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Horizon Marine, Inc. Provides Fine-Scale Ocean Current Data for Eddy Franklin and Seismic Testing at the Macondo Well Site
Ever since the explosion and subsequent sinking of the Deepwater Horizon, BP and the federal government have been concerned with potential pathways for oil to migrate to the far field. In support of the environmental monitoring efforts, Horizon Marine deployed drifting GPS buoys and its ‘FAST Eddy’ ocean current surveying system mounted on Tidewater’s War Admiral. The system was deployed to monitor the location and migration pattern of Eddy Franklin (Horizon Marine has been naming Gulf of Mexico eddies since 1984) by measuring ocean current speed and direction in real time from just below the keel of the vessel to 550m below the sea surface.
NOAA’s Emergency Response Division’s Technical Services Branch Chief Debbie Payton said, “Having the FAST Eddy vessel constantly monitoring the location of the Loop Current and nearby features provided critical and timely information for our forecasters. The FAST Eddy crew also provided qualitative assessments when they saw or smelled oil, which was useful for spot checks on what we were forecasting.”
David Driver, BP’s Metocean Technical Authority for the Gulf of Mexico, praised Horizon Marine by saying, “I couldn’t be happier with the work that FAST Eddy has done in monitoring the Loop Current, Eddy Franklin, and the general nature of the currents in the MC 252 vicinity. The response was quick and the data was crucial in determining the potential for oil getting caught up in the Loop and possibly exiting the Gulf.”
As BP gained control of the well, concerns over the integrity of the Macondo well required the seismic survey vessel Geco Topaz to tow a 2.5km long cable through a 400m wide corridor between the congested field of drilling rigs and support vessels. The cable (known as a ‘streamer’) is sensitive to the influence of currents and could easily become entangled with vessels in the field. By knowing the direction and intensity of the surface currents, technicians aboard the Geco Topaz were able to ‘feather’ the streamer to fly over the wellhead and make measurements to confirm the integrity of the well. FAST Eddy continues to monitor ocean currents in the region, and these data are being used to assist with ongoing current-sensitive operations at the wellhead.
For the past 26 years, Horizon Marine has been providing the oil and gas industry with situational awareness of ocean currents in the Gulf of Mexico through their Eddy Watchtm program. This unique service utilizes both public and proprietary data to assist the offshore oil and gas industry in managing their assets in relation to strong ocean currents associated with the Loop Current and Loop Current eddies.
For additional information on Horizon Marine, please contact Patrice Coholan or visit www.horizonmarine.com.
