Projected Oil Spill Path to 6 May 2010. Deepwater Horizon 72Hr Trajectory Map: The 72 hour trajectory forecast prepared on May 3 at 11:00pm. NOAA / NOS / OR&R

By Press-Register staff
May 04, 2010, 10:38AM MOBILE, Ala. — The latest forecast track from government experts shows the oil spill from the Deepwater Horizon site still well offshore of Mississippi, Alabama and the Florida Panhandle by Thursday evening at 6 p.m. The map, prepared Monday at 11 p.m., uses information from overflights, wind data and predictions and current information from various sources. NOAA officials said winds are expected to be weak today, then become southeast to south at 5 knots to 10 knots again later  in the week. The Mississippi Delta, Breton Sound and Chandeleur Sound continue to be threatened by shoreline contact with oil throughout the next two days. The 3 models used to develop the forecast show a westward current developing south of the Mississippi Delta that could transport oil to the west of the Delta, NOAA officials said. The map reinforces what Capt. Steven Poulin, the U.S. Coast Guard incident commander and local federal on-scene coordinator, said at a news conference Monday. Poulin said at the news conference that unified spill incident command officials “are confident there will be no landfall in our area” as least through Thursday.

Latest forecast predicts oil spill will still be well off Mississippi, Alabama shorelines Thursday evening