Distribution of naturally occurring radionuclides (226Ra and 227Ac) along GA01 section in the North Atlantic

• Main Author: Le Roy, Emilie
• Other Authors: Laboratoire d'études en Géophysique et océanographie spatiales (LEGOS), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées (OMP), Météo France-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Météo France-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Paul Sabatier - Toulouse III, Pieter Van Beek, François Lacan
• Format: Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis
• Language: French
• Published: HAL CCSD 2019
• Subjects: GEOTRACES; Radionucleides; North Atlantic Ocean; Radium; Barium; Actinium; Radionucléides; Océan Atlantique Nord; Baryum; [SDU.OCEAN]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Ocean; Atmosphere; Greenland; Pourquoi Pas; Pourquoi-Pas; Pourquoi-Pas?; Newfoundland; North Atlantic
• Online Access: https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-02936462; https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-02936462/document; https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-02936462/file/2019TOU30226a.pdf

The Subpolar North Atlantic, being a region of deep water mass formation, is a key region for the global thermohaline circulation and is thus sensitive to climate change. In this context, the GEOVIDE cruise was carried out between Portugal, Greenland and Newfoundland as part of the GEOTRACES program (GA01; May 15 to June 30, 2014-R/V Pourquoi Pas?). This cruise, which crossed different topographic features and biogeochemical regions, provided a unique framework for the study of i) ocean mixing, ii) transport of water masses and iii) inputs of chemical elements released by the sediments deposited onto continental margins. Naturally occurring radionuclides is used as tracers: radium-226 (226Ra, t1/2 = 1602 y) and actinium-227 (227Ac, t1/2 = 21.7 y). Due to their different half-lives, these radionuclides behave differently in the ocean and can be used to study these various processes. First, a detailed section of dissolved 226Ra activities associated with dissolved barium (Ba) concentration is reported. Because 226Ra and Ba have been widely used as tracers of water masses and ocean mixing, their behavior in this crucial region is investigated more thoroughly. The use of the 226Ra/Ba ratio as a chronometer of the global circulation is evaluated using an optimum multiparameter analysis. Results show that 226Ra and Ba distributions mainly result from conservative mixing, notably at intermediate depths (i.e., away from the ocean interfaces). 226Ra and Ba can thus be considered as conservative tracers of water mass transport in the ocean interior at basin scales. However, at the ocean boundaries 226Ra and Ba displayed non-conservative behaviors due to sedimentary, river and possibly hydrothermal inputs. Suspended particles that form in the upper water column which settle to the seafloor may also impact the distributions of 226Ra and Ba. Second, the behavior of 227Ac in the North Atlantic is investigated. 227Ac is primarily released by deep-sea sediments. Due to the low abundance of 227Ac in seawater, the analysis of ...