An estimation of the sediment budget in the Laptev Sea during the last 5,000 years

• Main Authors: Rachold, Volker, Grigoriev, Mikhail N., Bauch, Henning
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Polarforschung; Alfred-Wegener-Institu für Polar- und Meeresforschung 2002
• Subjects: Arctic; Arctic Ocean; Laptev Sea; laptev; Polarforschung
• Online Access: https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/2164/; https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/2164/1/Polarforsch2000_15.pdf; http://epic.awi.de/28493/

This article presents a mass balance calculation of the sediment sources and sinks ofthc Laptev Sea. Sediment input into three regional sectors calculated on the basis offluvial sediment discharge and coastal erosion sediment supply is compared with sediment output as estimated from sedimentation rates of well-dated marine sediment cores and data onsediment export to the central Arctic Ocean byseaice and through bottom currents. Within the uncertainties of the calculations, input and output arevery weil balanced. The calculation reveals that the sediment budget of the Laptev Sea is mainly controlled byfluvial and coastal sediment input. The major fraction of the material is simply deposited on the Laptev Sea shelf. However, for the western Laptev Sea, where sedimentation rates are low due to the absence of large rivers, export byseaice is the main output factor.