Surface Drifter Trajectory Superimposed on Global HYCOM Simulated Ocean Currents
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Beginning in May 2010, and in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the Ocean Circulation Group (OCG) at the USF College of Marine Science (CMS-USF) has deployed surface drifters in and around the Loop Current and on the West Florida Continental Shelf (WFS). The intent of these deployments are to assist in monitoring the evolution of the Loop Current and its eddies and how they are interacting with the West Florida Shelf and to observe surface water movements on the WFS itself. This information is also useful in gauging the behaviors of hydrodynamic models used in tracking the oil spill. Six drifters were initially deployed during the R/V Bellows 19-24 May cruise in a joint effort between the OCG and Optical Oceanography Laboratory at the CMS-USF, FDEP, USCG, and FWC/FWRI. Three additional drifters were deployed during the R/V Weatherbird II 2-14 June cruise by the CMS-USF Ocean Circulation Group assisted by the Florida Institute of Technology (FIT). During the most recent R/V Weatherbird II cruise, 22-25 June, nine additional drifters were deployed in a joint effort by the OCG-CMS-USF and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI).
The surface currents, output from data assimilative Global HYCOM, were provided by the HYCOM Consortium. This movie shows the tracks of all active USCG (orange), WHOI (dark blue), NAVO (purple), and USF (all the other colors) drifters currently deployed in the Gulf of Mexico. The open circles on the lines indicate the drifter positions at every zero hour UTC.
Back to drifters page.
See a movie of all USF drifters recently deployed in the eastern Gulf of Mexico.
See a movie of all drifters (including inactive) recently deployed in the eastern Gulf of Mexico.
See multiple-model ensemble forecast of surface oil trajectory in the eastern Gulf of Mexico.
Related publications:
- Liu, Y., and R.H. Weisberg, 2011: Evaluation of trajectory modeling in different dynamic regions using normalized cumulative Lagrangian separation, Journal of Geophysical Research, 116, C09013, doi:10.1029/2010JC006837.
- Liu, Y., R.H. Weisberg, C. Hu, C. Kovach, and R. Riethmüller, 2011b: Evolution of the Loop Current system during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill event as observed with drifters and satellites, in Monitoring and Modeling the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: A Record-Breaking Enterprise, Geophysical Monograph Series, 195, 91-101, doi:10.1029/2011GM001127.
- Liu, Y., R.H. Weisberg, C. Hu, and L. Zheng, 2011: Combining numerical ocean circulation models with satellite observations in a trajectory forecast system: A rapid response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Proceedings of SPIE Conference 8030, 80300K. doi:10.1117/12.887983.
- Weisberg, R.H., 2011: Coastal Ocean Pollution, Water Quality and Ecology: A Commentary, MTS Journal, 45(2), 35-42.
- Liu, Y., R.H. Weisberg, C. Hu, and L. Zheng, 2011: Satellites, models combine to track Deepwater Horizon oil spill. SPIE Newsroom, doi:10.1117/2.1201104.003575.
- Hu, C., R.H. Weisberg, Y. Liu, L. Zheng, K.L. Daly, D.C. English, J. Zhao, and G.A. Vargo, 2011: Did the northeastern Gulf of Mexico become greener after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill? Geophysical Research Letters, 38, L09601, doi:10.1029/2011GL047184.
- Liu, Y., R.H. Weisberg, C. Hu, and L. Zheng, 2011: Tracking the Deepwater Horizon oil spill: A modeling perspective, EOS Transactions, American Geophysical Union, 92(6), 45-46, doi: 10.1029/2011EO060001. (EOS feature article)
Disclaimer:
The nowcast/forecast system and other analyses/data are research products under development. No warranty is made, expressed or implied, regarding accuracy, or regarding the suitability for any particular application. All rights reserved University of South Florida. Copyright University of South Florida 05/06/2010.
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