An update on dissolved methane distribution in the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean
Methane (CH 4 ) is a potent greenhouse gas and plays a significant role in recent increasing global temperatures. The oceans are a natural source of methane contributing to atmospheric methane concentrations, yet our understanding of the oceanic methane cycle is poorly constrained. Accumulating evid...
Published in: | Ocean Science |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2022
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.5194/os-18-1377-2022 https://doaj.org/article/cd29708cce69436bb052dd129c5f2989 |
id |
ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:cd29708cce69436bb052dd129c5f2989 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:cd29708cce69436bb052dd129c5f2989 2023-05-15T17:29:46+02:00 An update on dissolved methane distribution in the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean A. Kolomijeca L. Marx S. Reynolds T. Cariou E. Mawji C. Boulart 2022-09-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.5194/os-18-1377-2022 https://doaj.org/article/cd29708cce69436bb052dd129c5f2989 EN eng Copernicus Publications https://os.copernicus.org/articles/18/1377/2022/os-18-1377-2022.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1812-0784 https://doaj.org/toc/1812-0792 doi:10.5194/os-18-1377-2022 1812-0784 1812-0792 https://doaj.org/article/cd29708cce69436bb052dd129c5f2989 Ocean Science, Vol 18, Pp 1377-1388 (2022) Geography. Anthropology. Recreation G Environmental sciences GE1-350 article 2022 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.5194/os-18-1377-2022 2022-12-30T19:51:14Z Methane (CH 4 ) is a potent greenhouse gas and plays a significant role in recent increasing global temperatures. The oceans are a natural source of methane contributing to atmospheric methane concentrations, yet our understanding of the oceanic methane cycle is poorly constrained. Accumulating evidence indicates that a significant part of oceanic CH 4 is produced in oxygenated surface waters as a by-product of phytoplanktonic activity. This study focused on the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean (26 ∘ N, 80 ′ W and 26 ∘ N, 18 ′ W) where the distribution of dissolved CH 4 concentrations and associated air–sea fluxes during winter 2020 were investigated. Water samples from 64 stations were collected from the upper water column up to depths of 400 m. The upper oxic mixed layer was oversaturated in dissolved CH 4 with concentrations ranging 3–7 nmol L −1 , with the highest concentrations of 7–10 nmol L −1 found to the east of the transect, consistent with other subtropical regions of the world's oceans. The high anomalies of dissolved CH 4 were found to be associated with phosphate-depleted waters and regions where the abundance of the ubiquitous picocyanobacteria Synechococcus and Prochlorococcus were elevated. Although other phytoplanktonic phyla cannot be excluded, this suggests that cyanobacteria contribute to the release of CH 4 in this region. The calculation of air–sea fluxes further confirmed the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean as a source of CH 4 . This study provides evidence to corroborate the key role that picocyanobacteria play in helping to explain the oversaturation of CH 4 found in surface mixed layer of the open ocean, otherwise known as the “ocean methane paradox”. Article in Journal/Newspaper North Atlantic Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Ocean Science 18 5 1377 1388 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Geography. Anthropology. Recreation G Environmental sciences GE1-350 |
spellingShingle |
Geography. Anthropology. Recreation G Environmental sciences GE1-350 A. Kolomijeca L. Marx S. Reynolds T. Cariou E. Mawji C. Boulart An update on dissolved methane distribution in the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean |
topic_facet |
Geography. Anthropology. Recreation G Environmental sciences GE1-350 |
description |
Methane (CH 4 ) is a potent greenhouse gas and plays a significant role in recent increasing global temperatures. The oceans are a natural source of methane contributing to atmospheric methane concentrations, yet our understanding of the oceanic methane cycle is poorly constrained. Accumulating evidence indicates that a significant part of oceanic CH 4 is produced in oxygenated surface waters as a by-product of phytoplanktonic activity. This study focused on the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean (26 ∘ N, 80 ′ W and 26 ∘ N, 18 ′ W) where the distribution of dissolved CH 4 concentrations and associated air–sea fluxes during winter 2020 were investigated. Water samples from 64 stations were collected from the upper water column up to depths of 400 m. The upper oxic mixed layer was oversaturated in dissolved CH 4 with concentrations ranging 3–7 nmol L −1 , with the highest concentrations of 7–10 nmol L −1 found to the east of the transect, consistent with other subtropical regions of the world's oceans. The high anomalies of dissolved CH 4 were found to be associated with phosphate-depleted waters and regions where the abundance of the ubiquitous picocyanobacteria Synechococcus and Prochlorococcus were elevated. Although other phytoplanktonic phyla cannot be excluded, this suggests that cyanobacteria contribute to the release of CH 4 in this region. The calculation of air–sea fluxes further confirmed the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean as a source of CH 4 . This study provides evidence to corroborate the key role that picocyanobacteria play in helping to explain the oversaturation of CH 4 found in surface mixed layer of the open ocean, otherwise known as the “ocean methane paradox”. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
A. Kolomijeca L. Marx S. Reynolds T. Cariou E. Mawji C. Boulart |
author_facet |
A. Kolomijeca L. Marx S. Reynolds T. Cariou E. Mawji C. Boulart |
author_sort |
A. Kolomijeca |
title |
An update on dissolved methane distribution in the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean |
title_short |
An update on dissolved methane distribution in the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean |
title_full |
An update on dissolved methane distribution in the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean |
title_fullStr |
An update on dissolved methane distribution in the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean |
title_full_unstemmed |
An update on dissolved methane distribution in the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean |
title_sort |
update on dissolved methane distribution in the subtropical north atlantic ocean |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-18-1377-2022 https://doaj.org/article/cd29708cce69436bb052dd129c5f2989 |
genre |
North Atlantic |
genre_facet |
North Atlantic |
op_source |
Ocean Science, Vol 18, Pp 1377-1388 (2022) |
op_relation |
https://os.copernicus.org/articles/18/1377/2022/os-18-1377-2022.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1812-0784 https://doaj.org/toc/1812-0792 doi:10.5194/os-18-1377-2022 1812-0784 1812-0792 https://doaj.org/article/cd29708cce69436bb052dd129c5f2989 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-18-1377-2022 |
container_title |
Ocean Science |
container_volume |
18 |
container_issue |
5 |
container_start_page |
1377 |
op_container_end_page |
1388 |
_version_ |
1766124565234188288 |