Pore water chemical compositions were measured within long piston cores (up to 38 m) from three areas in the abyssal Gulf of Mexico (Tunica Mound, Bush Hill, and Mississippi Canyon) to constrain whether gas hydrates were likely to exist in the near subsurface. The intention was to establish if conditions favorable for gas hydrate formation exist in basin sediments away from obvious fault controlled fluid flow conduits that bring fluids to the seafloor.