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Methane Seeps from Arctic Sea-Bed
Scientists say they have evidence that the powerful greenhouse gas methane is escaping from the Arctic sea-bed.
Researchers say this could be evidence of a predicted positive feedback effect of climate change.
As temperatures rise, the sea-bed grows warmer and frozen water crystals in the sediment break down, allowing methane trapped inside them to escape.
The research team found that more than 250 plumes of methane bubbles are rising from the sea-bed off Norway.
The joint British and German research team detected the bubbles using a type of sonar normally used to search for shoals of fish. Once detected, the bubbles were sampled and tested for methane at a range of depths.
Writing in Geophysical Research Letters, the team says the methane was rising from an area of sea-bed off West Spitsbergen, from depths between 150m and 400m.
The gas is normally trapped as "methane hydrate" in sediment under the ocean floor.
"Methane hydrate" is an ice-like substance composed of water and methane which is stable under conditions of high pressure and low temperature.
As temperatures rise, the hydrate breaks down. So this new evidence shows that methane is stable at water depths greater than 400m off Spitsbergen.
However, data collected over 30 years shows it was then stable at water depths as shallow as 360m.
Ocean has warmed
Temperature records show that this area of the ocean has warmed by 1C during the same period.
The research was carried out as part of the International Polar Year Initiative, funded by Britain's Natural Environment Research Council (Nerc).
The team says this is the first time that this loss of stability associated with temperature rise has been observed during the current geological period.
Professor Tim Minshull of the National Oceanography Centre at Southampton told BBC News: "We already knew there was some methane hydrate in the ocean off Spitsbergen and that's an area where climate change is happening rather faster than just about anywhere else in the world."
Methane hydrate is stable below 400m
Nearer the surface the hydrate breaks down as temperatures rise and the methane is released
Gas rises from the sea-bed in plumes of bubbles - most of it dissolves before it reaches the surface
So far scientists haven't detected methane breaking the ocean surface - but they don't rule out the possibility
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"There's been an idea for a long time that if the oceans warm, methane might be released from hydrate beneath the sea floor and generate a positive greenhouse effect.
"What we're trying to do is to use lots of different techniques to assess whether this was something that was likely to happen in a relatively short time scale off Spitsbergen."
However, methane is already released from ocean floor hydrates at higher temperatures and lower pressures - so the team also suggests that some methane release may have been going on in this area since the last ice age.
Significant discovery
Their most significant finding is that climate change means the gas is being released from more and deeper areas of the Arctic Ocean.
Professor Minshull said: "Our survey was designed to work out how much methane might be released by future ocean warming; we did not expect to discover such strong evidence that this process has already started."
"We were slightly surprised that if there was so much methane rising why no one had seen it before. But I think the reason is that you have to be rather dedicated to spot it because these plumes are only perhaps 50m to 100m across.
"The device we were using is only switched on during biological cruises. It's not normally used on geophysical or oceanographic cruises like ours. And of course you've got to monitor it 24 hours a day. In fact, we only spotted the phenomenon half way through our cruise. We decided to go back and take a closer look."
The team found that most of the methane is being dissolved into the seawater and did not detect evidence of the gas breaking the surface of the ocean and getting into the atmosphere.
The researchers stress that this does not mean that the gas does not enter the atmosphere. They point out that the methane seeps are unpredictable and erratic in quantity, size and duration.
It is possible that larger seeps at different times and locations might in fact be vigorous enough to break through the ocean surface.
Most of the methane reacts with the oxygen in the water to form carbon dioxide, another greenhouse gas. In sea water, this forms carbonic acid which adds to ocean acidification, with consequent problems for biodiversity.
Graham Westbrook, lead author and professor of geophysics at the University of Birmingham, said: "If this process becomes widespread along Arctic continental margins, tens of megatonnes of methane a year - equivalent to 5-10% of the total amount released globally by natural sources, could be released into the ocean."
The team is planning another expedition next year to observe the behaviour of the methane plumes over time. They are also engaged in ongoing research into the amount of methane hydrate under this area of the ocean floor.
Ultimately, they want to be able to predict how much might be vulnerable to temperature change and in what timescale.
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53 Comments so far
Show AllThe methane which stays in the water not only lowers the ocean's Ph, but in late fall and winter it sucks up any available oxygen in a low-oxygen environment (no waves to aerate the ocean).
Here it comes, and there may be mothing we can do to stop it at this point. Let's look back at the similar event at the end of the Permian era, about 251 MY before present.
1. Oceans turned into an acid anoxic, hydrogen sulfice laden
broth with average surface temperatures at lower latitudes in excess of 100F more than 95% of all species went extinct. Life in the seas was reduced to predominantly just the hardy, mussel-like Lingula.
2. Most life on land went extinct - including all woody trees. Low oxygen levels, toxic hydrogen sulfide, and hellish heat made all but low-lying coastal areas inhabitable for plant or animal life - and that life consisted of mostly just one species - Lystrosaurus, pig-like therapsid (reptilian mammal ancestor) capable of a hardy plant diet.
3. The die-off was rapid - as evidenced by predominance of fossil mold spores from all the dead and rotting trees, and the a large increase in river sediment supply from all the denuded eroding land.
4. The recovery to a normal degree species diversity took 30 million years. Many were "lazarus" taxa - relatives of the species that went extinct - indicating that there were some survivors likely in cooler more oxygenated refuge areas in the seas at the north end of Pangaea (current-day Canada and N Europe)
It is believed that this event was triggered by the Siberian traps volcanics, which increased CO2 to levels comparable to those human activity will likely produce. Runaway methane releases then followed, then deoxygenation, then hydrogen sulfide from the decomposition of organic matter in the anoxic conditions.
'under a green sky' by peter d. ward ph.d is a good book to read on the subject......for anyone who's interested.
Thanks for the reading tip. I got a BSc degree in Geology back in 1980, but I must admit that I hve not heard of Peter D. Ward.
I read some of the Steven Jay Gould's books. It was tragic he died so young (along with Carl Sagan too). I wonder what he and Prof. Sagan would be saying and writing today...
dr. peter d. ward is a professor of biology and earth and space sciences at the uninversity of washington in seattle. he also serves as an astrobiologist with 'nasa'.................
i'm not familiar with steven jay gould but carl sagan is one of my heroes........
likewise the 'fictional' character of mr. spock from the starship enterprice...........
we are all out of our 'vulcan' minds.............
Reading the Amazon reviews of "Under a Green Sky," is enlightening and plenty scary.
Also referenced is "With Speed and Violence: Why Scientists Fear Tipping Points in Climate Change," by Fred Pearce. Read those reviews also.
How did mankind cause that? Oooops.
No.
The Permian extinction was triggered by CO2 emissions from extraordinarily large volcanic eruption, along with a combination of other factors.
Another, smaller mass extinction 65 million years ago was caused by an large asteroid impact.
This potential one in the near future will be triggered by human economic activity.
There would have been be very little humans could do to prevent the first one.
The second one could be prevented by early detection of the asteroid, followed by technological means of altering the asteroid's orbit.
The third potential mass extinction is the easiest to prevent - all we need to do is replace our fiossil-fuel based economy with a renewable energy based one.
Or, are you arguing because "natural" catastrophes can be larger than human-induced ones, we shouldn't worry about the human induced ones for some obscure reason - maybe nihilism?
Do you get it now?
I hope if you read this explanation of mine that you will realize how idiotic your brief argument was.
Human produced CO2 is not blessed or magic. It's the same as any other CO2. Big shock, I know.
KEM PATRICK has been warning about this for years.
KEM, you still out there?
i was just asking someone else about kem the other day.............
he became an 'expert' in his own right on this subject and loved to post such articles as this:
http://www.energybulletin.net/node/3647
published in dec 2004..............
he was also 'concerned' about the methane igniting and scorching us all......
so being as he doesn't seem to be around, i'll say it for him:
i told you so.................
Yes, I miss Kem and his favorite sign off was "We'll See".
Yes, KEM was a great guy. The NeoCon trolls like Alex here, wore him out with their abusive Rush-the-Druggy, Climate denier Cult Worship.
But he alerted many of us who had no idea this was going on. He was an expert on DU as well.
TJ
"All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent." - Thomas Jefferson
Interesting how the headline for this article is just under a smaller headline above it.
That article details 'the delusion' while this one details 'the reality'.
Thanks, CD editors, you've made my morning more depressing than usual.
Well, it's been fun, hasn't it?
Walk in peace.
It HAS been fun Galen.
What a great ride it's been!
The things that I see ordinary people do and say every day is so beyond my imagination that
I have been constantly appalled, amazed and delighted.
If someone put it in a book no one would believe it.
What an incredible and beautiful planet we have!
Just try to be happy and relax.
There's nothing much that can be done at this point because of the nature of humans to bicker and be self serving.
When it comes to a true crisis we might just all put our personal agendas aside and pull together.
What a wonderful day that will be!
In the mean time try to be happy with your loved ones.
Nothing is better than that!
Epicurious would applaud. However, for me, dodging the bullets sent my way by a corporatocracy isn't optional. I feel an obligation to alert others of what is coming down the pike. True, some good things are in the mill. For example, scientists have just discovered how to use targeted magnetic fields to induce damaged heart tissue to repair itself. So it's not all bad.
But you know, my pet peeve about positioning our thought processes in a permanent positive outlook is that it merely is redefining "positive" to encompass everything. It ends up being a word game. The key to a satisfying existence requires a full grasp of reality. When someone says that, e.g. broadcast television is free, they are lying to you. Subliminal messages and hidden persuaders are jacking with your brain to herd you into buying this, avoiding that, accepting this other thing, etc. This can and does result in cognitive dissonance and milder levels of cognitive dysfunction that cause much stress and mental and, eventual physical ailments. SO IT AIN'T FREE. It might even ruin your life. All your enginuity, skills and also your potential original contributions to society may be washed away in a flood of commercials and brain sopoforic media programs designed to make you a consumer of "whatever". Is this taught in schools? NOPE.
So, do you think, "Don't worry, be happy" is a good policy? Go for it. But don't say you weren't warned.
see "Blessed Unrest", Paul Hawken.
In recent years, the greatest concern re methane release (many times more potent a greenhouse gas than CO2) has not been the sea bed but permafrost. Permafrost, a few feet below ground level in the arctic, harbors more megatonnage of methane and is melting all around the world.
The last I heard, methane from the continental shelves and methane from permafrost were about equal in megatonnage.
True, but the methane released from permafrost is not redissolved in water, so the warming effect is more immediate.
of course now there will be a megacorporation selling oxygen tanks..................buy one, get one free.
That's a half-step toward the megacorps who will sell human re-engineering or cyborg tech to breathe methane.
Now THERE'S a growth industry and possibly the next economic 'bubble'.
I miss KEM. For some strange reason I also miss Daniel David.
what about 'riverman'..............
and yes, your reason would have to be 'strange' to miss dd..............
How about covering the vents and funneling the methane to platforms or ships to be compressed and used as fuel?
CH4(g) + 2 O2(g) ------ CO2(g) + 2 H2O(l)
Used as fuel it produces pure water and CO2. The fresh water can be captured and used to allay water shortages. Some CO2 might be captured, compressed and released slowly in forests for plants to fix.
There are millions of vents.
Yes, but one could lay weighted plastic membranes over large areas of sea bed and and collect and harvest the gas that way. Oil companies are alrady putting a lot of research into ways to "strip mine" the ice-like methane hydrates from outer continental shelf and continental slope areas.
Neither option good for the sea-bed ecosystem though. Contrary to most peoples notions, the deep sea bed isn't just lifeless mud.
The sequestration of the CO2 produced by burning the methane is probably a bigger problem. But even if it is just released into the atmosphere the products of burnt nmenthane contribute far less to global warming than the methnae does.
Thanks for the information pjd412. Another option is to let things deteriorate to the point that people will wake up, if we don't commit ecocide in the process.
This may be all we can do at this point. Tho, to me it makes as much sense as waiting to wake up while carbon monoxide seeps into my house.
A better option is to convert the methane to methanol via catalysis. Methane can then be converted into myriad of polymers.
I'm an inventor. I have a patent pending on a wind-powered machine which, when widely deployed, fully restores the Arctic Ocean's sea ice pack (and the Antarctic's too). I've gone through at least five versions so far. Each version is more effective or cheaper than the last.
We'll need a lot of these machines but they're cheap to build and have few moving parts, so they don't break down. Deployment of the machines off of a ship's side in September isn't too hard.
Adverse environmental effects on life under the ice are pretty minimal. I'm trying to keep the side effects as low as possible.
Now about this "it's been good to know you" business -- are we collectively prepared to mostly die off rather than change a bit? The short answer from Washington is, cynically, "Of course! Die! Die! Die!" The real answer is that maybe a handful of us are going to change the world, and without President Obama's help if he's that powerless.
You! You with your fingers on those keys. What are you doing with the rest of your life? I really want to know.
Please tell me more about how your wind-powered machine is going to restore the Ice.
In winter, the Arctic air temperature drops to, easily, -60 degrees Fahrenheit. At 0 degrees Fahrenheit, sea water turns into ice crystals and residual salt brine.
The problem is, a few inches of ice (or 10 feet of ice) acts as an insulating blanket, keeping the ocean from absorbing this winter cold. If you ran an icebreaker through new ice every day it would help to chill the ocean. However, such a proposal uses lots of diesel fuel and tends to cause environmental pollution.
One version of my machine floats in the Arctic Ocean. An inch or more of ice freezes around it. The rotating wind vane pumps seawater above the ice and dumps it out. Ice is created. The residual salt brine runs off. An environmental scientist friend told me to screen the plankton out with a microscreen before pumping.
I moved on to pumping frigid air under the ice, refrigerating the entire ocean for a wide-range effect. This considerably cheapens the process. A colder ocean, starting to freeze earlier in the season, means thicker ice all over the Arctic in spring. We can deploy fewer machines and the machines don't need to move around. One problem is that the polar ocean under ice is traditionally a fairly anaerobic environment. Adding oxygen disrupts species. One partial cure is to blow air under the ice, but to limit the transfer of gas molecules into the water by limiting violent disturbances (bubbling).
My target is to inhibit most of the runaway global methane release with a first year research budget of about $100K. Some of the prototype development can be done on scale models in a walk-in freezer. Some easy demonstrations, if not perfectly analogous, can be done off of the end of a dock on a fresh water pond in the frost belt.
Know anyone who wants to do something great? Do they also need to earn tenure?
So as the salt brine "runs off", it goes....where? Back into the ocean where salinity levels increase, lowering further the freezing point. Your system is effectively closed and before long, does nothing. Sorry to burst your bubble, but keep coming with those ideas.
We must stop the volcanic activity in the sea floor that is causing this!
Hi there, boiler-room blogger and astroturfer.
All integrity gone, Alex, until you admit you were wrong... http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/08/17
Is this seepage not also dangerous to ships? Doesn't it lower the buoyancy of various materials so that a ship cruising right through the middle of a seepage could lose its ability to float and therefore sink?
FLASH:
Oil tanker sinks due to global flatulence! Scientists recommend all crews "light a match" if something smells funny.
nice one agg................had me in hysterics.
Much obliged.
We all need a good laugh now and then.
Archie,
Shhh, you're giving away the secret to the Bermuda Triangle. You'll ruin the science stations on cable TV if you keep up with this conspiracy theory! :)
http://bit.ly/Z4JiH
And yet, is it not fitting that Mother Gaia's response to human overconsumption and depredations upon her body is to snuff out the pestiferous infestation with a fatal global mega-fart?
· Yr Obd't Servant
Yep.
Watch this disappear from the news with lightning speed. CH4, otherwise known as methane, is more efficient than gasolene for running cars and heating houses. The oil pigs get heartburn just thinking of a lot of methane available for free. I imagine they are calling their "friends" in media right now to spike this story and the scientists on corporate grants are being told to shut the fuck up.
Actually I hear the Russians are laying out sheets of plastic on the arctic floor and when enough gas collects and seperates from the water it is removed run through a charcoal filter and used.
Another voice of reason in the debates about Earth possibly reaching a tipping point is that of Joe Romm. His book "Hell and High Water" is highly intelligent: http://bit.ly/D1Nsf
Also, Joe hosts a salon at the ClimateProgress blog:
http://climateprogress.org/
Aparently, noted scientist James Lovelock has now thrown in the towel on averting the crisis. His Gaia Theory now predicts there will be few human survivors of this century. Also see planetextiction.com for more depressing exposition on the global warming situation, notably on the methane clathrates mentioned in the article (does not apply to Republicans as they do not believe in science anyway, and so it will not affect them, of course).
And humans had control of this chain of events, but could not cooperate, or break from habits of the past, or see past their own noses, or think past their own wallets, or sublimate their reptilian-brain impulses, or control their own rabid procreating. It seems we are just monkeys with guns after all. But let's still strive to be better, and to still try to save this living planet-world, the only known one in the universe. And let us stand and fight against those who deny the crisis, those who are thus worse-than-terrorist threats to life-on-Earth itself, those who are thus perpetrators of the ultimate genocide, that of the entire human race.
Not much this old Indian can say as the "Bills" come in regardless as the Tribes now have to pay for it too since living upon the earth for free is now gone.
And yet the big, "If," had human beings lived like the Tribes we wouldn't be talking about the destruction of the earth today because the Net wouldn't even exist.
Did talk about the Beast of Civilization being destructive to a friend of European Heritage. He said in his book(s) called the Bible that Creator/God when he first saw human beings invent brick that Creator said, Now they will destroy everything.
I quit talking to people about the destruction of the earth in 1988. Quit concerning myself at all about it around 1991 or 1992 because I knew eventually mathematically things would reach the point where your Environmental Scientists like the one mentioned would begin throwing in the towel.
That is what prophecy states that human beings of themselves will pretty much destroy themselves because they love all those things they have made with their own hands thinking they are good when in the long run they are bad but they are in love with their own pride & vanity upon the earth.
Only a few remote Tribes even come close to living simply with the earth such as the Kogi people/tribe. Even they are being decimated by the buy it, sell it, live it up good earth destroying beast upon the earth.
So yes, according to prophecy their could be billions of people die just because of the destruction of the earth alone.
As my friend of European Heritage discussed, this is it. This is life in year 2009. Yet he nor I know how bad or how soon things will happen so might as well enjoy life.
I've had many conversations with him over the years about your world, and problems of your world. He will say that is what it says in his book(s) called the Bible, & root through his book. I told him I already know Jesus & his book is really just a reference guide to me to show people where it says this or that in prophecy.
Life is good. What an experience! It's always best to forgive.
HELP! HELP! HELP! DOOMSDAY IS NIGH......IN FACT IT'S PROBABLY
ALREADY HERE !!!!!CAN'T DECIDE IF IT'S CAUSED BY MANKIND'S
PILLAGING OF THE EARTH,A NEW ERA OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND/OR
AN AVENGING GOD.....COULD ANYONE ENLIGHTEN ME ?
It's primarily caused by a 25% or so increase in atmospheric CO2 since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution concurrent with the widespread use of fossil fuels. That 25% increase works just the same as if it were from volcanoes or any other source.
A 25% increase of a compound in any system will obviously have wide-ranging effects throughout the system. (It's silly and blind to think otherwise.) In the case of CO2, the effects in the atmosphere are well-researched and well-known. No need to evoke an avenging god. It's just that humans aren't nearly as smart as they thought they were. They dug their grave and now they are gibbering on the edge, about to be kicked in.