Oil spills Related Content

Dr  Nancy Rabalais  Troubled Waters in the Gulf of Mexico
Apr 7 2011 - 4:31pm
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill brought the world’s attention to the Gulf of Mexico and raised awareness of the region’s chronic loss of wetlands and the massive dead zone caused by excess nutrients from the Mississippi River. In this presentation, Dr. Nancy Rabalais outlines the challenges to...
Apr 20 2012 - 12:23pm
A scientist, Chris Reddy from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, collects oil-laden "sand patties" on a Louisiana beach two years after the oil spill. Watch a video of Chris Reddy talking about the effects of oil spills on marshes.
Jun 4 2010 - 10:56am
A young Kemp's ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys kempii) recovers at the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas, after the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Turtles were cleaned and nursed back to health with the help of New England Aquarium staff.
Science in a Time of Crisis  Searching for the Plume
May 10 2011 - 3:28pm
Part 4 of a 6-part series describing Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution's efforts to understand the scope and impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. "Searching for the Plume" describes a research cruised aboard the R/V Endeavor on which WHOI scientists found and mapped...
Mar 27 2011 - 10:51pm
The 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill brought the world's attention to the Gulf of Mexico and raised awareness of the region's chronic loss of wetlands as well as the massive dead zone caused by excess nutrients from the Mississippi River. Today the challenge is to develop and implement large-scale...
Oct 29 2010 - 4:01pm
CREDIT: Provided by Rutgers University Glider Technology Now Used to Study Oil Spill in Gulf of Mexico The first underwater robotic vehicle—or “glider”—to cross an ocean is the centerpiece of a new temporary exhibit at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. The U.S. Integrated...
Jun 6 2010 - 3:34pm
Workers contracted by BP load oily waste onto a trailer on Elmer's Island, just west of Grand Isle, La., May 21, 2010. More about the Gulf oil spill can be found in our Gulf oil spill featured story.
Jun 3 2010 - 12:57pm
Gulf Coast of Florida tidal flats exposed by an early morning low tide
Science in a Time of Crisis  Tracking the Currents
May 10 2011 - 3:44pm
Part 5 of a 6-part series describing Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution's efforts to understand the scope and impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. "Tracking the Currents" follows work by WHOI's Breck Owens to deploy an autonomous underwater glider to map and monitor...
Jul 15 2010 - 5:19pm
An 11-year-old in Texas is saddened by the oil spill and begins searching for something she can do to help. A 13-year-old in Washington, D.C., convinces her mom to make small changes in their daily routine that make their home more ocean-friendly. A 7-year-old spends a part of his Saturday trip to...
Apr 12 2011 - 4:08pm
With the nuclear and humanitarian crisis in Japan, major political changes in North Africa and the Middle East, and heated budget battles here in the United States, you'd be forgiven for not remembering that nearly one year ago the Gulf of Mexico was dominating the news. On April 20, 2010, the...
Science in a Time of Crisis  Assessing the Impacts
May 10 2011 - 4:01pm
Part 6 of a 6-part series describing WHOI's efforts to understand the scope and impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. "Assessing the Impacts" describes a range of work by WHOI scientists in the months after the spill.
Apr 20 2012 - 1:22pm
On April 20, 2010, an explosion on the oil-drilling rig Deepwater Horizon caused the largest marine oil spill in US history, gushing nearly 5 million barrels of crude oil over the course of three months. In the two years since, researchers have been hard at work studying the impacts of the spill....
Jul 1 2010 - 11:55am
This map shows the localities represented by the Gulf of Mexico collection of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History. The Smithsonian has been collaborating with the Minerals Management Service since the 1970s to archive collections from marine surveys, resulting in more...
Apr 20 2012 - 11:59am
Two years after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, brown pelicans roost on a mangrove island at the spill's "ground zero," said James Morris of the University of South Carolina. "The impact to this island was great. The recovery is impressive." More about the Gulf oil spill can be found in our Gulf...
The Gulf Oil Spill  Effects on Marine Life
Jun 9 2010 - 3:48pm
The Deepwater Horizon disaster has imperiled the ecosystem along the U.S. Gulf Coast. Most oil spills have occurred at the ocean surface. This one, originating at the ocean floor and rising up through the water column, has the potential to affect the marine environment at every level. More about...
Jun 2 2010 - 9:25am
Dr. Erica Miller of the Louisiana State Wildlife Response Team cleans oil form a pelican in Plaquemines Parish, LA. Wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico have been heavily impacted by an ongoing oil spill that began April 20, 2010 when the Deepwater Horizon oil drilling platform exploded and sank.
Jun 7 2010 - 12:24pm
Major oil spills like the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill are devestating, but aren’t the only way oil gets into the ocean. Nearly 85 percent of oil in U.S. coastal waters comes from runoff (roads, parking lots, etc.), polluted rivers, airplanes, and small boats and jet skis. These sources...
Jun 16 2010 - 11:36am
Carl Pellegrin (left) of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and Tim Kimmel of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service prepare to net an oiled pelican in Barataria Bay, La., Saturday, June 5, 2010. The pelican was netted and transported to a facility on Grand Isle, La., for stabilization...
Science in a Time of Crisis  Sampling the Source
May 10 2011 - 2:27pm
Part 3 of a 6-part series describing Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution's efforts to understand the scope and impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. "Sampling the Source" describes successful efforts by WHOI scientists to obtain the only samples of oil and gas directly...
Jul 26 2010 - 6:22pm
Oceana’s Pacific Science Director Jeff Short, an environmental chemist who formerly worked for NOAA on the Exxon Valdez spill, collects samples of mousse oil in the Gulf of Mexico from the Deepwater Horizon spill. The sample will be analyzed by Dr. Ed Overton at LSU to establish the chemical...
Oil and Water Don t Mix  Even After 40 Years
May 3 2010 - 6:02pm
More than 40 years after the 1969 oil spill in Massachusetts’ Wild Harbor salt marsh, environmental chemist Dr. Chris Reddy from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution finds that the oil is still present.  In this video, learn about how Dr. Chris Reddy tests the marsh for the presence of oil,...
Jun 6 2010 - 7:34pm
On June 3, 2010 a brown pelican, the Louisiana state bird, stands mired in oil in East Grand Terre. According to reports, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries was contacted, and biologists rescued about 20 oiled birds from the area. In November 2009 the brown pelican’s removal from...
Jun 4 2010 - 12:03pm
Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE) workers contracted by BP clean up oil on the beach in Port Fourchon, La. May 23, 2010. Hundreds of HSE contract workers cleaned up oil from the Deepwater Horizon/BP oil spill, which began washing up on beaches one month after the drilling unit exploded. More...