Consumption of dissolved methane in the deep ocean 1

• Published in: Limnology and Oceanography
• Main Authors: Scranton, Mary I., Brewer, Peter G.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 1978
• Subjects: Aquatic Science; Oceanography; North Atlantic
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.4319/lo.1978.23.6.1207; https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.4319%2Flo.1978.23.6.1207; https://aslopubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.4319/lo.1978.23.6.1207

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.