Today President Obama is giving a press conference and is expected to answer questions about the BP Oil Spill.  It is my hope that there will be questions posed to address the Science of the oil spill, specifically the criticisms that have been leveled against Obama for not treating this situation in a fact-based scientific manner (the transparent-trouble-shooting method proposed at the start of his presidential term).

  Scientists around the world have given their best calculations for the rate of oil spewing out of the sea floor (although granted, they are diverse estimates despite being based on science and mathematical modeling), but despite determining BP's estimates are vastly below scientist's estimates, a concensus estimate and determination of impact has not been reached.  Is it the role of the federal government to convene scientists around this issue and determine the best estimate of a flow rate?  To play a more active role in determining the best course of action for stopping the oil leak?  To be more proactive in saving the environment and at-risk species (including those used for commercial fishing or food sources) in affected areas? 

These questions are open for debate, but here is some of what we do know about the science of the oil spill.

NASA’s latest satellite photo of the spill:

NOAA (the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) keeps one of the most up-to-date and comprehensive websites devoted to the science of the spill.  According to their site:

As the nation’s leading scientific resource for oil spills, NOAA has been on the scene of the BP spill from the start, providing coordinated scientific weather and biological response services to federal, state and local organizations.

We have mobilized experts from across the agency to help contain the spreading oil spill and protect the Gulf of Mexico’s many marine mammals, sea turtles, fish, shellfish and other endangered marine life.

http://response.restoration.noaa.gov/topic_subtopic_entry.php?RECORD_KEY%28entry_subtopic_topic%29=entry_id,subtopic_id,topic_id&entry_id%28entry_subtopic_topic%29=809&subtopic_id%28entry_subtopic_topic%29=2&topic_id%28entry_subtopic_topic%29=1

This website includes Trajectory Maps – constantly updated and showing where the oil spreading is expected to go.  This is the latest trajectory map:

Popular Mechanics gives a great overview of the available technologies for cleaning up the oil spill:

 http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/energy/coal-oil-gas/state-of-oil-cleaning-tech

 Some technologies include vessels which can skim oil from the surface (only really effective in placid waters, however), and an aerogel which acts like a sponge (composed of clay, plastic and air) to sop the spill.

 The CS Monitor suggests a way of saving oil-soaked wetlands may be to set them on fire:

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2010/0524/BP-oil-spill-How-to-save-wetlands-Set-them-on-fire-maybe.

 Reuters asks, will the cleanup of the oil spill make things worse?

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6465O320100507

 The latest method for stopping the oil: “Top Kill” – a rundown of the basics from USA Today’s Science Fair:

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2010/05/q--a-top-kill-procedure-next-up-for-bp-oil-spill/1

 On May 18, there was a congressional hearing on the science of the oil spill:

From the official page:

The Subcommittee on Energy and Environment held a briefing entitled, “Sizing up the BP Oil Spill: Science and Engineering Measuring Methods,” on Wednesday, May 19, 2010, at 2:00 p.m. in room 2123 of the Rayburn House Office Building.

http://energycommerce.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2008:energy-and-commerce-subcommittee-briefing-on-qsizing-up-the-bp-oil-spill-science-and-engineering-measuring-methodsq&catid=122:media-advisories&Itemid=55

 Experts present at this hearing included a mechanical engineer, two oceanographers, and a NASA earth scientist.  Each gave a presentation (available on the website above), and the committee was briefed about NASA’s efforts to ‘detect, monitor and measure’ what is being called the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill.

One of the greatest controversies surrounding the spill is the ability to accurately estimate the rate of oil leakage.  Scientists have widely criticized BP for underestimating the flow rate (and thus, the total amount of oil leaked so far).  The scientific estimates were mostly made using images of the leak from under the ocean’s surface, pictures which were not released until several days after the leak began.  Essentially, the calculations are made using the formula for the volume of a cylinder: V=pi*r^2*v*t

 Very nice description of this method at ABC News:

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/WhosCounting/oil-spilling-gulf-mexico-bp-basic-calculations/story?id=10705575

Another controversy has been the use of chemical dispersants, which BP began using to mitigate the spill starting about 2 weeks ago.  Recently, the US EPA requested a stop to this method, as the chemicals in the dispersant have mild toxic effects and the volumes being used on the spill were great.  BP and the EPA are still in a tussle over this issue.

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/59227/title/Gulf_spill_BP_gets_go_ahead_for_full-scale_underwater_use_of_dispersants

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/25/science/earth/25disperse.html

Further Resources:
KSJ tracker for the Gulf Oil Spill:

http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2010/05/13/gulf-oil-spill-new-talk-of-capping-it-intercepting-it-with-chemicals-funneling-it-to-tankers/

e! Science news related stories:

http://esciencenews.com/sources/bbc.news.science.nature/2010/05/26/bp.begins.top.kill.oil.spill