scholarly journals Thermocline mixing and vertical oxygen fluxes in the stratified central North Sea

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (13) ◽  
pp. 9905-9934 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Rovelli ◽  
M. Dengler ◽  
M. Schmidt ◽  
S. Sommer ◽  
P. Linke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
North Sea ◽  
Bottom Water ◽  
Algal Species ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
Carbon Export ◽  
High O2 ◽  
Key Drivers ◽  
Tidally Driven ◽  
Central North Sea

Abstract. In recent decades, the central North Sea has been experiencing a general trend of decreasing dissolved oxygen (O2) levels during summer. To understand the potential causes driving lower O2, we investigated summertime turbulence and O2 dynamics in the thermocline and bottom boundary layer (BBL). The study focuses on coupling biogeochemical processes with physical transport processes to identify key drivers of the O2 and organic carbon turnover within the BBL. Combining our flux observations with an analytical process-oriented approach, we resolve the key drivers that ultimately determine the BBL O2 levels. We report substantial tidally-driven turbulent O2 fluxes from the thermocline into the otherwise isolated bottom water. This contribution to the local bottom water O2 and carbon budgets has been largely overlooked and might be a central factor maintaining relatively high O2 levels in the bottom water throughout the stratification period. With the current climate warming projections, we propose that higher water temperature and reduced turbulence could favour migrating algal species that could out-compete other species for light and nutrients, and shift the oxygen production zone higher up within the thermocline while maintaining similar organic carbon export to the bottom water. Due to the substantially lower turbulence levels in the central region of the thermocline as compared to the higher turbulence observed at the thermocline-BBL interface, such a shift in the production layer could lead to further isolation of the bottom water and promote the seasonal occurrence of lower O2 concentrations.

scholarly journals Thermocline mixing and vertical oxygen fluxes in the stratified central North Sea

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 1609-1620 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorenzo Rovelli ◽  
Marcus Dengler ◽  
Mark Schmidt ◽  
Stefan Sommer ◽  
Peter Linke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
North Sea ◽  
Bottom Water ◽  
Algal Species ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
Carbon Turnover ◽  
Warming Climate ◽  
High O2 ◽  
Inertial Wave ◽  
Central North Sea ◽  
Production Zone

Abstract. In recent decades, the central North Sea has been experiencing a general trend of decreasing dissolved oxygen (O2) levels during summer. To understand potential causes driving lower O2, we investigated a 3-day period of summertime turbulence and O2 dynamics in the thermocline and bottom boundary layer (BBL). The study focuses on coupling biogeochemical with physical transport processes to identify key drivers of the O2 and organic carbon turnover within the BBL. Combining our flux observations with an analytical process-oriented approach, we resolve drivers that ultimately contribute to determining the BBL O2 levels. We report substantial turbulent O2 fluxes from the thermocline into the otherwise isolated bottom water attributed to the presence of a baroclinic near-inertial wave. This contribution to the local bottom water O2 and carbon budgets has been largely overlooked and is shown to play a role in promoting high carbon turnover in the bottom water while simultaneously maintaining high O2 concentrations. This process may become suppressed with warming climate and stronger stratification, conditions which could promote migrating algal species that potentially shift the O2 production zone higher up within the thermocline.

scholarly journals Pulsed carbon export from mountains by earthquake-triggered landslides explored in a reduced-complexity model

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 823-844
Author(s):  
Thomas Croissant ◽  
Robert G. Hilton ◽  
Gen K. Li ◽  
Jamie Howarth ◽  
Jin Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Annual Runoff ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
Mountain Range ◽  
Biogeochemical Processes ◽  
Organic Matter Degradation ◽  
Carbon Export ◽  
Model Framework ◽  
Mountain Ranges

Abstract. In mountain ranges, earthquakes can trigger widespread landsliding and mobilize large amounts of organic carbon by eroding soil and vegetation from hillslopes. Following a major earthquake, the landslide-mobilized organic carbon can be exported from river catchments by physical sediment transport processes or stored within the landscape where it may be degraded by heterotrophic respiration. The competition between these physical and biogeochemical processes governs a net transfer of carbon between the atmosphere and sedimentary organic matter, yet their relative importance following a large landslide-triggering earthquake remains poorly constrained. Here, we propose a model framework to quantify the post-seismic redistribution of soil-derived organic carbon. The approach combines predictions based on empirical observations of co-seismic sediment mobilization with a description of the physical and biogeochemical processes involved after an earthquake. Earthquake-triggered landslide populations are generated by randomly sampling a landslide area distribution, a proportion of which is initially connected to the fluvial network. Initially disconnected landslide deposits are transported downslope and connected to rivers at a constant velocity in the post-seismic period. Disconnected landslide deposits lose organic carbon by heterotrophic oxidation, while connected deposits lose organic carbon synchronously by both oxidation and river export. The modeling approach is numerically efficient and allows us to explore a large range of parameter values that exert a control on the fate of organic carbon in the upland erosional system. We explore the role of the climatic context (in terms of mean annual runoff and runoff variability) and rates of organic matter degradation using single pool and multi-pool models. Our results highlight the fact that the redistribution of organic carbon is strongly controlled by the annual runoff and the extent of landslide connection, but less so by the choice of organic matter degradation model. In the context of mountain ranges typical of the southwestern Pacific region, we find that model configurations allow more than 90 % of the landslide-mobilized carbon to be exported from mountain catchments. A simulation of earthquake cycles suggests efficient transfer of organic carbon out of a mountain range during the first decade of the post-seismic period. Pulsed erosion of organic matter by earthquake-triggered landslides is therefore an effective process to promote carbon sequestration in sedimentary deposits over thousands of years.

scholarly journals Pulsed carbon export from mountains by earthquake-triggered landslides explored in a reduced-complexity model

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Croissant ◽  
Robert G. Hilton ◽  
Gen Li ◽  
Jamie Howarth ◽  
Jin Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Annual Runoff ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
Mountain Range ◽  
Biogeochemical Processes ◽  
Organic Matter Degradation ◽  
Carbon Export ◽  
Model Framework ◽  
Mountain Ranges

Abstract. In mountain ranges, earthquakes can trigger widespread landsliding and mobilise large amounts of organic carbon by eroding soil and vegetation from hillslopes. Following a major earthquake, the landslide-mobilised organic carbon can be exported from river catchments by physical sediment transport processes, or stored within the landscape where it may be degraded by heterotrophic respiration. The competition between these physical and biogeochemical processes governs a net transfer of carbon between the atmosphere and sedimentary organic matter, yet their relative importance following a large landslide-triggering earthquake remains poorly constrained. Here, we propose a model framework to quantify the post-seismic redistribution of soil-derived organic carbon. The approach combines predictions based on empirical observations of co-seismic sediment mobilisation, with a description of the physical and biogeochemical processes involved after the earthquake. Earthquake-triggered landslide populations are generated by randomly sampling a landslide area distribution, a proportion of which is initially connected to the fluvial network. Initially disconnected landslide deposits are transported downslope and connected to rivers at a constant velocity in the post-seismic period. Disconnected landslide deposits lose organic carbon by heterotrophic oxidation, while connected deposits lose organic carbon synchronously by both oxidation and river export. The modelling approach is numerically efficient and allows us to explore a large range of parameter values that exert a control on the fate of organic carbon in the upland erosional system. We explore the role of the climatic context (in terms of mean annual runoff and runoff variability) and rates of organic matter degradation using single and multi-pool models. Our results highlight that the redistribution of organic carbon is strongly controlled by the annual runoff and the extent of landslide connection, but less so by the choice of organic matter degradation model. In the context of mountain ranges typical of the southwest Pacific region, we find that model configurations allow for more than 90 % of the landslide-mobilized carbon to be exported from mountain catchments. A simulation of earthquake cycles suggests efficient transfer of organic carbon out of a mountain range during the first decade of the post-seismic period. Pulsed erosion of organic matter by earthquake-triggered landslides therefore offers an effective process to promote carbon sequestration in sedimentary deposits over thousands of years.

scholarly journals Dynamics and variability of POC burial in depocenters of the North Sea (Skagerrak), Cruise No. AL561, 2.08.2021 – 13.08.2021, Kiel – Kiel, APOC

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Schmidt
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Particulate Organic Carbon ◽  
North Sea ◽  
Anthropogenic Impacts ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
High Accumulation ◽  
Gravity Corer ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Sea ◽  
Mineralization Processes

The AL561 cruise was conducted in the framework of the project APOC (“Anthropogenic impacts on Particulate Organic Carbon cycling in the North Sea”). This collaborative project between GEOMAR, AWI, HEREON, UHH, and BUND is to understand how particulate organic carbon (POC) cycling contributes to carbon sequestration in the North Sea and how this ecosystem service is compromised and interlinked with global change and a range of human pressures include fisheries (pelagic fisheries, bottom trawling), resource extraction (sand mining), sediment management (dredging and disposal of dredged sediments) and eutrophication. The main aim of the sampling activity during AL561 cruise was to recover undisturbed sediment from high accumulation sites in the Skagerrak/Kattegat and to subsample sediment/porewater at high resolution in order to investigate sedimentation transport processes, origin of sediment/POC and mineralization processes over the last 100- 200 years. Moreover, the actual processes of sedimentation and POC degradation in the water column and benthic layer will be addressed by sampling with CTD and Lander devices. In total 9 hydroacoustic surveys (59 profiles), 4 Gravity Corer, 7 Multicorer, 3 Lander and 4 CTD stations were successfully conducted during the AL561 cruise. - (Alkor-Berichte ; AL561)

scholarly journals Traces of sunlight in the organic matter biogeochemistry of two shallow subarctic lakes

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marttiina V. Rantala ◽  
Carsten Meyer-Jacob ◽  
E. Henriikka Kivilä ◽  
Tomi P. Luoto ◽  
Antti. E. K. Ojala ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Lake Sediments ◽  
Lake Water ◽  
Human Impacts ◽  
Global Environmental Change ◽  
Carbon Export ◽  
Subarctic Lakes ◽  
Carbon Regulation ◽  
In Situ Experiments

AbstractGlobal environmental change alters the production, terrestrial export, and photodegradation of organic carbon in northern lakes. Sedimentary biogeochemical records can provide a unique means to understand the nature of these changes over long time scales, where observational data fall short. We deployed in situ experiments on two shallow subarctic lakes with contrasting light regimes; a clear tundra lake and a dark woodland lake, to first investigate the photochemical transformation of carbon and nitrogen elemental (C/N ratio) and isotope (δ13C, δ15N) composition in lake water particulate organic matter (POM) for downcore inferences. We then explored elemental, isotopic, and spectral (inferred lake water total organic carbon [TOC] and sediment chlorophyll a [CHLa]) fingerprints in the lake sediments to trace changes in aquatic production, terrestrial inputs and photodegradation before and after profound human impacts on the global carbon cycle prompted by industrialization. POM pool in both lakes displayed tentative evidence of UV photoreactivity, reflected as increasing δ13C and decreasing C/N values. Through time, the tundra lake sediments traced subtle shifts in primary production, while the woodland lake carried signals of changing terrestrial contributions, indicating shifts in terrestrial carbon export but possibly also photodegradation rates. Under global human impact, both lakes irrespective of their distinct carbon regimes displayed evidence of increased productivity but no conspicuous signs of increased terrestrial influence. Overall, sediment biogeochemistry can integrate a wealth of information on carbon regulation in northern lakes, while our results also point to the importance of considering the entire spectrum of photobiogeochemical fingerprints in sedimentary studies.

A new parameter set for anisotropic multiparameter full-waveform inversion and application to a North Sea data set

Geophysics ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 81 (4) ◽  
pp. U25-U38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nuno V. da Silva ◽  
Andrew Ratcliffe ◽  
Vetle Vinje ◽  
Graham Conroy
Keyword(s):  
North Sea ◽  
Waveform Inversion ◽  
Real Data ◽  
Model Parameters ◽  
Full Waveform Inversion ◽  
Radiation Patterns ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Full Waveform ◽  
Seismic Image ◽  
Central North Sea

Parameterization lies at the center of anisotropic full-waveform inversion (FWI) with multiparameter updates. This is because FWI aims to update the long and short wavelengths of the perturbations. Thus, it is important that the parameterization accommodates this. Recently, there has been an intensive effort to determine the optimal parameterization, centering the fundamental discussion mainly on the analysis of radiation patterns for each one of these parameterizations, and aiming to determine which is best suited for multiparameter inversion. We have developed a new parameterization in the scope of FWI, based on the concept of kinematically equivalent media, as originally proposed in other areas of seismic data analysis. Our analysis is also based on radiation patterns, as well as the relation between the perturbation of this set of parameters and perturbation in traveltime. The radiation pattern reveals that this parameterization combines some of the characteristics of parameterizations with one velocity and two Thomsen’s parameters and parameterizations using two velocities and one Thomsen’s parameter. The study of perturbation of traveltime with perturbation of model parameters shows that the new parameterization is less ambiguous when relating these quantities in comparison with other more commonly used parameterizations. We have concluded that our new parameterization is well-suited for inverting diving waves, which are of paramount importance to carry out practical FWI successfully. We have demonstrated that the new parameterization produces good inversion results with synthetic and real data examples. In the latter case of the real data example from the Central North Sea, the inverted models show good agreement with the geologic structures, leading to an improvement of the seismic image and flatness of the common image gathers.

Triassic-age salt tectonics of the Central North Sea

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. SM19-SM28 ◽  
Author(s):  
John F. Karlo ◽  
Frans S. P. van Buchem ◽  
Jan Moen ◽  
Katie Milroy
Keyword(s):  
North Sea ◽  
Lateral Displacement ◽  
Salt Tectonics ◽  
Structural Relief ◽  
Tectonic Style ◽  
Thermal Doming ◽  
Central North Sea ◽  
Extensional Structures

The framework of salt tectonics in the Central North Sea was set early in the Triassic. We defined and illustrated five major domains of differing salt tectonic style. The differing structural styles were all interpreted as having evolved under a component of lateral displacement pairing extensional and contractional structures, produced by some combination of decoupled rift extension and gravity sliding. However, the extensional structures are located toward the basin center and the contractional structures near the original updip limits of salt. This suggests a framework driven by gravity sliding of the sediments overlying the Zechstein away from the Central Graben. Possible mechanisms for structural relief away from the Central Graben are the Triassic focus of rifting lying further east at the Norwegian-Danish basin, footwall uplift of a Triassic Central Graben precursor and significant thermal doming occurring much earlier than had previously been thought. The mechanisms are not mutually exclusive and may have acted in concert.

Disseminated ‘jigsaw piece’ dolomite in Upper Jurassic shelf sandstones, Central North Sea: an example of cement growth during bioturbation?

Sedimentology ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 631-644 ◽  
Author(s):  
James P. Hendry ◽  
Mark Wilkinson ◽  
Anthony E. Fallick ◽  
Nigel H. Trewin
Keyword(s):  
North Sea ◽  
Upper Jurassic ◽  
Central North Sea
Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document