The Big Picture

I frequently hear folks voicing frustration over the ongoing spill in the Gulf. They wonder why it is taking so long to contain or cap the leaking well. A contributing factor to their frustration is that they don't fully understand the difficulties faced by BP and the government. BP has spent millions of dollars to prepare graphics for the press, illustrating each procedure that they are trying. While these diagrams are somewhat helpful, they do little to convey the true scale of the problem. For example, the diagram released for the "top hat" LMRP Cap procedure is shown below.

Click for Full Size Image

Judging from this diagram, it looks like a fairly simple task to remove the damaged riser and and apply the cap to trap the oil. It appears simple, because the image is not drawn to scale. The 5000' foot depth of the water is depicted as little more than three times the height of the Blow Out Preventer (BOP) stack. Here is the same image, rescaled so the depth of the water is consistent with the height of the 5-story tall BOP Stack. Note that the size of the ship and the BOP are not to scale to allow then to be visible.


By tjowens at 2010-05-30

At this extreme depth, all of the work must be done via remotely controlled submarines, guided only by the same grainy videos of the wellhead that you have been watching on TV. Still look like a simple procedure?