NSU Horizons Fall 2017

30 NSU HORIZONS The Deepwater Horizon oil spill—considered to be the worst in U.S. history, during which 11 people died— happened more than seven years ago, but research into this incident continues to be important. And, researchers from NSU’s Halmos College of Natural Sciences and Oceanography (HCNSO) are at the forefront of this intense study focusing on the long-term effects of having 4.9 million barrels of oil and chemicals—in addition to disper- sants—released into the Gulf of Mexico at one time. Working both at the NSU labs and offshore in the Gulf, the researchers have been gathering data on the myriad life forms that call the waters home, some of which reside 1,500 meters below the surface. “The deep ocean is by far Earth’s largest, yet least known ecosystem. The Deepwater Horizon oil spill high- lights a growing concern—resource extraction in environ- ments where no faunal inventories exist,” said associate Sea Change NSU SCIENTISTS LEAD DEEPWATER HORIZON RESEARCH