“Drifting in the Gulf” Video Depicts the Trials and Errors of Designing the Perfect Drifter
– May 25, 2017
The Deepwater Horizon event highlighted the need for more economical and ecofriendly methods to accurately track and study ocean currents. Scientists with the Consortium for Advanced Research on Transport of Hydrocarbon in the Environment II (CARTHE II) spent two years testing different structures and materials to develop a practical, cost-efficient, and biodegradable drifter design. They partnered with the media brand Waterlust to create a video describing the researchers’ experience designing, testing, and deploying the new GPS-equipped drifters during the Lagrangian Submesoscale Experiment (LASER), the largest ocean drifter experiment in history.
CARTHE, based at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, unites over fifty of the nation’s top ocean modelers and air-sea interaction experts to investigate the transport of Deepwater Horizon hydrocarbons. Their mission is to predict the fate of oil released into our environment to help inform and guide response teams, thereby protecting and minimizing damage to human health, the economy, and the environment. Waterlust is a purpose-driven brand creating media to inspire scientific curiosity and sustainable products to support marine science research and education. CARTHE previously collaborated with Waterlust to create “Bob the Drifter,” an award-nominated educational video popular with students around the globe.