Halving of the northern wetland CH 4 source by a large Icelandic volcanic eruption

Northern temperate and high-latitude wetlands are a major source of the greenhouse gas methane (CH 4 ). Here, we estimate the sensitivity in the strength of this source to the effects of large Icelandic volcanic eruptions such as the Laki eruption of 1783-1784. We applied spatially explicit modeled...

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Published in:Journal of Geophysical Research
Main Authors: Gauci, Vincent, Blake, Stephen, Stevenson, David S., Highwood, Eleanor J.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:unknown
Published: 2008
Subjects:
Online Access:https://oro.open.ac.uk/25569/
https://oro.open.ac.uk/25569/1/d78193.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1029/2007JG000499
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spelling ftopenunivgb:oai:oro.open.ac.uk:25569 2023-06-11T04:12:42+02:00 Halving of the northern wetland CH 4 source by a large Icelandic volcanic eruption Gauci, Vincent Blake, Stephen Stevenson, David S. Highwood, Eleanor J. 2008-09-11 application/pdf https://oro.open.ac.uk/25569/ https://oro.open.ac.uk/25569/1/d78193.pdf https://doi.org/10.1029/2007JG000499 unknown https://oro.open.ac.uk/25569/1/d78193.pdf Gauci, Vincent <http://oro.open.ac.uk/view/person/vg8.html>; Blake, Stephen <http://oro.open.ac.uk/view/person/sb26.html>; Stevenson, David S. and Highwood, Eleanor J. (2008). Halving of the northern wetland CH4 source by a large Icelandic volcanic eruption. Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences, 113(G3), article no. G00A11. Journal Item Public PeerReviewed 2008 ftopenunivgb https://doi.org/10.1029/2007JG000499 2023-05-28T05:45:25Z Northern temperate and high-latitude wetlands are a major source of the greenhouse gas methane (CH 4 ). Here, we estimate the sensitivity in the strength of this source to the effects of large Icelandic volcanic eruptions such as the Laki eruption of 1783-1784. We applied spatially explicit modeled sulfate aerosol and S deposition fields from a Laki eruption simulation to a climate-sensitive model of CH 4 emissions from wetlands. We estimate that the combined influence on climate and S deposition from the Laki eruption halved the output of CH 4 from wetlands north of 30°N for the first 12 months following the eruption. The largest short-term component responsible for the CH 4 suppression is the aerosol-influenced surface cooling, although the effect of large-scale S deposition on CH 4 emissions provides a longer-term suppressive effect on emissions. Together, we estimate this combination of processes to result in an annual suppression of ~20 Tg CH 4 in the year of the eruption and two subsequent years. Further, the impact of the eruption on atmospheric CH 4 concentration extends beyond the likely duration of suppressed emission. The modeled effect of this large Icelandic eruption is consistent with ice core records of atmospheric CH 4 concentrations at the time and is equivalent, in size, to the current estimated suppressive effect of industrially derived S pollution on the global wetland CH 4 source. Article in Journal/Newspaper ice core The Open University: Open Research Online (ORO) Laki ENVELOPE(-18.237,-18.237,64.070,64.070) Journal of Geophysical Research 113
institution Open Polar
collection The Open University: Open Research Online (ORO)
op_collection_id ftopenunivgb
language unknown
description Northern temperate and high-latitude wetlands are a major source of the greenhouse gas methane (CH 4 ). Here, we estimate the sensitivity in the strength of this source to the effects of large Icelandic volcanic eruptions such as the Laki eruption of 1783-1784. We applied spatially explicit modeled sulfate aerosol and S deposition fields from a Laki eruption simulation to a climate-sensitive model of CH 4 emissions from wetlands. We estimate that the combined influence on climate and S deposition from the Laki eruption halved the output of CH 4 from wetlands north of 30°N for the first 12 months following the eruption. The largest short-term component responsible for the CH 4 suppression is the aerosol-influenced surface cooling, although the effect of large-scale S deposition on CH 4 emissions provides a longer-term suppressive effect on emissions. Together, we estimate this combination of processes to result in an annual suppression of ~20 Tg CH 4 in the year of the eruption and two subsequent years. Further, the impact of the eruption on atmospheric CH 4 concentration extends beyond the likely duration of suppressed emission. The modeled effect of this large Icelandic eruption is consistent with ice core records of atmospheric CH 4 concentrations at the time and is equivalent, in size, to the current estimated suppressive effect of industrially derived S pollution on the global wetland CH 4 source.
format Article in Journal/Newspaper
author Gauci, Vincent
Blake, Stephen
Stevenson, David S.
Highwood, Eleanor J.
spellingShingle Gauci, Vincent
Blake, Stephen
Stevenson, David S.
Highwood, Eleanor J.
Halving of the northern wetland CH 4 source by a large Icelandic volcanic eruption
author_facet Gauci, Vincent
Blake, Stephen
Stevenson, David S.
Highwood, Eleanor J.
author_sort Gauci, Vincent
title Halving of the northern wetland CH 4 source by a large Icelandic volcanic eruption
title_short Halving of the northern wetland CH 4 source by a large Icelandic volcanic eruption
title_full Halving of the northern wetland CH 4 source by a large Icelandic volcanic eruption
title_fullStr Halving of the northern wetland CH 4 source by a large Icelandic volcanic eruption
title_full_unstemmed Halving of the northern wetland CH 4 source by a large Icelandic volcanic eruption
title_sort halving of the northern wetland ch 4 source by a large icelandic volcanic eruption
publishDate 2008
url https://oro.open.ac.uk/25569/
https://oro.open.ac.uk/25569/1/d78193.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1029/2007JG000499
long_lat ENVELOPE(-18.237,-18.237,64.070,64.070)
geographic Laki
geographic_facet Laki
genre ice core
genre_facet ice core
op_relation https://oro.open.ac.uk/25569/1/d78193.pdf
Gauci, Vincent <http://oro.open.ac.uk/view/person/vg8.html>; Blake, Stephen <http://oro.open.ac.uk/view/person/sb26.html>; Stevenson, David S. and Highwood, Eleanor J. (2008). Halving of the northern wetland CH4 source by a large Icelandic volcanic eruption. Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences, 113(G3), article no. G00A11.
op_doi https://doi.org/10.1029/2007JG000499
container_title Journal of Geophysical Research
container_volume 113
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