
(CNN) – A 1-by-5-mile sheen of crude oil mix has spread across the Gulf of Mexico's surface around the area where an oil rig exploded and sank, according to the Coast Guard.
"This is a rainbow sheen with a dark center," Coast Guard Rear Adm. Mary Landry told reporters.
Officials do not know whether oil or fuel are leaking from the sunken Deepwater Horizon rig and the well below, but BP Vice President David Rainey said "it certainly has the potential to be a major spill."
A remotely operated vehicle is surveying the area and cleanup efforts are under way, Landry said. The sheen "probably is residual from the fire and the activity that was going on on this rig before it sank below the surface," she said. Read more


It's because of things like this that I heat my home with a pellet stove and use only renewable electricity. The problem is, what fuels the company that makes the pellets I use? Or the materials used to make the windmills or solar panels for the power? How careful are the manufacturers about energy use? Probably not very.
What is it going to take to turn people to alternative fuel research and production? How many coal mines and oil spills before solar and wind are mass produced?