Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative

The ocean’s deep-pelagic ecosystem is the largest and least understood habitat on Earth.

Researchers optically tracked 600 biodegradable bamboo plates floating in the Gulf of Mexico for 2.5 hours to better understand how small-scale currents (scales of minutes and meters) affect surface dispersion.

Scientists employed autonomous underwater vehicle-borne seismo-acoustics and photography to provide insights into the origins, dynamics, and evolution of an active hydrocarbon seep in the Green Canyon Lease Block 600.

The Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) is pleased to announce a new Sea Grant publication that discusses various ways that oil exposure can impact mangroves, which have partially submerged root systems that make them especially sensitive to contaminants.

Scientists compared laboratory-generated weathered oil with weathered oil samples collected during Deepwater Horizon to better understand how different processes, specifically photo-oxidation and bio-oxidation, affect how oil changes chemically and physically.