But while the breakup of surface oil from the disastrous BP spill may seem like long-overdue good news, experts caution that just because something looks better doesn't mean it actually is.
"No magic elves here," Aaron Viles, campaign director for the Gulf Restoration Network, told AOL News. "Some oil has evaporated, some has been consumed by microbes ... much of it is in deep-water plumes and just [below the] surface."
Those who were bracing for an excruciating, hands-on cleanup effort like the kind seen after the Exxon Valdez disaster may have been pleasantly surprised. The warm-water gulf is much more biologically active than frigid Prince William Sound, meaning microbes break things down faster. Plus, a deep-water spill puts oil into contact with microbes much sooner than a surface spill would.
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But the process of decomposition is more complicated than it would seem.
"People are talking about the absence of oil per se, meaning gloppy black stuff you would find on the ground, as opposed to all the different constituents of oil going all over the place," Doug Rader, chief ocean scientist for the Environmental Defense Fund, told AOL News. "Just because something is broken down doesn't mean it isn't problematic."
The oil and its constituent parts have been mixed throughout the water column, thanks in large part to the fact that the spill originated nearly a mile below the surface, but also because of BP's widespread use of dispersants. The resulting contamination problem is harder to see -- and it's also harder to predict how it will affect the ecosystem in the long term.
Federal officials are cautiously optimistic about the way the oil's toxins seem to be moving through the environment. According to the National Marine Fisheries Service, concentrations remain in the parts per million or parts per billion, even close to the wellhead. However, some compounds -- like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) -- are a concern even at those levels.
The oil problem goes all the way down, too. It's estimated that 20 to 30 percent of the oil from the 1979 Ixtoc 1 spill in the gulf ended up on the seafloor. Rader suspects we'll see similar numbers with the BP spill, but the only problem is that nobody has bothered to look.
"There have been no expeditions down to the deep-water reefs," he said. "No reconnaissance on the bottom. And oil on the bottom isn't out of play."
Bottom-dwelling worms eat the oil, and they in turn get eaten by bottom-feeding fish, through which the contaminants can eventually make their way through the food chain to our restaurants and grocery stores.
So far, though, testing of gulf seafood has been stringent, and there have been no instances of toxic fish entering the market or of people getting sick.
Gulf Oil Spill
A crew member looks out at the California Responder oil skimming vessel from the deck of the Pacific Responder in the Gulf of Mexico near the coast of Louisiana Monday, July 12, 2010. The vessels sailed from their home ports in California to the Gulf of Mexico to assist in the containment of oil leaking from the Deepwater Horizon oil well. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
Vessels assisting in the containment of oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil well leak are seen from the Pacific Responder oil skimming vessel in the Gulf of Mexico near the coast of Louisiana Monday, July 12, 2010. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
Crew members connect a hose to an intake for recovered oil while preparing for skimming operations on the Pacific Responder oil skimming vessel in the Gulf of Mexico near the coast of Louisiana Monday, July 12, 2010. The vessel sailed from its home port in the San Francisco Bay Area to the Gulf of Mexico to assist in the containment of oil leaking from the Deepwater Horizon oil well. It arrived near the leak site this morning and is awaiting orders from on-water coordinators. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
The New Jersey Responder oil skimming vessel is seen on the Gulf of Mexico near the coast of Louisiana Monday, July 12, 2010. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
Senior master responder Jeff Bramlett walks past rolled-up oil booms while preparing for oil skimming operations on the deck of the Pacific Responder oil skimming vessel in the Gulf of Mexico near the coast of Louisiana Monday, July 12, 2010. The vessel sailed from its home port in the San Francisco Bay Area to the Gulf of Mexico to assist in the containment of oil leaking from the Deepwater Horizon oil well. It arrived near the leak site this morning and is awaiting orders from on-water coordinators. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
Supervisor Wade Falany handles an oil suction hose while preparing for skimming operations on the deck of the Pacific Responder oil skimming vessel in the Gulf of Mexico near the coast of Louisiana Monday, July 12, 2010. The vessel sailed from its home port in the San Francisco Bay Area to the Gulf of Mexico to assist in the containment of oil leaking from the Deepwater Horizon oil well. It arrived near the leak site this morning and is awaiting orders from on-water coordinators. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
In this image taken from video provided by BP PLC, oil flows from the top of the transition spool at the site of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Monday, July 12, 2010. Deep-sea robots swarmed around BP's ruptured oil well Monday in a delicately choreographed effort to attach a tighter-fitting cap that could finally stop crude from gushing into the Gulf of Mexico nearly three months into the crisis. (AP Photo/BP PLC) NO SALES
Deck hand Martin Mayorga carries netting while preparing for skimming operations on the deck of the Pacific Responder oil skimming vessel in the Gulf of Mexico near the coast of Louisiana Monday, July 12, 2010. The vessel sailed from its home port in the San Francisco Bay Area to the Gulf of Mexico to assist in the containment of oil leaking from the Deepwater Horizon oil well. It arrived near the leak site this morning and is awaiting orders from on-water coordinators. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
Supervisor Wade Falany handles a rope while preparing for oil skimming operations on the deck of the Pacific Responder oil skimming vessel in the Gulf of Mexico near the coast of Louisiana Monday, July 12, 2010. The vessel sailed from its home port in the San Francisco Bay Area to the Gulf of Mexico to assist in the containment of oil leaking from the Deepwater Horizon oil well. It arrived near the leak site this morning and is awaiting orders from on-water coordinators. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
In this image taken from video provided by BP PLC, the new containment cap, left, is lowered toward the site of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, right, as a remotely operated vehicle operates in between the two in the Gulf of Mexico, Monday, July 12, 2010. Deep-sea robots swarmed around BP's ruptured oil well Monday in a delicately choreographed effort to attach a tighter-fitting cap that could finally stop crude from gushing into the Gulf of Mexico nearly three months into the crisis. (AP Photo/BP PLC) NO SALES
