INSIGHTS INTO CENOZOIC CURRENT FLOW IN THE GULF OF MEXICO FROM NEW SEISMIC LINES FROM THE CAMPECHE BANK

Ocean circulation in the Gulf of Mexico is dominated by the Loop Current, which flows into the Gulf through the Yucatan Channel between Mexico and Cuba, and continues north before looping back down (hence the name) and exiting the Gulf through the Florida Straits, where it forms the Florida Current and then the Gulf Stream. These currents are one of the main mechanisms transporting heat northward in the Atlantic Ocean and are thus a key influence on the climate of North America and Europe. Occasionally a loop pinches off and forms a warm core eddy; these eddies tend to drift across the western Gulf and can affect fisheries, hurricane intensity, and gas hydrate stability. Despite the importance of the Loop Current for regional and global climate, very little is known about its history. When was it first established? How did it vary through time? Here, we present new data from seismic profiles collected in summer 2022 on the B/O Justo Sierra along the Campeche Bank, where the Loop Current enters the Gulf. These high-resolution images target a region where the modern seafloor contains geomorphic features characteristic of bottom water currents, i.e., moats and elongate mounded sediment drifts, which previously collected echosounder data show extending into the subsurface. Our new airgun survey was designed to image the full thickness of these drift features and tie them to nearby Deep Sea Drilling Project Site 95, which will allow dating of seismic facies and a determination of the timing of onset of drift deposition.