Sargassum and Icebergs — Threats Warm & Cold

In recent years we have posted about the impact of massive mats of sargassum in the warmer waters of the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic. The brown buoyant seaweed has had a devastating impact on beaches across the east … Continue reading

Against All Odds, Cruise Passenger Survives 20 Hours in the Gulf of Mexico After Going Overboard From Carnival Valor

When we posted about a man who had been rescued in the Gulf of Mexico by the US Coast Guard after apparently falling off the cruise ship Carnival Valor, we were convinced that there was more to the story. It … Continue reading

The Dual Discovery of the Whaling Brig Industry and Her Crew’s Fate Link to US Racial History

The shipwreck in 6,000 feet of water in the Gulf of Mexico, 70 miles from the mouth of the Mississippi River, had first been spotted in 2011, by a geological data company scanning an oil lease area. The wreck was … Continue reading

Driller Liquidated to Help Clean Up Long Running Gulf Oil Spill

Seventeen years ago, Hurricane Ivan destroyed an oil-production platform in the Gulf of Mexico. The wells associated with the platform have been leaking ever since and may be one of the largest and longest-running offshore spills in US history.  Now, … Continue reading

“Freakishly Warm” Gulf Waters May Contribute to Severe Spring Weather & Hurricanes

As if a pandemic is not enough to worry about, the effects of climate change appear to be delivering some particularly nasty weather this year. The waters of the Gulf of Mexico have been described as being abnormally warm, freakishly … Continue reading

Coast Guard Cracks Down on Major Oil Spill Which You Probably Never Heard Of

Fourteen years ago, Hurricane Ivan destroyed an oil-production platform owned by Taylor Energy in the Gulf of Mexico. The wells associated with the platform have been leaking ever since and may soon become the largest recorded offshore spill.  Federal officials … Continue reading

Struggle over Kurdish Oil — Tanker United Kalavrvta Goes Dark in Gulf of Mexico

The Suezmax oil tanker United Kalavrvta has been motoring in large circles in the Gulf of Mexico for over a month. Today her AIS (Automatic Identification System) transponder was turned off, making her far more difficult to track. The ship has, at … Continue reading

Red Tide Killing Record Number of Florida Manatees

An outbreak of Red Tide, a deadly algae bloom, in the Gulf of Mexico off Florida is killing a record number of endangered Florida manatees. The Red Tide bloom has been killing  at least 10 manatees a day and shows no sign of … Continue reading

Engine Room Fire Strands Carnival Triumph in the Gulf of Mexico, Will be Towed to Mexico

An engine room fire has knocked out the propulsion and the primary electrical system on the cruise ship Carnival Triumph in the Gulf of Mexico off the Yucatan Peninsula.  Emergency generators are providing limited power to the passenger areas.  The ship … Continue reading

Update 2: Explosion on Oil Rig in Gulf of Mexico – Eleven Injured, Four Critically and Two Missing

Update 2: Current reports say that eleven were injured, four critically. Two workers are still missing. An oil and gas rig in the Gulf of Mexico, about 20 nautical miles southeast of Grand Isle, La., was hit by an explosion … Continue reading

BP Pleads Guilty to 11 Felonies and Agrees to Pay $4.5 Billion to Settle Criminal Case on Deepwater Horizon Tragedy

On April 20, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded and sank in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 platform workers and resulting in the largest accidental marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry. Today BP, the … Continue reading

Bombs in the Gulf’s Offshore Oilfields

We have previously posted about unexploded bombs from World War II being exposed by drought along the Rhine and Mosel Rivers in Germany, about similar bombs being found in the port of Marseille and about World War II phosphorus munitions burning two … Continue reading

Hurricane Isaac in the Gulf, Typhoon Bolaven Pounds Korea – 4 Chinese Fishermen Dead, 12 Missing

One hell of a day for storms at sea. Just after noon today, Isaac was upgraded to a Category 1 hurricane as it slowly moved north in the Gulf of Mexico toward Louisiana and the city of New Orleans, on a track disturbingly similar … Continue reading

USCG Cutter Mohawk to become Reef off Sanibel Isalnd, FL

The World War II era US Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk is scheduled to be  scuttled in 2012, 16 miles off the coast of Sanibel Island, FL in the Gulf of Mexico to serve as an artificial reef. Veteran’s Memorial Reef planned off … Continue reading