The 2010 Macondo oil well blowout consisted in a localized, intense infusion of petroleum hydrocarbons to the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico. A substantial amount of these hydrocarbons did not reach the ocean surface but remained confined at depth within subsurface plumes, the largest and deepest of which was found at ∼ 1000–1200 m of depth, along the continental slope (the deep plume). This review outlines the challenges the science community overcame since 2010, the discoveries and the remaining open questions in interpreting and predicting the distribution, fate and impact of the Macondo oil entrained in the deep plume. In the past 10 years, the scientific community supported by the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) and others, has achieved key milestones in observing, conceptualizing and understanding the physical oceanography of the Gulf of Mexico along its northern continental shelf and slope. Major progress has been made in modeling the transport, evolution and degradation of hydrocarbons. Here we review this new knowledge and modeling tools, how our understanding of the deep plume formation and evolution has evolved, and how research in the past decade may help preparing the scientific community in the event of a future spill in the Gulf or elsewhere. We also summarize briefly current knowledge of the plume fate – in terms of microbial degradation and geochemistry – and impacts on fish, deep corals and mammals. Finally, we discuss observational, theoretical, and modeling limitations that constrain our ability to predict the three-dimensional movement of waters in this basin and the fate and impacts of the hydrocarbons they may carry, and we discuss research priorities to overcome them.

中文翻译：

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马孔多井喷期间形成的石油烃深羽流的运输、归宿和影响

2010 年 Macondo 油井井喷包括向墨西哥湾深水局部大量注入石油烃。大量的这些碳氢化合物没有到达海洋表面，但仍被限制在地下羽状物的深处，其中最大和最深的发现在沿大陆坡（深羽状物）的深度约 1000-1200 米处。本综述概述了科学界自 2010 年以来克服的挑战、在解释和预测深羽中夹带的 Macondo 石油的分布、归宿和影响方面的发现和尚待解决的问题。在过去的 10 年里，在墨西哥湾研究计划 (GoMRI) 和其他机构的支持下，科学界在观测、概念化和理解墨西哥湾沿其北部大陆架和斜坡的物理海洋学。在模拟碳氢化合物的输运、演化和降解方面取得了重大进展。在这里，我们回顾了这些新知识和建模工具，我们对深羽流形成和演化的理解是如何演变的，以及过去十年的研究如何帮助科学界为未来海湾或其他地方发生泄漏事件做好准备。我们还简要总结了羽流归宿的当前知识——在微生物降解和地球化学方面——以及对鱼类、深珊瑚和哺乳动物的影响。最后，我们讨论观察的、理论的、