MOUSSEÜ NOUN (ENVIRONMENT)

A frothy mixture of oil and sea-water which may develop after an oil spill and which is very difficult to disperse; known more fully as chocolate mousse. Etymology: The same word as mousse° above; in this case, definitely so named because of its resemblance to the edible mousse. History and Usage: The term was first used (in the fuller form chocolate mousse) in relation to the Torrey Canyon disaster in 1967, and appears to have taken the unusual route for a technical term of starting in the writing of lay reporters in the press and only later being taken up by specialists as a precise term (a water-in-oil emulsion of 50 to 80 per cent water content). From technical writing in the seventies, it moved back into the popular press each time there was a major oil spill--most recently in relation to the Exxon Valdez incident in Alaska in 1989. The Ixtoc 1 well released oil for 9 months into the open ocean where winds and currents dispersed the floating mousse...which had formed at the wellhead. Nature 19 Mar. 1981, p. 235 He said the main part of the slick is about 30 miles from shore, half the distance from the ship to the shore, and thin streamers of oil with the consistency of mousse extend another 10 miles toward shore. New York Times 15 June 1990, section A, p. 12