oil spill in gulf of mexico

oil spill in gulf of mexico

The oil slick has grown to 48 miles by 39 miles wide. The explosion and fire of the oil rig on April 20th, 2010 burned over 24 hours (see video here) and leaked 700,000 gallons of diesel fuel into the Gulf of Mexico. It was originally expected to add an additional 300,000 barrels of oil per day from the leak into the water. This image showing the leaking oil was provided by the US Coast Guard. BP quoted National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration experts as saying the spill is "very thin" and on the surface of the ocean.


An ROV arm attempts to activate the blowout preventer at the Deepwater Horizon wellhead in the Gulf of Mexico.
(Credit: deepwaterhorizonresponse.com)

The agencies have deployed four remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) to the wellhead about 5,000 feet below the ocean surface. While ROVs have been used by the oil and gas industry for more than 30 years, this particular mission is highly complex due to the great depth of the wellhead, as well as the first of its kind. Another idea is to install funnel-shaped covers at the site to capture the oil.

The Coast Guard believes the well is leaking about 42,000 gallons of oil a day into the ocean. Eleven workers went missing last week when the rig exploded and sank to the seabed.

Some are speculating that the accident is the worst U.S. offshore oil rig spill in decades. "As time passes, however, the probability of success in locating the 11 missing persons decreases."

Transocean, based in Zug, Switzerland and the world's largest offshore drilling contractor, said some of the missing may not have been able to escape the rig.

U.S. lawmakers called for the Coast Guard and Minerals Management Service to investigate the incident.

It was unclear whether the rig sank to the bottom in about 5,000 feet of water, or how much oil still flowed or had spilled from the well, officials said.

A remotely operated unmanned submarine, commonly used in the industry, was deployed to determine the exact location and condition of the rig and the situation of the well, which extends 5,000 feet through water and 13,000 feet beneath the seabed.

"We continue to assist Transocean in the effort to halt the flow of oil from the well through the use of a remotely operated vehicle to activate the subsea blowout preventer," said David Rainey, vice president of Gulf of Mexico Exploration for BP, a leading oil and gas operator in the Gulf.

The well in Tuesday's accident was the first of a series to be drilled and was in the process of being temporarily plugged pending production.

"The well had been cased off.