Oil streamers south of Cuba?

I was perusing through some of the Photos on Florida Oil Spill, a site I check several times a day, when I came across some photos of photos of oil streamers just past Marathon Key.  I did a double take.

These are the streamers that I had described to the pilot of my Miami-Managua flight on May 26th (almost four weeks ago).  I wasn't sure if it was oil or channels.  The pilot suggested they were "probably channels," but having spoken to ten pilots over the past month, I know that they are not paying too much attention when flying over the spill.  It's simply too depressing.  I, on the other hand, keep my eyes peeled for quirky things to photograph.  My camera is rarely more than two feet away.  

The problem is that when I first saw these streamers, they were SOUTH of Cuba.  That's why I readily believed they were channels although in hindsight, they didn't look like channels).  I saw these streamers again, between the Cayman Island sand Cuba.  The last time i had photographed (and deleted) them, they were near the Cuban coastline.  The second time (this current batch), I saw them a little further south.  These photos were taken on June 18th.  You can see more photos of the oil slick north of the Florida Keys here.

Click on photos for higher resolution images.

 

I should have posted these earlier, but since they didn't look like some of the other photos and because I didn't think the loop current ran south of Cuba, I chalked it up to a figament of my imagination - at least the oil part.

If these are oil streamers, then the Caribbean really has to worry.  I hope I am wrong about these particular streamers.  If any pilots, frequent flyers, biologists, oil specialists, etc., have more information as to what these photos might be, I certainly appreciate it.  I don't want to spread false rumors based upon my interpretations of these images.  However, since the government continues to LIE, LIE, LIe, I am assuming the worst.

Comments

[Kelly]

SG: Hw can the people of Cuba tell the story? How many Cubans enjoy their inalienable right to free expression? How many have the resources to traverse the waters or cross by plane?

The sheen has surrounded Cuba - north and south. It;s obvious to anyone who spend a few minutes looking out the window of the aircraft, something most people have avoided.

How many photos have we seen of the spill taken from commercial flights? We don't know what is out there. We know tat BP will not tell us the truth. And I doubt that Cuba has the resources to send planes around the island all day searching for oil. Besides, the cash-strapped government would be loathe to admit that the oil has hot their waters, as it will kill their tourist industry, one of e few things that provides hard currency for the country.

There was a reason for the question mark. I also stated that I wasn't trying to spread false rumors, but this looked different than my previous flight less than a month ago. On the May 26th crossover, I saw oil sheen in the Florida Keys. I saw it south and north of Cuba on June 18th. Maybe they are just channels, but they look out of place.

[Kelly]

These photos were taken just seconds apart,around 10:56 EST. I will try to take some more on the return flight. I wish I had not deleted the photos from two weeks earlier.

I have made more than 25 trips back i the past few years, and because i love to take photos from above, I have a pretty good idea as to what time we will reach particular atolls, channels, islands, etc. This was strange, but it may have been that I was consciously looking for oil on the May 26th flight.

I know that there is sheen south of Cuba. I could see a tiny bit, but it doesn't photograph well because (thankfully) it is so diluted.

I am really happy to be on the Pacific coast of Nicaragua, far away from this mess. Don't now how the benzene will travel, though.

Shy of a hurricane, I should be returning on June 30, and I will post more pictures then.

Again, thank you so much for your comments.

[SG]

Let the people of Cuba tell the story.

[gnuyocir]

In any event you are in a better position to judge, I can only compare photos and light, especially regarding water can play tricks on the eyes, I would suggest carrying
a "control" photo with you and comparing it to what you see and consider the lighting effects. Keep your eyes peeled!
(Managua huh?, my family is from Nica :)

[gnuyocir]

At what time were each of the photos taken?
how many hours (even approximate) separated
the 2 shots? I compared side by side and saw no diff except for what lighting could account for, would be sweet if you could photoshop some arrows in pointing out anomalies. thanks for the reply

[Kelly]

These were taken on the same day. The previous photos (deleted because I thought they were channels and I have 29,500 pictures on my hard drive and not a lot of extra room fro "garbage photos") showed longer streaks, which is why I originally thought they were channels. These were more blob like and kind of out of character for the area.

On my return flight, I will take more photos provided a.) I have access to a window seat or a window and b.) there is not a storm messing up visibility.

It wasn't until I saw the photos on Florida Oil Spill that I thought they might be streamers, but by then it was too late to look at the original photo. I will post a follow-up when I have more pics.

Thank you so much for commenting.

Kelly

[gnuyocir]

I don't believe these are oil streamers,
they are likely channels, if these photos were taken on separate occasions you will
notice they essentially stay in the same place, because of lighting differences they
may look darker or lighter but stay in the same spot, I compared the two several times to be sure and I am convinced this is the case. (Thank God!)still is always wise to stay on the lookout!