News Oceans

Sunlight helps clean up oil spills in the ocean more than previously thought

Solar radiation may have dissolved up to 17 percent of the surface oil from Deepwater Horizon

aerial photo of a U.S. Coast Guard boat collecting spilled oil from Deepwater Horizon

On April 28, 2010, eight days after an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico, this U.S. Coast Guard boat collected spilled oil. Sunlight may have helped dissolve 3 to 17 percent of the surface oil, researchers say.

Chris Graythen/Getty Images

By Carolyn Gramling

- More than 2 years ago

Sunlight may have helped remove as much as 17 percent of the oil slicking the surface of the Gulf of Mexico following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill.