Alaskan Glacial Dust Is an Important Iron Source to Surface Waters of the Gulf of Alaska

Abstract This work evaluates glacial dust as a source of sediment, and associated iron (Fe), to the Fe‐limited Gulf of Alaska (GoA). A reanalysis of GoA sediment data, using rare earth elements and thorium as provenance tracers, suggests a flux to the ocean surface of Copper River (AK) glacial dust,...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Geophysical Research Letters
Main Authors: John Crusius, Carsten A. Lao, Thomas M. Holmes, James W. Murray
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2024
Subjects:
dust
Alaska
glacier
glacial particle
Copper River
iron
Geophysics. Cosmic physics
QC801-809
glaciers
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1029/2023GL106778
https://doaj.org/article/9ff41966989e45a3a70b8d688949a42c
Description
Summary:Abstract This work evaluates glacial dust as a source of sediment, and associated iron (Fe), to the Fe‐limited Gulf of Alaska (GoA). A reanalysis of GoA sediment data, using rare earth elements and thorium as provenance tracers, suggests a flux to the ocean surface of Copper River (AK) glacial dust, and associated Fe, that is comparable to the flux of dust from Asia, at least 1,000 km from the narrow mountain valley glacial dust source area. This work suggests dust from Asia may not be the largest source of Fe to the GoA. Dust models fail to accurately simulate this glacial dust transport because their coarse resolution underestimates wind speeds, and the dust flux. This work suggests that glacial dust fluxes may have been important in the geologic past (e.g., the last glacial maximum) from locations where there was more extensive coverage by glaciers than at present.

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