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Consumption of dissolved methane in the deep ocean 1
Author(s) -
Scranton Mary I.,
Brewer Peter G.
Publication year - 1978
Publication title -
limnology and oceanography
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.7
H-Index - 197
eISSN - 1939-5590
pISSN - 0024-3590
DOI - 10.4319/lo.1978.23.6.1207
Subject(s) - methane , atmospheric methane , environmental science , oceanography , deep water , oxygen , deep sea , atmosphere (unit) , water body , surface water , water mass , environmental chemistry , atmospheric sciences , geology , chemistry , meteorology , geography , environmental engineering , organic chemistry
Oceanic dissolved methane concentrations are normally in excess of atmospheric equilibrium values in surface waters but show a rapid decrease with depth. Deep North Atlantic waters have only ca. 30% of their atmospheric equilibrium values of methane and deep North Pacific waters have only ca. 10%. Methane consumption rates calculated from methane analyses and water mass ages derived from published data on 3 H/ 3 He ages, 14 C ages, and model calculations show that both methane and oxygen are rapidly consumed in “young” water but, while oxygen consumption continues at a low rate throughout the deep ocean, methane consumption virtually ceases within about 100 years of isolation from the surface ocean.