Surface Methane Concentrations Along the Mid-Atlantic Bight Driven by Aerobic Subsurface Production Rather Than Seafloor Gas Seeps

Leonte, Mihai; Ruppel, Carolyn D.; Ruiz‐Angulo, Angel; Kessler, John D.

doi:10.1029/2019jc015989

Surface Methane Concentrations Along the Mid-Atlantic Bight Driven by Aerobic Subsurface Production Rather Than Seafloor Gas Seeps

Journal Article · Fri May 01 00:00:00 EDT 2020 · Journal of Geophysical Research. Oceans

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/2019jc015989· OSTI ID:1799880

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University of Rochester, NY (United States). Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences; OSTI
US Geological Survey, Woods Hole, MA (United States)
Icelandic Meteorological Office, Reykjavik (Iceland)
University of Rochester, NY (United States). Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences

Relatively minor amounts of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, are currently emitted from the oceans to the atmosphere, but such methane emissions have been hypothesized to increase as oceans warm. Here, we investigate the source, distribution, and fate of methane released from the upper continental slope of the U.S. Mid-Atlantic Bight, where hundreds of gas seeps have been discovered between the shelf break and ~1,600 m water depth. Using physical, chemical, and isotopic analyses, we identify two main sources of methane in the water column: seafloor gas seeps and in situ aerobic methanogenesis which primarily occurs at 100–200 m depth in the water column. Stable isotopic analyses reveal that water samples collected at all depths were significantly impacted by aerobic methane oxidation, the dominant methane sink in this region, with the average fraction of methane oxidized being 50%. Due to methane oxidation in the deeper water column, below 200 m depth, surface concentrations of methane are influenced more by methane sources found near the surface (0–10 m depth) and in the subsurface (10–200 m depth), rather than seafloor emissions at greater depths.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: US Geological Survey, Boulder, CO (United States); Univ. of Rochester, NY (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE; USDOE Office of Fossil Energy (FE)

Grant/Contract Number:: FE0026195; FE0028980

OSTI ID:: 1799880

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1619845

Journal Information:: Journal of Geophysical Research. Oceans, Journal Name: Journal of Geophysical Research. Oceans Journal Issue: 5 Vol. 125; ISSN 2169-9275

Publisher:: American Geophysical UnionCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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