Georgia Institute of Technology Ocean Science and Engineering - OSE

Advection and biological consumption are both important sinks for oil and gas released from natural seeps in the Gulf of Mexico. We will use a combination of stable isotope measurements and high resolution modeling with both passive and positively buoyant tracers to study the interaction between physical and biological processes in distributing and transporting the carbon released from natural seeps. We will focus on three major seep fields in the Northern Gulf with different water depths –GC185 (ca. 400 m), GC600 (ca. 1200 m), and GC767 (ca. 1600 m) – but will extend our work to other major seeps. This project will provide critical information on the roles of physical and biological processes in transporting oil and gas carbon through offshore ecosystems.