How the "top kill" should work

The idea of a top kill is to overcome the pressure of oil flowing out of the well by pumping heavier drilling mud down into it.

SOURCE: BP; Paul Bommer, professor of petroleum engineering at the University of Texas at Austin | Bonnie Berkowitz and Alberto Cuadra,

See Also :

BP poised for 'top kill' to try to plug spill; final decision to come Wednesday

BP About to Take its Best Shot at Shutting Massive Oil Leak