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Design and Use of a Full Flow Sampling System (FFS) for the Quantification of Methane Emissions
08:18

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Published on: June 12, 2016

Potential methane reservoirs beneath Antarctica.

J L Wadham1, S Arndt, S Tulaczyk

  • 1School of Geographical Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1SS, UK. j.l.wadham@bris.ac.uk

Nature
|August 31, 2012
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Antarctica's subglacial environments may harbor significant methane reserves, potentially impacting the global methane budget. This research explores the potential for methane hydrate formation beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet.

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Area of Science:

  • Geosciences
  • Microbiology
  • Climate Science

Background:

  • Antarctica's subglacial environments are recognized reservoirs of microbial life and organic carbon.
  • The potential for methane production by methanogenic archaea beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet remains unevaluated.
  • Vast marine sedimentary basins with substantial organic carbon are buried under the Antarctic Ice Sheet.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the potential for methane production and accumulation in Antarctic subglacial sedimentary basins.
  • To assess the role of methanogenic archaea in degrading organic carbon to methane under Antarctic ice.
  • To determine the potential for methane hydrate formation and its contribution to the global methane budget.

Main Methods:

  • Experimental data from other subglacial environments demonstrating methane production from overridden organic matter.
  • Numerical simulations using a 1D hydrate model to predict methane accumulation in Antarctic basins.
  • Analysis of pressure/temperature conditions favoring methane hydrate formation at various sediment depths.

Main Results:

  • Experimental evidence supports methane production potential in glacial overridden organic matter.
  • Simulations indicate favorable conditions for methane hydrate formation down to 300m (West Antarctica) and 700m (East Antarctica).
  • The sub-Antarctic methane hydrate inventory could be comparable in magnitude to Arctic permafrost estimates.

Conclusions:

  • The Antarctic Ice Sheet may be a significant, yet overlooked, contributor to the global methane budget.
  • Methane hydrate accumulation is plausible in Antarctic sedimentary basins, dependent on organic carbon degradation and ice-sheet bed conditions.
  • This subglacial methane potential could act as a positive feedback mechanism for climate warming during ice-sheet wastage.