National Geographic: Gulf Oil Spill Could Reach East Coast Beaches


The Gulf of Mexico Loop Current and the Gulf Stream stand out in orange as seen via satellite on Monday.
Image credit: NOAA

As oil continues to surge into the Gulf of Mexico from the site of the Deepwater Horizon rig accident, experts warn that the Gulf's powerful Loop Current could whip millions of gallons of oil around Florida's peninsula and north to East Coast beaches. There's no predicting the exact movements of the oil spill—which is growing by at least 5,000 barrels (210,000 gallons, or 794,937 liters) a day. But winds could push the slick south, where oil might get swept into the current. Born in warm Caribbean waters, the Loop Current pulses north into the Gulf of Mexico and travels in a clockwise pattern toward Florida—ending up in one of the oceans' mighty conveyor belts, the Gulf Stream.


Posted by WILDNEWJERSEY at 5/12/2010 1:00 PM
Categories: Jersey Shore
Tags: east coast beaches loop current gulf of mexico brown pelicans bp oil spill
 

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