Federal researchers expect and "average" dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico this year - it should only be the size of Connecticut

Scientists are expecting a large "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mexico this year.  

Scientists are predicting the area could measure between 4600 to 5700 square miles, or an area roughly the size of Connecticut.  

The Gulf dead zone forms each spring and summer off the Louisiana and Texas coast when oxygen levels drop too low to support most life in bottom and near-bottom waters.

The zone is caused by nitrates and nitrogen from fertilizer and urban runoff flowing down the Mississippi River.

The US Geologic Survey estimates that over 100 thousand metric tons of nitrate flowed down the Mississippi River into the northern gulf in May alone.

The amount of nitrogen entering the Gulf of Mexico each spring has increased by about 300 percent since the 1960s, mainly due to increased agricultural runoff.

The largest hypoxic zone measured to date occurred in 2002 and encompassed more than 8,400 square miles.  

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