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The Open-Ocean Gulf Of Mexico After Deepwater Horizon: Synthesis Of A Decade Of Research, Tracey T. Sutton, Rosanna J. Milligan, Kendra Daly, Kevin M. Boswell, April B. Cook, Maëlle Cornic, Tamara Frank, Kaitlin Frasier, Daniel Hahn, Frank Hernandez, John Hildebrand, Chuanmin Hu, Matthew W. Johnston, Samantha B. Joye, Heather Judkins, Jon A. Moore, Steven A. Murawski, Nina M. Pruzinsky, John A. Quinlan, Andrew Remsen, Kelly L. Robinson, Isabel C. Romero, Jay R. Rooker, Michael Vecchione, R. J. Wells

Marine Science Faculty Publications

The scale of the Deepwater Horizon disaster was and is unprecedented: geographic extent, pollutant amount, countermeasure scope, and of most relevance to this Research Topic issue, range of ecotypes affected. These ecotypes include coastal/nearshore, continental shelf, deep benthic, and open-ocean domains, the last of which is the subject of this synthesis. The open-ocean ecotype comprises ~90% of the volume of the Gulf of Mexico. The exact percentage of this ecotype contaminated with toxins is unknown due to its three-dimensional nature and dynamics, but estimates suggest that the footprint encompassed most of its eastern half. Further, interactions between the water column …