See inset view below.
On April 29, the MODIS image on the Terra satellite captured a wide-view natural-color image of the oil slick (outlined in white) just off the Louisiana coast. The oil slick appears as dull gray interlocking comma shapes, one opaque and the other nearly transparent. Sunglint — the mirror-like reflection of the sun off the water — enhances the oil slick’s visibility. The northwestern tip of the oil slick almost touches the Mississippi Delta. Credit: NASA/Earth Observatory/Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the University of Wisconsin’s Space Science and Engineering Center MODIS Direct Broadcast system.
NASA’s Terra and Aqua satellites are helping the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) keep tabs on the extent of the recent Gulf oil spill with satellite images from time to time. NOAA is the lead agency on oil spills and uses airplane fly-overs to assess oil spill extent.
A semisubmersible drilling platform called the Deepwater Horizon located about 50 miles southeast of the Mississippi Delta experienced a fire and explosion at approximately 11 p.m. CDT on April 20. Subsequently, oil began spilling out into the Gulf of Mexico and efforts to contain the spill continue today. NASA’s Terra and Aqua satellite imagery has captured the spill in between cloudy days.
NOAA used data from the Moderate Imaging Spectroradiometer or MODIS instrument from the Terra satellite on April 26, 27 and 29 to capture the extent of the oil spill, which measured 600-square-miles. The MODIS instrument flies aboard both the Terra and Aqua satellites.
This satellite image from NASA’s Terra satellite on April 27 at 12:05 CDT shows the outline and extent of the oil slick from the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform. The red dot represents the platform. The coasts of Mississippi and Alabama appear at the top of the image. Credit: NOAA/NASA
› Larger image In the satellite image from April 27 at 12:05 p.m. CDT the MODIS image showed that the oil slick was continuing to emanate from the spill location. Individual slicks lay just north of 29 degrees and zero minutes north, where they have been noted in the days before. Oil had spread further east and the edge of the slick passed 87 degrees and 30 minutes west compared to the MODIS image taken on April 26. The April 26 satellite image came from NASA’s Aqua satellite.
On April 29, the MODIS image on the Terra satellite captured a natural-color image of the oil slick just off the Louisiana coast. The oil slick appeared as dull gray interlocking comma shapes, one opaque and the other nearly transparent. The northwestern tip of the oil slick almost touches the Mississippi Delta.
Deepwater Horizon had more than120 crew aboard and contained an estimated to 17,000 barrels of oil (700,000 gallons) of number two fuel oil or marine diesel fuel.
Today, April 30, NOAA declared the Deepwater Horizon incident “a Spill of National Significance (SONS).” A SONS is defined as, “a spill that, due to its severity, size, location, actual or potential impact on the public health and welfare or the environment, or the necessary response effort, is so complex that it requires extraordinary coordination of federal, state, local, and responsible party resources to contain and clean up the discharge” and allows greater federal involvement. NOAA’s estimated release rate of oil spilling into the Gulf is estimated at 5,000 barrels (210,000 gallons) per day based on surface observations and reports of a newly discovered leak in the damaged piping on the sea floor.
NOAA reported on April 29 that dispersants are still being aggressively applied to the oil spill and over 100,000 gallons have been applied. NOAA’s test burn late yesterday was successful and approximately 100 barrels of oil were burned in about 45 minutes. NOAA is flying planes over the area and using NASA satellite imagery from the Terra and Aqua satellites to monitor the spill.
Discover more from Watts Up With That?
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
PJB says:
Hurricanes while being bad for a lot of things generally diminish the impacts of an oil (see the East Timbalier Island Study and Hurricane Andrew). I believe the Scottish spill impact a number years back was mitigated by a storm. Hurricane Katrina released some 8 million gallons of oil and fuel form onshore facilities. Here is a quote on the impacts from the Times-Picayune: “There really was very little damage to the Mississippi and Louisiana coastlines from oil during those events,” said John Pine, director of the Appalachian State University Research Institute for Environment, Energy and Economics, who published a study on the Katrina and Rita releases for Oceanography magazine in 2006 while a researcher at Louisiana State University.
It seems that weather at the extremes is good- calm we skim and burn– wind we break it up. Anyone know if one is “better” than another?
You may also want to consider economic terrorism. Who will benefit from the fact that the US will probably delay off shore drilling?
I reject any theories about sabotage or Green conspiracies!
All indications hint at a a very unfortunate accident and before any official accident report is published we should stick to the facts.
Please don’t make this tragedy worse than it already is!
Such speculation lacks any respect for the crew, the wounded and those who got killed doing their job.
Thanks in advance!
Also, this incident will raise the price of fuel significantly for over 6 months. Can you say trillions of dollars in profit/loss.?
The best laid plans……
5000 feet of casing and drillpipe collapsed around the BOP. It’s a mass of heavy spaghetti, and likely damaged the BOP when it fell. The spaghetti may make it difficult to position a collection device over the wellhead, but where there is will, there is a way.
Richard Sharpe says:
May 1, 2010 at 8:29 am
Potential Nature article by physicist claims to show that CO2 responsible for only 5-10% of warming.
http://alfin2100.blogspot.com/2010/04/science-journal-nature-opens-to-climate.html
Do not expect too much out of this. As a resident in Finland we
are a little puzzled by this professor who first says he will publish
this sensational news in Nature, June 2010, then says the manuscript
is not quite ready, and now seems to say that since Nature is biased
agianst his article, which has not been submitted, since it is not
ready, he will publish elsewhere.
But, you never know. I will be very happy if CO2 is shown not to
be an important GHG.
—–
Do not expect too much from this. As a resident of Finland we are
a little bit ‘sceptic’ of this man who says he will publish in Nature
June
GSBono says:
If you are worried about PAH- I would make sure you never close the windows in your house- cooking causes a ton of them- get rid of any mothballs, don’t use a fireplace and replace your driveway plus all dirt a hundred feet on either side of your driveway. PAH are also found in plastics cereals, bread, fruit meat etc . And whatever you do- do not let your home be weatherized! Sorry about the rant but the public never receives the necessary context to under a risk.
PAH degrade by microbial action- faster in the prescence of O2, light and higher temps. It is complex. PAH bio-accumulation dynamics are also extremely complex. Of all the things that I worry about PAH is not one of them. Long term health studies of workers in the oil refining and drilling business – (who represent a population exposed to PAH at concentrations more than you or I will ever encounter) have shown no ill health effects compared to the general population.
Another rig sank…….
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125004§ionid=3510203
Timing is suspicious…….as I said.
Thanks to all who gave first hand technical detail. To those unfamiliar with fail safe systems, they activate when the signal is LOST. So the Blowout valve should have activated when the rig went up in flames. I had thought the sinking was suspicious, the water pumped on board by fire fighting makes sense. Why they did that, rather than let it burn is hard to say in hindsight. Very easy to judge from a distance. If you are on scene trying to save people it is not so clear.
We learn from our mistakes and all systems can fail. The one lesson I take from this is that there should be at least 3 domes in inventory along the gulf coast at all times. The companies doing the exploration and development should form a joint venture to build and store them. Anybody who has a problem deploys the one closest to the problem instantly rather than building it after the fact. The “dead man” switch that has been touted would not have any advantage over a properly designed BOP that goes active on loss of signal. I was misinformed by the media.
Anybody who knows anything about rigs knows they are a floating complicated bomb. Sabotage by a properly trained and motivated outsider is possible. Sabotage by an insider would be easy. Our infrastructure is much more vulnerable than most people think and the advantage is on the offense….just facts. To dismiss the possibility is naive. That does not mean it is the case here but it is a possibility and the timing is suspicious.
There are those who have stated as their purpose to shut down our modern way of life. I tend to take people at their word and not to underestimate them.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_Liberation_Front
As someone who does love nature, and the environment this event is disturbing. Keep in mind radical environmentalists do not so much love nature as hate themselves and others by extension. For understanding I suggest “The True Believer” by Eric Hoffer.
Monty
Texas scientist has his eye on conditions of Gulf spill
http://www.statesman.com/news/local/texas-scientist-has-his-eye-on-conditions-of-654950.html
Doomsday scenario: current puts Gulf slick on Atlantic beaches
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/doomsday-scenario-current-puts-gulf-slick-on-atlantic-653991.html
Oil from the slick spreading through the Gulf of Mexico could wind up off of Palm Beach County’s beaches – perhaps even worming its way into the Lake Worth Lagoon – in a matter of weeks, Florida oceanographers say.
We could see ugly brown patches as big as a football field or as small as a football.
Or maybe just tar balls.
Or there could be nothing at all.
It all depends on the speed of the clean-up, the flow of the wind and the path of the currents, the scientists say.
The fear is that, as the oil moves in coming weeks, it could be picked up by the Gulf Loop current, which itself shifts around the Gulf.
No one knows if – or when – that will happen; probably in two or three weeks at the soonest.
There are only a couple of buoys in that area that are reporting data on NOAA’s site. Many of the buoys in the area are owned and operated by energy companies.
National Data Buoy Center
http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/
Station 42040
NDBC
Location: 29.212N 88.207W
Conditions as of:
Sat, 01 May 2010 16:50:00 UTC
Winds: SSE (150°) at 19.4 kt gusting to 21.4 kt
Significant Wave Height: 5.9 ft
Dominant Wave Period: 8 sec
Mean Wave Direction: SSE (155°)
Atmospheric Pressure: 29.82 in and rising
Air Temperature: 75.9 F
Dew Point: 73.8 F
Water Temperature: 72.5 F
Is there National Preparedness for anything other then Taxation that actually works?
Rough seas again thwart cleanup of oil catastrophe
http://hosted2.ap.org/COGRA/d30f3f32e9d849979111e891380b64db/Article_2010-05-01-US-Gulf-Oil-Spill/id-baf72806c401455ea3988ee158a9d894
On Thursday, the size of the slick was about 1,150 square miles, but by Friday’s end it was in the range of 3,850 square miles, said Hans Graber, executive director of the university’s Center for Southeastern Tropical Advanced Remote Sensing. That suggests the oil has started spilling from the well more quickly, Graber said.
“The spill and the spreading is getting so much faster and expanding much quicker than they estimated,” Graber told The Associated Press on Saturday.
Ian R. MacDonald, an oceanography professor at Florida State University, said his examination of Coast Guard charts and satellite images indicated that 8 million to 9 million gallons had already spilled by April 28.
This is an excellent technical article about the well safety components from the Wall Street Journal:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704423504575212031417936798.html?mod=rss_Today's_Most_Popular
I’m just amazed that we had this loss of life and SONS due to the lack of investment into a $500,000 sonic backup system, required by Norway, Brazil etc.
If anything good comes out of this, it will be the stimulus to drill these deepwater wells better and safer. We need our domestic hydrocarbon resources badly, and I’m not worried a bit about the environmentalists….damn pity about the loss of life and ship!
Don Worley said:
The best laid plans……
5000 feet of casing and drillpipe collapsed around the BOP. It’s a mass of heavy spaghetti, and likely damaged the BOP when it fell. The spaghetti may make it difficult to position a collection device over the wellhead, but where there is will, there is a way.
WHAT A MESS!!
I don’t think most people appreciate the technical challenges here. I wish the people working on this problem the best of luck. This would be a mess on land. Under 5000ft of water, a challenge to say the least. The armchair experts will no doubt find fault with anything they do, and none of them will give a second thought when they hop in their car to go out for a latte to bad mouth “BIG OIL” with their friends. Perhaps congress should just pass a law instructing the well head to stop leaking. The lawyers could sue it to comply. We could all talk it into submission…..
Somewhere some poor people are working on an unimaginably complex and difficult task with tremendous pressure on them to succeed. The CYA types are hiding under their desks or running in circles screaming nonsense. Lets cheer for the people actually trying to solve the problem. Lord knows they will get no thanks from anybody else.
And to those who don’t like speculation about possible sabotage… I expect ALL possibilities to be looked into. If it was an accident or otherwise let the evidence reveal the truth. Inquiry is not disrespectful to anyone. In fact to prevent a full inquiry into all possibilities is VERY disrespectful to everyone.
Monty
I agree CRS, Dr.P.H.
Why wasn’t a plan in place for a worst case situation and a solution waiting in harbor to cover the entire Gulf field? This isn’t the only rig out there. So much for protection, where’s the EPA in all this?
WSJ Interactive Timeline:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704302304575213791958270682.html#project%3DOILRIGS1004%26articleTabs%3Dinteractive
9 days after the event:
April 29 — Louisiana Governor “Bobby Jindal declares a state of emergency and the federal government sends in skimmers and booms to prevent environmental damage.”
10 days after the event:
Oil Slick Nears Coast as U.S. Escalates Response
APRIL 30, 2010
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704302304575213791958270682.html
“The Navy sent 66,000 feet of inflatable oil booms to the Gulf to help contain the spill, as well as seven towable skimming systems and 50 contractors with experience operating the equipment, according to military officials at the Pentagon.”
This leak might have a significant economic effect. First, thousands of jobs in fisheries and tourism will be lost. Properties along 1000s of miles of coast line and bays will be damaged and reduced in value. Some of lost jobs will be replaced by temporary work on the clean up but who would look forward to such a job.
You can be sure that even a conservative Republican govenor of Florida will do everything possible to reduce drilling in the Gulf and that all of the East states will be doing everything possible to prevent the newly proposed drilling there.
There will probably be increased employment for environmental sciences whose research will help assess impacts and look to ways of reducing environmental damage.
No doubt that any further drilling in US water will have to comply with safety features in place in Brazil and Norway, that were considered to costly in the US. My guess is that Oboma did not call for a weakeninf of the regulations already in place under the Bush-Chaney oilmen administration.
The latest news from the Wall Street Journal is that the recent estimate of much higher leak rates may still be far too low. Losses/leakage may actually be 1 million gallons per day. A few more weeks or months of this, and comments about “why should we worry about this small leak” might need to be reconsidered.
CRS states “I’m just amazed that we had this loss of life and SONS due to the lack of investment into a $500,000 sonic backup system, required by Norway, Brazil etc.”
Hang on here. This is just pure ignorance. The systems used in GOM also have fail safes on the BOP. The BOP should have activated with the loss of power and hydraulics at surface – no need for an acoustic signal – it is all automatic. The ROV also should have been able to operate the BOP. There is NO indication that the Brazilian or Norwegian systems would have made any difference – if the BOP fails then it fails – no matter what button or trigger is pushed.
Right now everything suggests that the primary loss of well control was a failed cement job. Possibly drill pipe, debris and even casing and the liner hanger may have flown out of the well at several 100 feet per second and wrecked the internal rams of the BOP as well as everything at surface on the rig in one enormous explosion. Think how a rifle works. A long barrel with gas propelling a heavy piece of metal. This is what you have when a well blows out – an enormous large bore rifle that ejects anything and everything that ain’t solidly cemented in place.
Before we jump to conclusions please be aware that mother nature itself is incredibly powerful and it is likely that the BOP did not close because it was damaged in the blast.
BillD says:
You have made a number of claims and mights.
“Thousands of jobs in fisheries and tourism” – the Commercial fishermen get federal aid but the poor fishing guides, marinas and tackle shops will get nothing (why it is good to be a subsidized industry.) We have no idea how many jobs will be lost. The number in tourism will be much higher than it has to be if the scare stories continue.
You claim that property values will be reduced. This has not happen with any coastal property I am aware of– perhaps you could shed light on this.
You have assumed that the remote cutoff switch would have worked and cost was the only reason it was not included.
I would suggest you heed the warning from the National Academies of Science warning:
“The reader is therefore strongly cautioned against inferring impacts from the mass loading rates.
Impacts cannot be inferred by the amount of oil released– it is far more complicated an issue. Certainly this spill is not a good thing but the apocalyptic messages are just wrong.
“BillD says:
[…]
The latest news from the Wall Street Journal is that the recent estimate of much higher leak rates may still be far too low. Losses/leakage may actually be 1 million gallons per day.”
DirkH says:
Your comment is awaiting moderation.
May 1, 2010 at 3:26 pm
“BillD says:
[…]
The latest news from the Wall Street Journal is that the recent estimate of much higher leak rates may still be far too low. Losses/leakage may actually be 1 million gallons per day.”
1 million gallons…. Sounds much better than 23 809 barrels…
I suggest you switch to liters.
Disputin says:
May 1, 2010 at 12:04 am
They can get a mechanical advantage vise down there the same way they got the BOP and everything else down there.
All the failsafes have failed.
Got a better idea than waiting 2 months for the relief drill to arrive and seal it off?
Gail Combs says:
May 1, 2010 at 5:12 am
The timing is the most disturbing part of this disaster.
Everyone I have spoken to has noticed it.
mikael pihlström:
May 1, 2010 at 8:16 am
is it not oxygen persistent and maybe just a little bit carcinogenic …?
is it not all the rest maybe just a little bit hysteria…?
How about this for a containment device?
Lower 4 to 6 anchors surrounding the wellhead at a radius of 50 feet or so. Fabricate a 5000 foot long “sock” made of durable fabric similar to grain hauling bags. The sock should have a conical shape at the bottom and weighted. Slide the sock down around the anchor ropes (non binding synthetic). The oil will convect upward through the sock to the surface where it can be pumped into a tanker. Such a device could be stored and transported easily in the event of a similar disaster in the future.
Any other bright ideas here?
Knowing the vagueries of electronics and communication, a system which shuts the BOP upon loss of signal is probably not practical. When the BOP fires, it shears the drillpipe, basically trashing the hole. The device was probably tested and determined to be too likely to cause a false shut down and unnecessarily ruin a well.
Is the above skepticism or just utter thoughtlessness?
– 11 dead
– fisheries and livelihoods in danger
– biodiversity effects
– huge direct damage costs
– in a rationale calculus these external costs become
negatives on the balance sheet of fossil energy (remember also the
Chinesse tanker and the Great Barrier Reef).
—
And these effects are somehow not applicable to car accidents or any other kind of industrial world accident? If you want oil, then you accept accidents with oil are going to occur. An oil leak, while ugly to look at is a relatively minor and temporary event. Once it is dissapated and cleaned up the area will return to normal quite quickly, just like every other area that has suffered an oil spill.