The next round of hearings on the cause of April's deadly rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico and the subsequent oil spill are scheduled to begin Monday near New Orleans.

The April 20 Deepwater Horizon blast killed 11 workers and sent an unprecedented amount of crude oil gushing into the waters of the Gulf.

Federal investigators will be examining British Petroleum's safety culture and the use of chemical dispersants.
    
The weeklong hearings will be the fifth series held by the joint U.S. Coast Guard-Bureau of Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement investigative panel. The panel will also investigate how safety and oversight can be improved on deepwater drilling platforms.

Meanwhile, there are additional federal investigations underway. BP, which finally succeeded in permanently sealing the gushing well in September, faces the potential for both civil and criminal fines and penalties.