What Happens When an Oil Spill Occurs?

An Oil Spill Simulation

The animation below presents a simulation of an oil spill. In the simulation, 1000 barrels of medium crude oil spill into Long Island Sound off the coast of Connecticut. The simulation shows what might happen to the oil in the first twenty-four hours after the spill. The time and date for each frame of the simulation appear in the lower left corner of the image.

  !   Click the image to see the animation. Play the movie several times to explore what happens to the oil. What conditions do you think were affecting the oil in this model?