TX (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE

Grant/Contract Number:: NT0005638

OSTI ID:: 1236079

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1435627

Journal Information:: Journal of Geophysical Research. Oceans, Vol. 120, Issue 12; ISSN 2169-9275

Publisher:: Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)Copyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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Cited by: 174 works

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