Tracking Ice during an Oil Well Blowout in the Arctic

If a blowout at an offshore well in the Beaufort Sea continued into the winter, oil would be painted on the underside of the moving pack ice. The analysis in this paper indicates that a significant quantity of oil trapped under the ice would be in the form of large pools as a result of the ice moving very slowly or stopping Oil entrapped under the ice migrates to the ice surface in the spring. On-ice cleanup activities should commence at the locations of these large pools of oil.