GulfCast: Dispatches from the Gulf

Recent polls show that more people than ever before do not trust science or believe scientists. Scientists Sean Powers, John Hildebrand, Kait Frasier, Margaret Leinen, and Tamay Özgökmen share their thoughts on the role science plays in society and their obligation to provide objective information about the impact of humans and how the world works. |||||||||||||||||||| NOTE: Science is continually evolving. To see the latest research updates on this topic, please visit the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) web site at gulfresearchinitiative.org.

Since 2010, hundreds of scientists have been researching the effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Some are optimistic; some less so. But all agree that it is critical to continue to study and monitor the Gulf to understand the full impact in the decades to come. |||||||||||||||||||| NOTE: Science is continually evolving. To see the latest research updates on this topic, please visit the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) web site at gulfresearchinitiative.org.

Marine snow is made up of particles of tiny algae, plants, feces, and pieces of dead animals. These particles get colonized by organisms and become the food web that is transported to the deep ocean. Biological oceanographer Uta Passow’s research focuses on how oil affects marine snow and how marine snow affects oil. |||||||||||||||||||| NOTE: Science is continually evolving. To see the latest research updates on this topic, please visit the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) web site at gulfresearchinitiative.org.

Dr. Cynthia Smith (NMMF) is a marine mammal veterinarian. She and her team are responsible for the medical care and well-being of the US Navy’s dolphin population in San Diego.

Dr. Smith is applying what she has learned about the Navy’s dolphins to the conservation of their wild counterparts — particularly in the Gulf of Mexico where their population has been struggling with low fertility and failed pregnancies.

NOTE: Science is continually evolving. To see the latest research updates on this topic, please visit the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) web site at gulfresearchinitiative.org.

Bay Jimmy, Louisiana is one of many small bays in the Mississippi River Delta whose marshes were hit hard by Deepwater Horizon oil. Professor Sunshine Van Bael and her team at Tulane University collect samples from Bay Jimmy to determine how plants and bacteria work together to break down oil and clean up buried pockets in the marshes. |||||||||||||||||||| NOTE: Science is continually evolving. To see the latest research updates on this topic, please visit the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) web site at gulfresearchinitiative.org.

The seas have calmed and the LASER crew is able to drop the drifters – about a 1,000 in total. Their GPS chips will relay location data back to servers in Miami for the next three months. The data the team collects will go a long way towards improving computer models of ocean currents and hopefully mitigate effects of future oil spills. |||||||||||||||||||| NOTE: Science is continually evolving. To see the latest research updates on this topic, please visit the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) web site at gulfresearchinitiative.org.

The Gulf of Mexico isn’t the stormiest place in the world, but 2016 was an El Nino year and several severe storms that created waves as high as 10 feet rocked the LASER crew. Each member reacted to the extreme conditions differently. Getting seasick together is quite a bonding experience. |||||||||||||||||||| NOTE: Science is continually evolving. To see the latest research updates on this topic, please visit the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) web site at gulfresearchinitiative.org.

When the Deepwater Horizon oil spill occurred, it was difficult to know where the oil might end up. The LASER team’s goal was to study how the oil spreads out via ocean currents, so they could create predictive models for future spills.

Thousand of drifters would be required to execute the experiment, but existing drifters were extremely expensive due to the GPS component. Two years were spent designing specialized drifters into a low-cost, packable version that performs well in the open ocean and is biodegradable.

NOTE: Science is continually evolving. To see the latest research updates on this topic, please visit the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) web site at gulfresearchinitiative.org.

In January 2016, an international team of scientists assembled for a 31-day research mission to track ocean currents in the Gulf of Mexico and then process the data in the months afterwards. Nicknamed the LASER Cruise, the scope of the project was enormous. So how do you manage such an incredible undertaking with so many facets? You get someone like oceanographer Eric D’Asaro to be your chief scientist. |||||||||||||||||||| NOTE: Science is continually evolving. To see the latest research updates on this topic, please visit the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) web site at gulfresearchinitiative.org.

Dr. Kelly Dorgan is a senior marine scientist at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab. She and her team are studying the impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on the animals – like clams and worms – that live in the sediments of Louisiana’s Chandeleur Islands. These “muck-dwellers” are crucial to the ecosystem. They regenerate nutrients that create healthy sea grasses and marshes, while also serving as food for fish populations. |||||||||||||||||||| NOTE: Science is continually evolving. To see the latest research updates on this topic, please visit the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) web site at gulfresearchinitiative.org.