Ocean Briefs Archives
New Technology Clearly Shows Impact of the Gulf Oil Spill on Coastal Marshes
TTI Exploration, a privately held geosciences technology company based in Houston, has announced that it has successfully completed preliminary processing and analysis related to a subset of its Operation GulfSCAN NRM™ data set. Between May 1st and July 30th 2010, the survey acquired ultra high-resolution data over approximately 29,000 square kilometers of very sensitive marsh areas of the Gulf Coast, including Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. New time-lapse images, produced from data collected by high-tech airborne sensors and TTI’s scientific team on the ground, show the condition of the habitat. The data measures the habitat before the oil and dispersant washed ashore several months ago compared with recent images collected after it has been exposed to the contaminants over an extended period of time.
“Even where oil is not visible, our technology can show where plant life has been affected by the recent oil spill. Indeed, much of the spill’s impact may not be visible to the naked eye.”
Dr. Alfredo Prelat, TTI’s chief scientist, said, “Even where oil is not visible, our technology can show where plant life has been affected by the recent oil spill. Indeed, much of the spill’s impact may not be visible to the naked eye.” Images of the area studied are available on TTI’s website at (http://www.ttiexploration.com/gulfscan/time-lapse).
The imaging data for this time-lapse subset was initially acquired on May 21, 2010 and then re-flown on July 17, 2010 and shows the change in the habitat after approximately 2 months. TTI plans to fly additional time-lapse surveys chronicling the evolving health of the Gulf Coast’s ecosystems.
Jim Hollis, President and CEO of TTI Exploration, commented, "An objective, scientific analysis of 'Before' and 'After' NRM data can confirm the true health of the Gulf Coast’s ecosystems. Over the long-term, we expect to acquire additional data over those areas most affected by the oil spill and provide an accurate assessment of the ultimate impact on the habitat.”
Dr. John Day, an environmental scientist with Louisiana State University and a consultant to TTI said, "It is clearly premature to come to any conclusions about the long-term impact of the oil spill. Even if marsh grass is observed re-growing, it is clearly less than it would have been. To determine the full effects of the spill, more studies and measurements of vegetation health will be needed, including photosynthesis measurements, changes in above and below ground biomass and decomposition through the next growing season.”
Hollis added, "We will be working closely with Dr. Day to integrate his field sampling efforts into our NRM data set for Operation GulfSCAN in order to establish the most comprehensive, large-scale environmental assessment along the Gulf Coast. We believe the Operation GulfSCAN data set is the objective gold standard for measuring the impact this oil spill is having on the habitat.” www.ttiexploration.com
NOAA: Gulf’s Surface Oil Not a Threat to Southern Florida, Keys and East Coast
(Credit: NOAA)
Southern Florida, the Florida Keys and the East Coast are not likely to experience any effects from the remaining oil on the surface of the Gulf as the oil continues to degrade and is hundreds of miles away from the loop current, according to a new NOAA analysis. This analysis assumes the Deepwater Horizon/BP wellhead will remained capped.
“For southern Florida, the Florida Keys and the Eastern Seaboard, the coast remains clear,” said Jane Lubchenco, Ph.D., under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator. “With the flow stopped and the loop current a considerable distance away, the light sheen remaining on the Gulf’s surface will continue to biodegrade and disperse, but will not travel far.”
This latest analysis is part of NOAA’s ongoing work related to the Deepwater Horizon/BP response and recovery efforts, including aerial and satellite-based observations of surface oil and monitoring of the loop current.
Overflights in the past week found only scattered patches of light sheen near the Mississippi Delta – an indication that aggressive efforts to capture the oil have been effective and that the remaining oil is naturally dispersing and biodegrading.
A large loop current eddy, called Eddy Franklin, has pinched off and detached from the loop current. As of July 25, Eddy Franklin was more than 100 miles from the nearest surface oil associated with the Deepwater Horizon/BP source.
Until the loop current fully reforms, there is no clear way for oil to be transported to southern Florida or beyond, which is not projected to occur for several months. At that point, essentially all of the remaining surface oil will have dissipated.
Tritech Commits to Future Subsea Talent
Tritech, the innovative underwater technology company, continues to harness the skills of the next generation of subsea engineers.
Across Tritech’s two sites in Ulverston, Cumbria and Westhill, Aberdeenshire, the company has been nurturing the potential of five student apprentices.
At Westhill, a student and a graduate from Aberdeen University have been employed as Student Engineers. Gregor Will and Ben Bird are working under the guidance of the Customer Support Team and will be on placement until mid-September. The students are obtaining hands on experience in quality control and design as well as gaining an appreciation of the various subsea applications that Tritech products are used for.
Tritech’s Ulverston site has three Electronic Technician Apprentices; in conjunction with apprentice engineering and technology training provider GEN II, who are at various stages of the four year placement. Chris Ronson has recently just completed a work-based portfolio as part of his final year to achieve an NVQ level 3+ alongside completing his HNC in Electrical & Electronic Engineering. Whilst two apprentices are nearing the end of their second year, Sam Simpson and Jake Holmes have been receiving onsite training, spending the last year working towards their NVQ level 3 and completing their ONC in Electrical & Electronic Engineering in preparation for starting their HNC this year.
Knowledge and competency undoubtedly go hand-in-hand with selecting the right individual to work at Tritech. As Bill Jaffray, Process and Improvements Manager comments, skills, commitment and teamwork are at the heart of Tritech: “Establishing student placements within Tritech has allowed us to attract the best calibre of individuals. The programme we offer allows the students to interact with their peers as we create a learning environment which necessitates teamwork.”
ECA and CSIP Exhibit a Range of Advanced Robotics at Rio Oil and Gas
ECA will exhibit a powerful hybrid ROV/crawler, the Roving Bat, at Rio Oil and Gas Expo and Conference, alongside their UK subsidiary, CSIP. ECA and CSIP, specialists in advanced robotics and intelligent solutions for defence and civil security, will introduce the Roving Bat, a time-saving, cost efficient and life saving system that inspects the hulls of ships, FPSOs, underwater structures and hydraulic dams. It is also used for security applications, to search and dispose of limpet mines and other explosive, suspect devices attached on ships hulls, harbour walls or piers.
The Roving Bat features 6 built-in thrusters, 2 longitudinal and 4 vertical, making it very powerful and capable of withstanding the strongest of currents for stable and reliable inspection. The ROV reaches its target in free-flying mode and sticks to any vertical or inclined surface. It can then move along this surface in crawling mode for close inspection achieving coverage of up to 20 metres per minute.
Since launching the Roving Bat last year and exhibiting it at a number of exhibitions worldwide, the ROV has caught the attention of the defence and civil security community. Managing Director of CSIP, Simon Gilligan said: “The first company to purchase the Roving Bat was Brazilian oil and gas giant, Petrobras, to discover whether there may be corrosion or lesions on the hull of Floating Production, Storage and Offloading vessels. The Roving Bat has since been upgraded and the new high performance vehicle has recently been released. We are receiving a great number of enquiries from interested parties.
“Rio Oil and Gas is a great opportunity to introduce the Roving Bat to an even wider audience and with CSIP’s experts available to talk through the benefits of the Roving Bat, I am sure it will gain great interest at the exhibition.”
CSIP will also exhibit the latest generation of the 5 Function Electric Underwater Manipulator Arm, ARM 5 E, featuring new software for 2010. The electric five-function arm performs to the same level as a hydraulic arm, but offers a number of advantages, which include the removal of a pump and valve pack, reducing the weight of the arm. Another main benefit is the improved safety of an electronic arm as it removes the possibility of hydraulic fluid leaking out. The electric motors are brushless and will operate in oil, all the actuator and junction box voids are therefore oil-filled and pressure compensated to 0.4 Bar above ambient, with 7500 metre rated seals.
www.csip.co.uk
Heerema Marine Contractors To Build New Vessel
Heerema Marine Contractors (HMC) has announced the signing of a letter of intent with Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Co., Ltd., Korea (DSME), for the building of a new Deep Water Construction Vessel. The new-build will be an investment of US$ 600-700 million.
For this investment HMC selected to build a Monohull Vessel with the capability to execute complex deep water infrastructure and pipeline projects in ultra deep water, and also with sufficient lifting capacity to execute installation of fixed platforms in relatively shallow water. A key attribute of the vessel will be its fast transit speed. HMC believes this will complement its existing fleet providing a unique fleet composition, which will allow HMC to continue to offer unrivalled services to the offshore oil and gas industry on a world-wide basis.
DSME has been awarded the design, engineering, procurement, construction, installation, commissioning and testing of the vessel. Huisman will be responsible for the cranes, tower and reels. The vessel is scheduled for completion of all tests & trials by mid-2013.
Jan Pieter Klaver, Chief Executive Officer of HMC, said: “With this new Deep Water Construction Vessel, HMC will reinforce its unique position in the deep water pipelay market. We are confident that with DSME and Huisman we found reliable partners who can build a key asset that will assist us in expanding further into more ultradeep and complex SURF projects globally.”
This new 210 meters long self-propelled vessel will be fitted with a pipelay tower for J-lay (tension capacity of 2.000 metric tons) and reeling. A crane with a revolving lift capacity of 4.000 metric tons is installed together with deepwater lowering equipment to reach a water depth of 3.500 meters, which is compatible with our Deep Water Construction Vessel Balder. The vessel will also be equipped with a class 3 dynamic positioning system. The hull configuration is specially designed for fast transit speed and optimum motion characteristics in operation whilst the maximum pipe payload is 4.500 metric tons. The deckhouse is designed to the latest standards and can accommodate 289 persons.
www.heerema.com
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