On April 20, 2010, an explosion occurred on the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 people. It is hypothesized that the salt precipitated out of hypersaline seawater when Africa and South America pulled away from North America during the Triassic and Jurassic, some 200 million years ago. An ocean basin is simply any large area covered with seawater and located below sea level. One of the most devastating was Hurricane Katrina, which formed in the Gulf of Mexico in 2005 and caused over 1,200 deaths and $125 billion in damage, mostly concentrated in New Orleans, Louisiana and surrounding areas. The Gulf of Mexico is the ninth-largest body of water in the world with a surface area of approximately 600,000 square miles. This oceanic basin is surrounded by North America to the north, Mexico to the south and west, and the Caribbean Sea and Cuba to the southeast. Rent a whole home for your next weekend or holiday. Gulf of Mexico 2017 Mission Overview From November 29 through December 21, 2017, a team of scientists and technicians, both at-sea and shore-based, conducted exploratory investigations into the diversity and distribution of deep-sea habitats and associated marine communities in the Gulf of Mexico … According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the Gulf is the ninth-largest body of water in the world. That fresh water, less dense than ocean water, sits on top of the ocean, preventing oxygen from mixing through the water column. Oceans and gulfs are large bodies of water. The Gulf of Mexico is the largest gulf in the world, as well as the world’s 9th largest body of water. Both oceans and gulfs are large bodies of saltwater, but gulfs are smaller and are bordered on three sides by land. In fact, literally generations of families have made it an annual tradition to come down for beach vacations as often as they can. The Gulf covers approximately 800 nautical miles, with almost half being shallow continental shelf waters. Check out our guide on the 13 colonies for everything you need to know about the colonies and how the US came to be. The numbers are in. The feature known as Horseshoe Basin in the western Gulf of Mexico shows up far more clearly on the new high-resolution map (right). The Gulf of Mexico was likely formed roughly 300 million years ago when part of the ocean floor gradually sank due to plate tectonics. Scientists have determined this year’s Gulf of Mexico “dead zone,” an area of low oxygen that can kill fish and marine life, is 8,776 square miles, an area about the size of New Jersey. Where Is the Gulf of Mexico? The Gulf of Mexico is the ninth largest ocean basin in the world, covering almost 600,000 square miles. The oil and gas energy industry is vital to the economy of the Gulf of Mexico and the nation. The Gulf of Mexico is considered a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains about 2,500 quadrillion liters of saltwater. The park protects 70 miles of coastline, dunes, prairies, and wind tidal flats teeming with life. Here’s a Gulf of Mexico map: To the south and southwest, the Gulf of Mexico is bordered by Mexico. The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 160+ SAT Points, How to Get a Perfect 1600, by a Perfect Scorer, Free Complete Official SAT Practice Tests. They connect a sea/ocean to a landmass and often have narrower openings than bays (although this isn’t a hard rule). Population along the Gulf coast exploded in the 1950s, and the rising number of people living along the Gulf resulted in increased pollution problems. The College Entrance Examination BoardTM does not endorse, nor is it affiliated in any way with the owner or any content of this site. Over 40 species of sharks live in the Gulf of Mexico. Gulf of Mexico Facts . Read our guide on transcendentalism for everything you need to know about key transcendentalist beliefs, an overview of the movement's history, and key players. When painter Winslow Homer first sailed into the Gulf of Mexico, he was struck by its "special kind of providence." This is the 3rd smallest dead zone in the Gulf since mapping of the zone began in 1985. Strange Americana: Does Video Footage of Bigfoot Really Exist? GCOOS is developing as a sustained ocean observing system that provides data, information, and products on marine and estuarine systems to a wide range of users. key transcendentalist beliefs, an overview of the movement's history, and key players. The Gulf of Mexico is bordered by 1,680 miles of US coastline. The Gulf Stream, a warm Atlantic current, originates in the Gulf of Mexico and influences the climate of both the east coast of the United States and the west coast of Europe. The Gulf of Mexico is known for its productive fisheries, oil and gas economy and resilient communities. We need you to speak up for open ocean restoration. Interested in early American history? Image courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, Gulf of Mexico 2014. A Comprehensive Guide. It has grown to become one of the world’s most important offshore petroleum production sites, and about 17% of the US’s oil comes from there. Not sure where the Gulf of Mexico is? The Gulf of Mexico holds huge untapped offshore oil deposits that could help power the U.S. for decades. These cores are sampled at 5 mm increments and used to reconstruct sea surface temperature in the Gulf of Mexico over the past 1000 years. We've gathered 113 of the most amazing facts you can use to impress anyone you meet. Today, there are roughly 27,000 abandoned oil and gas wells underneath the Gulf. The 2020 Gulf of Mexico Hypoxic Zone, or Dead Zone, an area of low oxygen that can kill fish and marine life near the bottom of the sea, measures 2,116 square miles. Today, the most serious pollution threats to the Gulf of Mexico come from oil drilling and agricultural runoff. Still interested in learning more about the Gulf of Mexico? The gulf was considered part of the Atlantic Ocean until the 1540s, when it was named the Seno Mexicano by Spain. The Gulf of Mexico is the ninth-largest body of water in the world with a surface area of approximately 600,000 square miles. Gulf of Mexico, Spanish Golfo de México, partially landlocked body of water on the southeastern periphery of the North American continent. Deepwater drilling accounts for approximately half of the oil production in the Gulf. The measured size is close to the 8,185 square miles forecast by NOAA in June. The map below shows the estimate of the surface currents in the Gulf of Mexico. The Gulf of Mexico is fed by the waters of 33 American rivers, the largest of which is the Mississippi River. The dead zone is an area where nutrient pollution from lawns, sewage treatment plants, farm land and other sources along the Mississippi River wash into the Gulf of Mexico, causing algae blooms that deplete oxygen from the water and make it difficult for marine life to survive. It is a safe nesting ground for the Kemp’s ridley sea turtle and a haven for 380 bird species. It often raises the Gulf of Mexico water temperature, which can also lead to the formation and strengthening of hurricanes. The Gulf of Mexico is very different from the Atlantic Ocean, primarily due to the color and makeup of the sand as well as the clarity, color and temperature of the water. Ocean and gulf are large water bodies. Download larger version (jpg, 1.5 MB) . The Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System. That is equivalent to the volume of over 200 Olympic-sized swimming pools. All major bodies of saltwater, including the oceans, are ocean basins. The Gulf is responsible for approximately 17 percent of total U.S. domestic oil production and approximately five percent of total natural gas production. ACT Writing: 15 Tips to Raise Your Essay Score, How to Get Into Harvard and the Ivy League, Is the ACT easier than the SAT? Our mission with Okeanos Explorer will be to try to figure out from the clues we find on the seafloor if the site really is a shipwreck, how old it may be, what it was doing before it sunk, and where it came from. You can help! The Gulf of Mexico has been a source of oil since 1938, when the first oil well was drilled there. How deep is the Gulf of Mexico? How the COVID-19 Pandemic Will Change In-Person Retail Shopping in Lasting Ways. Integrated Ocean Observation System (IOOS). Over the centuries, people continued to use the Gulf of Mexico as a source of food and resources, as well as for navigation. Transcendentalism was a key movement in 19th-century America, but many people still aren't sure what it was all about. Water Temperature Table of the Eastern Gulf of Mexico (Google Maps-based Web page) Last Updated: Thu Jan 21, 11:01:16 UTC 2021 It’s considered one of the worst natural disasters in history, and efforts to reverse some of the damage that was caused are still ongoing. GCOOS is the heart of data collection for ocean and coastal waters in the Gulf of Mexico - collecting thousands of data points from sensors and ensuring that the information is reliable, timely and accurate before disseminating it to the ocean … Although Native Americans living in the region used the Gulf of Mexico for centuries as a source of food and building materials, the first European to explore the Gulf was Italian Amerigo Vespucci in 1497. When comparing the two, Ocean is … “Red tide” algae blooms in the Gulf have led to large die-offs of marine species, and the Gulf of Mexico is reported to contain one of the highest levels of microplastics in the world. In this guide, we explain exactly where the Gulf of Mexico is and what its boundaries are, and we include a Gulf of Mexico map so you can see a visual of it. Fish caught in the Gulf of Mexico make up about ⅕ of the total catch in the US. About 5 million acres of wetlands border the Gulf of Mexico. These maps of ocean surface currents determined from satellite measurements provide information to scientists, decision makers, and emergency response personnel about the present oceanic flows and how they are changing with time. A gulf is a part of the ocean and is a large area of an ocean of a sea that is enclosed by land partially or on three sides. What SAT Target Score Should You Be Aiming For? Before it was capped three months later, approximately 134 million gallons of oil had spilled into the ocean. Many of our Ocean Reef Resorts guests already know this, which is why they choose to vacation here year after year. Our Ocean Reef Resorts guests come to the Gulf of Mexico every year to visit the dazzling Emerald Coast of Northwest Florida. Shrimp and oysters are the most common fish products harvested from the Gulf. hbspt.cta.load(360031, '4efd5fbd-40d7-4b12-8674-6c4f312edd05', {}); Have any questions about this article or other topics? Looking for more fun facts? 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