国际英语新闻：U.S. scientists increase oil flow estimate

"This estimate, which we will continue to refine as the scientific teams get new data and conduct new analyses, is the most comprehensive estimate so far of how much oil is flowing one mile below the ocean's surface," Salazar said in a statement.

"This estimate brings together several scientific methodologies and the latest information from the sea floor, and represents a significant step forward in our effort to put a number on the oil that is escaping from BP's well," Chu said in a statement.

Leaking oil is seen in the image grabbed from the BP's live video feed monitoring the Deepwater Horizon oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico, June 15, 2010. A team of U.S. scientists studying the Gulf of Mexico oil spill estimate on Tuesday significantly increased their estimate of how much oil is spilling into the Gulf. The team said the "most likely flow rate of oil today" ranges from 35,000 to 60,000 barrels per day. That's a jump from last week's estimate of 20,000 to 40,000 barrels per day.

The Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, owned by Transocean and leased by BP, sank April 22 some 52 km off Venice, Louisiana, after burning for roughly 36 hours. The untapped wellhead continues gushing oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The White House has called the spill the biggest environmental disaster that the country has ever faced. Determining how much oil escaped the well is key to establishing liability in the spill.