March 17, 2016 – Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative

GulfQuest to Show Documentary about Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Effects on the Gulf

March 17, 2016

As the world’s only museum dedicated to the Gulf of Mexico, it is fitting that GulfQuest/National Maritime Museum of the Gulf of Mexico will host the state of Alabama premiere of Dispatches From the Gulf, a new documentary that follows teams of scientists as they investigate the Deepwater Horizon oil spill’s effect on the world’s ninth largest body of water.

Kelsey Rogers collects samples of sediment particles onboard the R/V Endeavor’s laboratory. (Photo provided by Professor Joseph Montoya, Georgia Institute of Technology)

Grad Student Rogers Traces Gulf Oil as Scientific CSI

March 17, 2016

Kelsey Rogers looks for evidence of oil and methane intrusion into Gulf of Mexico water and sediment, but finding these hydrocarbons is only the beginning of her work. Like a scientific crime scene investigator, Kelsey analyzes the chemical fingerprints of oil and gas and uses them to identify their source, such as from an oil spill or a natural seafloor seep.