Scientists Solve Mystery of Floating Debris

In 2010 marine scientist from the Dauphin Island Sea Lab were in the field collecting water samples following the Deep Horizon oil spill. Dr. Monty Graham was one of those scientists who discovered some unusual objects bobbing in the water some 32 miles south off the coast of Alabama. According to Graham the water was flat when they noticed  “odd white things with an oily halo in the water all around them.” The scientists looked for traces of the oil slick on the surface but found none. These objects that were floating along intertwined in the sargassum, and ran in an east to west direction for some 6 miles. The scientists collected samples in this location, and two days later in another location some 25 miles from Dauphin Island. Several examples of the odd substance were sent to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute for examination. Scientists from WHOI then traveled to the Chandeleur Islands off the coast of Louisiana in an effort to look for what they called sand patties, a mix of sand and oil from the spill. After examining some of the debris in photos taken earlier the researchers traced pieces of syntactic foam to a company in Massachusetts. It was a match. The scientists now realized that the foam ended up in the environment during the explosion and served as a unique tracer for how oil and debris drifted from the site.  By combining where location debris was found, and cross-referencing with weather patterns in the area, they were able to discover the path flow through the principle of leeway. Leeway measures how fast waves and/or wind move materials across the ocean surface. This becomes an important factor in studying the path and speed of floating oil. The mystery of why there was no oil present on or around these objects even though they were associated with the spill became apparent. Leeway for fresh oil is 3 to 3.3 percent. The objects found floating had a protruding profile that acted like a sail pushing the material ahead of the floating oil. Scientists have been studying the patterns of oil spills for over 38 years. This now provides insight into the movement of debris and will allow responders to better forecast impacts of future oil spills.