The Performance of Drifters for Oil Spill Tracking

Abstract

Oil spills can be devastating to marine ecosystems so knowing how to track where the spills should go is a concern that could decide the fate of communities near spills. After contemplation on which design of drifter would be best suited for rapid response, a design of drifter created by Charlie Brennan and refurbished by Conner Laursen is set to be the most practical and cost-effective way to track said disaster. Two field tests were conducted to determine the performance of the drifter in different conditions; the first on a harsh windy day in Puget Sound and the second in the calmer waters off the docks of the old Oceanography building. The drifters showed that the design was not perfect, as it followed the wind in Puget Sound but showed more promise than tennis balls due to the above water surface ratio, allowing the drifters to more accurately follow the currents of the water. The drifters show excellent potential in reliably and accurately predicting where oil will float to, depending on how harsh the conditions in the area are.