| Location: | Discoverer Deep Seas |
| Position: | Gulf of Mexico |
| Depth: | 10,000 ft |
| Dates: | 2004 |
| Industry Partners | |
| Gas & Oil Company | Chevron |
| ROV Operator: | Subsea7 |
| Rig operator: | Transocean |
| SERPENT Representatives: | Dr. Ian Hudson, Ben Wigham, Professor Gil Rowe |
Mission Story
The Gulf of Mexico is one of the largest offshore production areas in the world with oil and gas exploration and production now occurring at greater and greater depths. It was the chance to use ROVs at these greater depths to carry out new and novel experimental projects that attracted NOC,S and Oceanlab researchers Ian Hudson and Ben Wigham to the Gulf of Mexico region. The collaboration with Professor Gil Rowe, and his deep-sea biology group at Texas A&M University, provides the project with a great wealth of background knowledge of the region and a proven expertise in deep-sea experimental biology.
The first collaborative project in this region was based on the Transocean drill ship the Discoverer Deep Seas. This ship was under contract in 2004 to new partner Chevron-Texaco to drill the world's deepest oil well at 10,000ft (>3000m) water depth in the Gulf of Mexico. Images and video of species encountered around the area were regularly sent back to the SERPENT project.
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