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In the first half of the program, scientist J. Marvin Herndon discussed methane gas fears in the Gulf disaster. "Petroleum and natural gas deposits largely come about as a consequence of the earth fracturing," he said, and if there are cracks at the site of the oil leak, the initial fracture could spread, and potentially release a huge methane bubble. There've been suggestions that mass extinctions occurred in the distant past due to methane releases, he noted.
Richard C. Hoagland, who joined the conversation, said "we know there's a bulge-- the crust is literally being lifted upward in a ridge...and something is pushing it up, which is the pressurization of this extraordinary methane bubble they pierced with this deep well," which could be as deep as six miles down. If the methane bubble is released, it will cause water displacement that could create a massive tsunami, he warned. He called for the release of real time mud log data, so non-BP geologists could evaluate the situation.
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