Potential methane reservoirs beneath Antarctica
Once thought to be devoid of life, the ice-covered parts of Antarctica are now known to be a reservoir of metabolically active microbial cells and organic carbon. The potential for methanogenic archaea to support the degradation of organic carbon to methane beneath the ice, however, has not yet been...
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ftunivutrecht:oai:dspace.library.uu.nl:1874/310148 2023-11-12T04:02:34+01:00 Potential methane reservoirs beneath Antarctica Wadham, J.L. Arndt, S. Tulaczyk, S. Stibal, M. Tranter, M. Telling, J. Lis, G.P. Lawson, E. Ridgwell, A. Dubnick, A. Sharp, M.J. Anesio, A.M. Butler, C.E.H. Marine methane flux and climate change: from biosphere to geosphere Geochemistry 2012 application/pdf https://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/310148 en eng 0028-0836 https://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/310148 info:eu-repo/semantics/OpenAccess Article 2012 ftunivutrecht 2023-11-01T23:12:57Z Once thought to be devoid of life, the ice-covered parts of Antarctica are now known to be a reservoir of metabolically active microbial cells and organic carbon. The potential for methanogenic archaea to support the degradation of organic carbon to methane beneath the ice, however, has not yet been evaluated. Large sedimentary basins containing marine sequences up to 14 kilometres thick and an estimated 21,000 petagrams (1Pg equals 10 15 g) of organic carbon are buried beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet. No data exist for rates of methanogenesis in sub-Antarctic marine sediments. Here we present experimental data from other subglacial environments that demonstrate the potential for overridden organic matter beneath glacial systems to produce methane. We also numerically simulate the accumulation of methane in Antarctic sedimentary basins using an established one-dimensional hydrate model and show that pressure/temperature conditions favour methane hydrate formation down to sediment depths of about 300metres in West Antarctica and 700metres in East Antarctica. Our results demonstrate the potential for methane hydrate accumulation in Antarctic sedimentary basins, where the total inventory depends on rates of organic carbon degradation and conditions at the ice-sheet bed. We calculate that the sub-Antarctic hydrate inventory could be of the same order of magnitude as that of recent estimates made for Arctic permafrost. Our findings suggest that the Antarctic Ice Sheet may be a neglected but important component of the global methane budget, with the potential to act as a positive feedback on climate warming during ice-sheet wastage. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica Arctic East Antarctica Ice Ice Sheet Methane hydrate permafrost West Antarctica Utrecht University Repository Antarctic Arctic East Antarctica The Antarctic West Antarctica |
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Open Polar |
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Utrecht University Repository |
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ftunivutrecht |
language |
English |
description |
Once thought to be devoid of life, the ice-covered parts of Antarctica are now known to be a reservoir of metabolically active microbial cells and organic carbon. The potential for methanogenic archaea to support the degradation of organic carbon to methane beneath the ice, however, has not yet been evaluated. Large sedimentary basins containing marine sequences up to 14 kilometres thick and an estimated 21,000 petagrams (1Pg equals 10 15 g) of organic carbon are buried beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet. No data exist for rates of methanogenesis in sub-Antarctic marine sediments. Here we present experimental data from other subglacial environments that demonstrate the potential for overridden organic matter beneath glacial systems to produce methane. We also numerically simulate the accumulation of methane in Antarctic sedimentary basins using an established one-dimensional hydrate model and show that pressure/temperature conditions favour methane hydrate formation down to sediment depths of about 300metres in West Antarctica and 700metres in East Antarctica. Our results demonstrate the potential for methane hydrate accumulation in Antarctic sedimentary basins, where the total inventory depends on rates of organic carbon degradation and conditions at the ice-sheet bed. We calculate that the sub-Antarctic hydrate inventory could be of the same order of magnitude as that of recent estimates made for Arctic permafrost. Our findings suggest that the Antarctic Ice Sheet may be a neglected but important component of the global methane budget, with the potential to act as a positive feedback on climate warming during ice-sheet wastage. |
author2 |
Marine methane flux and climate change: from biosphere to geosphere Geochemistry |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Wadham, J.L. Arndt, S. Tulaczyk, S. Stibal, M. Tranter, M. Telling, J. Lis, G.P. Lawson, E. Ridgwell, A. Dubnick, A. Sharp, M.J. Anesio, A.M. Butler, C.E.H. |
spellingShingle |
Wadham, J.L. Arndt, S. Tulaczyk, S. Stibal, M. Tranter, M. Telling, J. Lis, G.P. Lawson, E. Ridgwell, A. Dubnick, A. Sharp, M.J. Anesio, A.M. Butler, C.E.H. Potential methane reservoirs beneath Antarctica |
author_facet |
Wadham, J.L. Arndt, S. Tulaczyk, S. Stibal, M. Tranter, M. Telling, J. Lis, G.P. Lawson, E. Ridgwell, A. Dubnick, A. Sharp, M.J. Anesio, A.M. Butler, C.E.H. |
author_sort |
Wadham, J.L. |
title |
Potential methane reservoirs beneath Antarctica |
title_short |
Potential methane reservoirs beneath Antarctica |
title_full |
Potential methane reservoirs beneath Antarctica |
title_fullStr |
Potential methane reservoirs beneath Antarctica |
title_full_unstemmed |
Potential methane reservoirs beneath Antarctica |
title_sort |
potential methane reservoirs beneath antarctica |
publishDate |
2012 |
url |
https://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/310148 |
geographic |
Antarctic Arctic East Antarctica The Antarctic West Antarctica |
geographic_facet |
Antarctic Arctic East Antarctica The Antarctic West Antarctica |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica Arctic East Antarctica Ice Ice Sheet Methane hydrate permafrost West Antarctica |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica Arctic East Antarctica Ice Ice Sheet Methane hydrate permafrost West Antarctica |
op_relation |
0028-0836 https://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/310148 |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/OpenAccess |
_version_ |
1782334659930095616 |