oil spill
The Blob: The movie monster attacking fish
The Pacific marine heatwave of 2013-2016, called the Blob, caused ocean temperatures in Alaska to spike, harming wildlife from whales to salmon. A new study shows that even if the animals could take the heat, they may have been starving. Kristin HuizengaI am a PhD student in Biological Oceanography at the University of Rhode Island […]
Can you smell that? Oil spills change stingray’s sense of smell
It may have occurred 8 years ago, but scientists are still talking about the Deep Water Horizon Oil Spill. This epic oil spill made scientists recognize gaps in our knowledge about how oil impacts the environment. To explore the question of how crude oil impacts organisms, a team of scientists at Florida Atlantic University investigate […]
Out of sight, out of mind: The effect of gas & oil spills on deep-sea communities
When undersea wells blowout, toxic concentrations of hydrocarbons can be rapidly released into the environment. The media presents these blowouts with dramatic images of flora and fauna covered in black tar along coastlines and on the sea surface. What are rarely shown in glossy photographs, however, are the consequences to the unseen deep-sea. Sarah FullerWith […]
The first day after an oil spill
Crude oil is mostly composed of n-alkanes and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAHs) which are toxic to organisms. After an oil spill, it is crucial to investigate the fractionation of compounds partitioning into the air and water to aid in predicting their threat to downwind population and the marine community. Caoxin SunCaoxin is a graduate student […]
Time for an oil change: How filter feeders avoid feeding on oil
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill was the largest oil spill in U.S. history. Here, a pair of researchers investigates the incorporation of oil into mussels and barnacles in Louisiana estuaries, finding minimal amounts of oil signals detected in the species in the months following the spill. Erin MarkhamErin received her B.S. in Environmental Science from […]
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