Distinct side-scan sonar, RADARSAT SAR, and acoustic profiler signatures of gas and oil seeps on the Gulf of Mexico slope |
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| Authors: | S M De Beukelaer I R MacDonald N L Guinnasso Jr J A Murray |
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| Institution: | (1) Geochemical and Environmental Research Group, Texas A&M University, 727 Graham Road, College Station, TX 77845, USA;(2) Texas A&M University at Corpus Christi, 6300 Ocean Drive, Corpus Christi, TX 78412, USA;(3) The Center for Marine Science, University of North Carolina at Wilmington, 5600 Marvin K. Moss Lane, Wilmington, NC 28409, USA;(4) Present address: Washington State Department of Ecology, P.O. Box 47600, Olympia, WA 98504-7600, USA |
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| Abstract: | We examined bubble streams from four natural seep sites on the upper continental slope of the Gulf of Mexico. Synthetic aperture radar images verified surface oil slicks over sites with oily bubbles but not over those with non-oily bubbles. Non-oily bubbles produced high backscatter on side-scan sonar records, but were difficult to detect with acoustic profilers. Oily bubbles produced clear signatures extending from the seafloor to the near-surface on acoustic profiles and produced acoustic shadows on side-scan sonar records. We hypothesize that the bubbles oily coating causes the different signatures, since all bubbles were resonant at the tested frequencies. |
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