Record depth for hydrocarbon seeps from the oceanfloor
Feb 4, 2020
Oil bubbles that seep into the water column on the oceanfloor form a natural oil slick on the water surface. Photo: Ian MacDonald
Naturally formed oil and methane from the oceanfloor seeps upward into the water column at many points in the sea and partially reaches the water surface. An international research team, led by the MARUM - Center for Marine Environmental Sciences at the University of Bremen, has now quantitatively investigated the path of gas and oil bubbles from the oceanfloor to the water surface in the southern Gulf of Mexico. Their results have now been published in the journal Frontiers in Marine Sciences.
