Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
6383960 | Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography | 2016 | 14 Pages |
Abstract
Here we examine the possibility that hydrocarbons of Deepwater Horizon origin transited to the WFS beneath the surface. We use a numerical circulation model simulation run for the entirety of 2010 and quantitatively gauged against in situ observations. A passive tracer is introduced into the model to mimic the movement of subsurface hydrocarbons, either dissolved or of sufficiently small particle size to effectively be dissolved. The tracer, driven primarily by an anomalously strong and persistent upwelling circulation, eventually covered most of the WFS. Using reasonable estimates of what the initial tracer concentration may have been with respect to hydrocarbons, we conclude that the transport of subsurface hydrocarbons to the WFS is both plausible and consistent with the observed distribution of fish lesions, fish liver chemistry and other chemical and ecological evidence.
Keywords
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Earth and Planetary Sciences
Geology
Authors
Robert H. Weisberg, Lianyuan Zheng, Yonggang Liu, Steven Murawski, Chuanmin Hu, John Paul,