DGoMB

The "Deepwater Program: Northern Gulf of Mexico Continental Slope Habitats and Benthic Ecology" (DGoMB) program is funded by the Minerals Management Services (MMS).The program is intended to provide information to the MMS to develop a better understanding of the deep-sea areas that will be potentially impacted by current and future exploration and production of fossil fuel reserves in the deep water Gulf of Mexico (GOM), defined as the area with water depths from 300 to 3000 meters and mostly in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the United States. The study is focused on areas that are most likely to be the target of future resource exploration and production. However, to develop an understanding of deep-sea communities, sampling in areas beyond those thought to be potential areas for exploration may be needed. A Gulf-wide perspective is sought to define the structure and function of the deep-sea communities of interest.

The proposed program will provide a better understanding of:

  • the present condition of biological communities in the study area,
  • the distribution and patterns of important deep-sea biota,
  • the biological and physical processes that control the environmental setting, and
  • the effects that these processes have on the character of benthic and benthopelagic communities

The study emphasizes understanding the make-up and variability of soft-bottom biological communities with a secondary effort to characterize the important biological and abiotic processes that sustain or change the observed patterns. The study will:

  • detail the composition and structure of slope biological communities
  • infer the relationship between these communities and local conditions and forcing factors,
  • characterize the "health" and functioning of deep-sea communities, and
  • compare and contrast the GOM region with similar oceanic basins.
  • Sample Locations

    B1 WC12 WC5 NB2 RW1 RW2 RW3 RW4 RW5 RW6 AC1 W1 W2 W3 W4 W5 W6 B2 NB3 NB5 B3 NB4
Leg 1 Leg 2

Reports from Gilbert T. Rowe, Ph.D., DGoMB Program Manager, Chief Scientist aboard the R/V GYRE


Cruise Updates - LEG1
Station Reports
Data and Information
  May 4, 2000 - WC5 SeaWiFS Data
  May 5, 2000 - WC12 Sea Surface Height Anomaly 1/98-12/98
  May 6, 2000 - B1 Sea Surface Height Anomaly 1/99-12/99
  May 7, 2000 - NB2  
 
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
May 22, 2000 -Port logistics
 
   
 
     
  Go To LEG 2 Reports