Gulf of Mexico

The Gulf of Mexico is a large ocean basin bordered by the United States, Mexico, and Cuba. It connects to the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean.

Yucatán Channel: A passage between Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula and Cuba that connects the Caribbean Sea to the Gulf of Mexico. It is the gulf’s main deep-water entrance from the Caribbean.
Loop Current eddy: A rotating body of water shed by the Loop Current, often carrying warm water westward across the Gulf of Mexico. These eddies transport heat and influence regional currents.
Gulf of Mexico oil and gas industry: The offshore extraction of petroleum and natural gas from fields beneath the Gulf of Mexico. Its platforms and pipelines make the gulf a major energy-producing region.
Breakup of Pangaea: The Mesozoic-era separation of the supercontinent Pangaea into distinct continental landmasses. Continental separation opened the basin that became the Gulf of Mexico.
Coastal erosion: The removal of shoreline material by waves, currents, storms, or other processes. Erosion threatens gulf beaches, barrier islands, and developed shorelines.
Florida Straits: A passage between Florida and Cuba connecting the Gulf of Mexico with the Atlantic Ocean. Water leaving the gulf through this passage helps form the Florida Current.
Mississippi River Delta: A sediment-built landform at the Mississippi River’s mouth on the northern Gulf of Mexico. River sediment builds the delta while dams and subsidence alter its growth.
Gulf of Mexico fisheries: Commercial and recreational fishing industries harvesting species from the Gulf of Mexico. The gulf supports valuable fisheries, including shrimp, oysters, and reef fish.
Yucatán Block: A crustal block that rifted from the North American margin and underlies much of the Yucatán Peninsula and adjacent gulf. Its movement helped shape the gulf’s early basin geometry.
Sea-level rise: A long-term increase in the average height of the ocean surface relative to land. It compounds flooding and wetland loss along low-lying gulf coasts.

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