By Eileen Fleming
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wwno/local-wwno-914723.mp3
New Orleans, La. – Coast Guard Rear Admiral Paul Zukunft says oil is getting harder to spot from flights he's taking over the Gulf. The New Orleans-area response commander says they originally thought this weekend's storm would contribute to the oil dissipating but .
"It moved through pretty quickly so it didn't have a chance to build up those high sea states. The wind really never got over 30 knots. And so what we're seeing is just the natural breakdown of this particular grade of crude oil."
Zukunft says satellite images are also being used to track the oil. Skimmers and shoreline operations suspended because of the weather system will be at full strength again this week. Meantime, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says its continuing to monitor traces of oil it found from the BP well in undersea plumes in the Gulf.
For NPR News, I'm Eileen Fleming in New Orleans.