Input of Pelagic Tar into the Northwest Atlantic from the Gulf Loop Current: Chemical Characterization and its Relationship to Weathered IXTOC-I Oil

1983 ◽  
Vol 40 (S2) ◽  
pp. s12-s22 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. S. Van Vleet ◽  
W. M. Sackett ◽  
F. F. Weber Jr. ◽  
S. B. Reinhardt
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Mississippi River ◽  
Chemical Characterization ◽  
Loop Current ◽  
The North ◽  
Eastern Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Florida Straits ◽  
One Year ◽  
Crude Oil Sludge

Pelagic tar concentrations have been measured for samples collected monthly in the eastern Gulf of Mexico over a one year period. Analyses of the pelagic tar included gravimetric, isotopic (δ13C) and molecular (gas chromatographic) characterization of the total, aliphatic, and aromatic fractions. The concentrations of pelagic tar ranged from 0 to 26.5 mg∙m−2 of toluene extractable material, with an average of 1.60 mg∙m−2 in the offshore neuston tows and 0.05 mg∙m−2 in neuston tows taken on the west Florida continental shelf. Oblique tows to 100 m depth averaged 0.01 mg∙m−2. δ13CPDB values for the total tar in each tow averaged −27.2‰ with the aliphatic fractions averaging −27.5‰ and the aromatic fractions averaging −27.0‰. Approximately 40% of the tar samples showed a bimodal n-alkane distribution characteristic of crude oil sludge. Based upon an average annual Loop Current discharge of 28 × 106 m3∙s−1 through the Florida Straits, it is estimated that approximately 7000 t of pelagic tar are discharged annually from the Gulf of Mexico into the North Atlantic. Approximately half of this may be brought into the Gulf from the Caribbean via the Loop Current, while the remainder appears to originate in the Gulf of Mexico. Possible origins of the floating tar include input from the Caribbean Sea through the Yucatan Strait, production and transportation operations in the Gulf of Mexico, Mississippi River discharge, subsurface oil seeps, and major accidental discharges. Large amounts of oil from the IXTOC-I well blowout do not appear to have impinged on coastal waters of Florida.

scholarly journals Mississippi River and Campeche Bank (Gulf of Mexico) Episodes of Cross-Shelf Export of Coastal Waters Observed with Satellites

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 723 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Otis ◽  
Matthieu Le Hénaff ◽  
Vassiliki Kourafalou ◽  
Lucas McEachron ◽  
Frank Muller-Karger
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Mississippi River ◽  
Coastal Waters ◽  
Satellite Images ◽  
Seasonal Pattern ◽  
Ocean Color ◽  
Loop Current ◽  
Visual Examination ◽  
Mississippi River Water ◽  
Florida Straits

The cross-shelf advection of coastal waters into the deep Gulf of Mexico is important for the transport of nutrients or potential pollutants. Twenty years of ocean color satellite imagery document such cross-shelf transport events via three export pathways in the Gulf of Mexico: from the Campeche Bank toward the central Gulf, from the Campeche Bank toward the Florida Straits, and from the Mississippi Delta to the Florida Straits. A catalog of these events was created based on the visual examination of 7280 daily satellite images. Water transport from the Campeche Bank to the central Gulf occurred frequently and with no seasonal pattern. Transport from Campeche Bank to the Florida Straits occurred episodically, when the Loop Current was retracted. Four such episodes were identified, between about December and June, in 2002, 2009, 2016, and 2017, each lasting ~3 months. Movement of Mississippi River water to the Florida Straits was more frequent and showed near seasonal occurrence, when the Loop Current was extended, while the Mississippi River discharge seems to play only a secondary role. Eight such episodes were identified—in 1999, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2011, 2014, and 2015—each lasting ~3 months during summer. The 2015 episode lasted 5 months.

scholarly journals A Trigger Mechanism for Loop Current Ring Separations

2010 ◽  
Vol 40 (5) ◽  
pp. 900-913 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wilton Sturges ◽  
Nicholas G. Hoffmann ◽  
Robert R. Leben
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Satellite Altimetry ◽  
Loop Current ◽  
Trigger Mechanism ◽  
Sea Levels ◽  
Delay Times ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Florida Straits ◽  
Current Ring

Abstract The Loop Current in the Gulf of Mexico sheds large anticyclonic rings on an irregular basis. The authors attempt to show what actually triggers the ring separations. Pulses of increased transport through the Florida Straits, as observed by the cable data, are observed prior to each ring separation. This finding is consistent over all separation events observed in the satellite altimetry record. The pulses of transport occur approximately two to four weeks before the rings separate. The increase in transport is usually accompanied by a corresponding increase in offshore sea level, suggesting forcing from the open ocean. The delay times between the pulses of increased transport and ring separations can be shown to be significantly correlated with the length of the Loop Current. Mean sea levels over the Caribbean and Gulf also peak before the separations, on average.

scholarly journals Expanding the marine range of the endangered black-capped petrel Pterodroma hasitata: Occurrence in the northern Gulf of Mexico and conservation implications

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick G.R. Jodice ◽  
Pamela E. Michael ◽  
Jeffrey S. Gleason ◽  
J. Christopher Haney ◽  
Yvan G. Satgé
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Gulf Stream ◽  
Loop Current ◽  
Limited Data ◽  
Northern Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
The North ◽  
Conservation Implications ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
East West

ABSTRACTThe black-capped petrel (Pterodroma hasitata) is an endangered seabird endemic to the western north Atlantic. Although estimated at ~ 1,000 breeding pairs, only ~ 100 nests have been located at two sites in Haiti and three sites in the Dominican Republic. At sea, the species primarily occupies waters of the western Gulf Stream in the Atlantic and the Caribbean Sea. Due to limited data, there is currently not a consensus on the marine range of the species. There are several maps in use for the marine range of the species and these differ with respect to the north, south, and eastward extent of the range. None of these maps, however, includes the Gulf of Mexico. Here, we report on observations of black-capped petrels during two vessel-based survey efforts throughout the northern Gulf of Mexico from July 2010 - July 2011, and from April 2017 - September 2019. During the 558 days and 54.7 km of surveys from both efforts we tallied 40 black-capped petrels. Most observations occurred in the eastern Gulf, although birds were observed over much of the east-west and north-south footprint of the survey area. Predictive models indicated that habitat suitability for black-capped petrels was highest in areas associated with dynamic waters of the Loop Current, similar to habitat used along the western edge of the Gulf Stream in the western north Atlantic. We suggest that the range for black-capped petrels be modified to include the entire northern Gulf of Mexico although distribution may be more clumped in the eastern Gulf and patchier elsewhere. It remains unclear, however, which nesting areas are linked to the Gulf of Mexico.

scholarly journals Nonlinear analysis of the occurrence of hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 291-300 ◽  
Author(s):  
Berenice Rojo-Garibaldi ◽  
David Alberto Salas-de-León ◽  
María Adela Monreal-Gómez ◽  
Norma Leticia Sánchez-Santillán ◽  
David Salas-Monreal
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Nonlinear Analysis ◽  
Chaotic Behavior ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
Historical Record ◽  
Nonlinear Analyses ◽  
The North ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
The Individual

Abstract. Hurricanes are complex systems that carry large amounts of energy. Their impact often produces natural disasters involving the loss of human lives and materials, such as infrastructure, valued at billions of US dollars. However, not everything about hurricanes is negative, as hurricanes are the main source of rainwater for the regions where they develop. This study shows a nonlinear analysis of the time series of the occurrence of hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea obtained from 1749 to 2012. The construction of the hurricane time series was carried out based on the hurricane database of the North Atlantic basin hurricane database (HURDAT) and the published historical information. The hurricane time series provides a unique historical record on information about ocean–atmosphere interactions. The Lyapunov exponent indicated that the system presented chaotic dynamics, and the spectral analysis and nonlinear analyses of the time series of the hurricanes showed chaotic edge behavior. One possible explanation for this chaotic edge is the individual chaotic behavior of hurricanes, either by category or individually regardless of their category and their behavior on a regular basis.

scholarly journals A Lagrangian approach to the Loop Current eddy separation

2013 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 85-96 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Andrade-Canto ◽  
J. Sheinbaum ◽  
L. Zavala Sansón
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Model ◽  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
Separation Process ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Loop Current ◽  
Hyperbolic Point ◽  
Finite Time Lyapunov Exponents ◽  
Florida Straits ◽  
Strain Direction

Abstract. Determining when and how a Loop Current eddy (LCE) in the Gulf of Mexico will finally separate is a difficult task, since several detachment re-attachment processes can occur during one of these events. Separation is usually defined based on snapshots of Eulerian fields such as sea surface height (SSH) but here we suggest that a Lagrangian view of the LCE separation process is more appropriate and objective. The basic idea is very simple: separation should be defined whenever water particles from the cyclonic side of the Loop Current move swiftly from the Yucatan Peninsula to the Florida Straits instead of penetrating into the NE Gulf of Mexico. The properties of backward-time finite time Lyapunov exponents (FTLE) computed from a numerical model of the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea are used to estimate the "skeleton" of flow and the structures involved in LCE detachment events. An Eulerian metric is defined, based on the slope of the strain direction of the instantaneous hyperbolic point of the Loop Current anticyclone that provides useful information to forecast final LCE detachments. We highlight cases in which an LCE separation metric based on SSH contours (Leben, 2005) suggests there is a separated LCE that later reattaches, whereas the slope method and FTLE structure indicate the eddy remains dynamically connected to the Loop Current during the process.

scholarly journals Influence of frontal cyclone evolution on the 2009 (Ekman) and 2010 (Franklin) Loop Current eddy detachment events

Ocean Science ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 947-965 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. S. Androulidakis ◽  
V. H. Kourafalou ◽  
M. Le Hénaff
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Simulation ◽  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Satellite Data ◽  
Potential Vorticity ◽  
In Situ Measurements ◽  
Loop Current ◽  
Positive Potential ◽  
Eastern Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
And Migration

Abstract. The anticyclonic Loop Current Eddy (LCE) shedding events are strongly associated with the evolution of Loop Current Frontal Eddies (LCFEs) over the eastern Gulf of Mexico (GoM). A numerical simulation, in tandem with in situ measurements and satellite data, was used to investigate the Loop Current (LC) evolution and the surrounding LCFE formation, structure, growth and migration during the Eddy Ekman and Eddy Franklin shedding events in the summers of 2009 and 2010, respectively. During both events, northern GoM LCFEs appeared vertically coherent to at least 1500 m in temperature observations. They propagated towards the base of the LC, where, together with the migration of Campeche Bank (southwest GoM shelf) eddies from south of the LC, contributed to its "necking-down". Growth of Campeche Bank LCFEs involved in Eddy Franklin was partially attributed to Campeche Bank waters following upwelling events. Slope processes associated with such upwelling included offshore exports of high positive potential vorticity that may trigger cyclone formation and growth. The advection and growth of LCFEs, originating from the northern and southern GoM, and their interaction with the LC over the LCE detachment area favor shedding conditions and may contribute to the final separation of the LCE.

scholarly journals Loop Current Variability as Trigger of Coherent Gulf Stream Transport Anomalies

2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (8) ◽  
pp. 2115-2132 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joël J.-M. Hirschi ◽  
Eleanor Frajka-Williams ◽  
Adam T. Blaker ◽  
Bablu Sinha ◽  
Andrew Coward ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Gulf Stream ◽  
Time Lag ◽  
Ocean Model ◽  
Surface Velocity ◽  
Loop Current ◽  
Intrinsic Variability ◽  
Cape Hatteras ◽  
Florida Straits ◽  
Stream Transport

AbstractSatellite observations and output from a high-resolution ocean model are used to investigate how the Loop Current in the Gulf of Mexico affects the Gulf Stream transport through the Florida Straits. We find that the expansion (contraction) of the Loop Current leads to lower (higher) transports through the Straits of Florida. The associated surface velocity anomalies are coherent from the southwestern tip of Florida to Cape Hatteras. A simple continuity-based argument can be used to explain the link between the Loop Current and the downstream Gulf Stream transport: as the Loop Current lengthens (shortens) its path in the Gulf of Mexico, the flow out of the Gulf decreases (increases). Anomalies in the surface velocity field are first seen to the southwest of Florida and within 4 weeks propagate through the Florida Straits up to Cape Hatteras and into the Gulf Stream Extension. In both the observations and the model this propagation can be seen as pulses in the surface velocities. We estimate that the Loop Current variability can be linked to a variability of several Sverdrups (1Sv = 106 m3 s−1) through the Florida Straits. The exact timing of the Loop Current variability is largely unpredictable beyond a few weeks and its variability is therefore likely a major contributor to the chaotic/intrinsic variability of the Gulf Stream. However, the time lag between the Loop Current and the flow downstream of the Gulf of Mexico means that if a lengthening/shortening of the Loop Current is observed this introduces some predictability in the downstream flow for a few weeks.

The Intra-Americas Springtime Sea Surface Temperature Anomaly Dipole as Fingerprint of Remote Influences

2010 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ernesto Muñoz ◽  
Chunzai Wang ◽  
David Enfield
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
Enso Event ◽  
Shortwave Radiation ◽  
Teleconnection Patterns ◽  
The North ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Sst Anomaly ◽  
The Caribbean

Abstract The influence of teleconnections on the Intra-Americas Sea (IAS; Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea) has been mostly analyzed from the perspective of El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) on the Caribbean Sea (the latter being an extension of the tropical North Atlantic). This emphasis has overlooked both 1) the influence of other teleconnections on the IAS and 2) which teleconnections affect the Gulf of Mexico climate variability. In this study the different fingerprints that major teleconnection patterns have on the IAS during boreal spring are analyzed. Indices of teleconnection patterns are regressed and correlated to observations of oceanic temperature and atmospheric data from reanalyses and observational datasets. It is found that the Pacific teleconnection patterns that influence the IAS SSTs do so by affecting the Gulf of Mexico in an opposite manner to the Caribbean Sea. These analyzed Pacific climate patterns are the Pacific–North American (PNA) teleconnection, the Pacific decadal oscillation (PDO), and ENSO. The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) is related to a lesser degree with the north–south SST anomaly dipole than are Pacific teleconnection patterns. It is also found that the IAS influence from the midlatitude Pacific mostly affects the Gulf of Mexico, whereas the influence from the tropical Pacific mostly affects the Caribbean Sea. Therefore, the combination of a warm ENSO event and a positive PNA event induces a strong IAS SST anomaly dipole between the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea during spring. By calculating an index that represents the IAS SST anomaly dipole, it is found that the dipole forms mostly in response to changes in the air–sea heat fluxes. In the Gulf of Mexico the dominant mechanisms are the air–sea differences in humidity and temperature. The changes in shortwave radiation also contribute to the dipole of net air–sea heat flux. The changes in shortwave radiation arise, in part, by the cloudiness triggered by the air–sea differences in humidity, and also by the changes in the convection cell that connects the Amazon basin to the IAS. Weaker Amazon convection (e.g., in the event of a warm ENSO event) reduces the subsidence over the IAS, and henceforth the IAS cloudiness increases (and the shortwave radiation decreases). This study contributes to a greater understanding of how the IAS is influenced by different Pacific and Atlantic teleconnections.

scholarly journals The Surface Circulation of the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico as Inferred from Satellite Altimetry

2009 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 640-657 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aida Alvera-Azcárate ◽  
Alexander Barth ◽  
Robert H. Weisberg
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Time Scales ◽  
Satellite Altimetry ◽  
Southern Oscillation ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
Vertical Shear ◽  
Loop Current ◽  
Surface Circulation ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Anticyclonic Eddies

Abstract The surface circulation of the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico is studied using 13 years of satellite altimetry data. Variability in the Caribbean Sea is evident over several time scales. At the annual scale, sea surface height (SSH) varies mainly by a seasonal steric effect. Interannually, a longer cycle affects the SSH slope across the current and hence the intensity of the Caribbean Current. This cycle is found to be related to changes in the wind intensity, the wind stress curl, and El Niño–Southern Oscillation. At shorter time scales, eddies and meanders are observed in the Caribbean Current, and their propagation speed is explained by baroclinic instabilities under the combined effect of vertical shear and the β effect. Then the Loop Current (LC) is considered, focusing on the anticyclonic eddies shed by it and the intrusion of the LC into the Gulf of Mexico through time. Twelve of the 21 anticyclonic eddies observed to detach from the LC are shed from July to September, suggesting a seasonality in the timing of these events. Also, a relation is found between the intrusion of the LC into the Gulf of Mexico and the size of the eddies shed from it: larger intrusions trigger smaller eddies. A series of extreme LC intrusions into the Gulf of Mexico, when the LC is observed as far as 92°W, are described. The analyses herein suggest that the frequency of such events has increased in recent years, with only one event occurring in 1993 versus three from 2002 to 2006. Transport through the Straits of Florida appears to decrease during these extreme intrusions.

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