(Chart Reference: http://climatestate.com/2013/06/21/vast-methane-plumes-seen-in-arctic-ocean-as-sea-ice-retreats/)
"In a very small area, less than 10,000 square miles, we have counted more than 100 fountains, or torch-like structures, bubbling through the water column and injected directly into the atmosphere from the seabed," Dr Semiletov said. "We carried out checks at about 115 stationary points and discovered methane fields of a fantastic scale -- I think on a scale not seen before. Some of the plumes were a kilometre or more wide and the emissions went directly into the atmosphere -- the concentration was a hundred times higher than normal," he said. (Reference: http://climatestate.com/2013/06/21/vast-methane-plumes-seen-in-arctic-ocean-as-sea-ice-retreats/)
Vast amounts of methane are held in sediments under the Arctic Ocean. The Laptev Sea is part of the Eastern Siberian Arctic Shelf (ESAS). Shakhova et al. (2010) estimate the accumulated methane potential for the ESAS alone as follows:
- organic carbon in permafrost of about 500 Gt
- about 1000 Gt in hydrate deposits
- about 700 Gt in free gas beneath the gas hydrate stability zone.
Shakhova et al. in 2008 considered release of up to 50 Gt of predicted amount of hydrate storage as highly possible for abrupt release at any time. By comparison, the total amount of methane currently in the atmosphere is about 5 Gt. (Reference: http://arctic-news.blogspot.de/2013/11/horrific-amounts-of-methane-over-laptev-sea.html)
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