This web site is a companion to three Mississippi Public Broadcasting television broadcasts titled The Science of the Spill. This project is being conducted by University of Southern Mississippi’s Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Mississippi Public Broadcasting, and Mississippi State University. The work is sponsored by the National Science Foundation.

The explosion at BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig on April 20, 2010 resulted in the death of 11 men. During the 86 days between the explosion and the final successful attempt to close the well, an estimated 5 million gallons of crude oil flowed into the Gulf of Mexico. This was the largest oil spill in U.S. history. The well also released large volumes of natural gas. More than 1.8 million gallons of chemical dispersants were used in the response effort.

Key questions remain unanswered.

1. Is our seafood safe? (While some of the public remains concerned, the extensive testing to date shows no problems.)

2. Where is the oil? What will happen to it?

3. How will oil and dispersants affect the ecosystem?

Media and official sources sometimes provide conflicting information and conclusions. It can be difficult to identify credible sources of information. Longer term effects of the spill cannot be immediately understood and new questions are arising as research continues.

The Science of the Spill and SpillScience.com address the questions regarding the oil spill to which people want answers. With the well closed, scientists are beginning to answer some questions. However, some of the most important questions regarding the impacts of the oil will take years to answer. This web site will keep pertinent questions alive until scientists can answer them.

SpillScience.com connects scientists conducting oil spill research with the public.

1. Q&A, with emphasis on viewer questions regarding The Science of the Spill broadcasts

2. Links and resource lists, filtered to provide best sources

3. Scientists’ blog

Please ask your questions.

This web site provides a follow-up discussion to each of the three television programs. New content will be continually added to this site, including answers to your questions, interviews with scientists, and comments from scientists. We invite you to participate.