Gulf of Mexico spill has dissipated

The oil slick from the Deepwater Horizon explosion, which threatened beaches and wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico, has largely vanished just two weeks after the crippled BP oil well was finally capped.

Mitch Landrieu, the Mayor of New Orleans, reported seeing no surface oil near the site of the well after taking a flight over the area at the weekend. Journalists have confirmed that aerial surveys showed almost no evidence of oil still on the surface save a few streaks and some signs of a sheen.

Coming on the 100th day of the crisis, confirmation that the slick has largely broken up was good news for the tourist industry, which has seen a steep decline in business. The very warm waters of the Gulf helped dissipate the slick, but scientists remain worried about plumes of crude beneath the surface and an ongoing threat to marine life associated with depressed oxygen levels.