Articles | Volume 9, issue 5
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-9-837-2013
© Author(s) 2013. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-9-837-2013
© Author(s) 2013. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
The transient distributions of nuclear weapon-generated tritium and its decay product 3 He in the Mediterranean Sea, 1952–2011, and their oceanographic potential
W. Roether
Institut für Umweltphysik, Univ. Bremen, Otto Hahn Allee, 28355, Bremen, Germany
P. Jean-Baptiste
IPSL/LSCE, CEA-CNRS-UVSQ, CEA-Saclay, 91191, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
E. Fourré
IPSL/LSCE, CEA-CNRS-UVSQ, CEA-Saclay, 91191, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
J. Sültenfuß
Institut für Umweltphysik, Univ. Bremen, Otto Hahn Allee, 28355, Bremen, Germany
Related authors
William J. Jenkins, Scott C. Doney, Michaela Fendrock, Rana Fine, Toshitaka Gamo, Philippe Jean-Baptiste, Robert Key, Birgit Klein, John E. Lupton, Robert Newton, Monika Rhein, Wolfgang Roether, Yuji Sano, Reiner Schlitzer, Peter Schlosser, and Jim Swift
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 11, 441–454, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-11-441-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-11-441-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
This paper describes an assembled dataset containing measurements of certain trace substances in the ocean, their distributions, and evolution with time. These substances, called tracers, result from a combination of natural and artificial processes, and their distribution and evolution provide important clues about ocean circulation, mixing, and ventilation. In addition, they give information about the global hydrologic cycle and volcanic and hydrothermal processes.
M. Ayache, J.-C. Dutay, P. Jean-Baptiste, K. Beranger, T. Arsouze, J. Beuvier, J. Palmieri, B. Le-vu, and W. Roether
Ocean Sci., 11, 323–342, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-11-323-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-11-323-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
The anthropogenic tritium invasion, and its decay product helium-3, was simulated for the first time in the Mediterranean Sea, using a high-resolution regional model (NEMO-MED12). The simulation covers the entire tritium (3H) transient generated by the atmospheric nuclear weapons tests performed in the 1950s and early 1960s and run until 2011. The model correctly simulates the main features of the thermohaline circulation in the Mediterranean Sea, with a realistic time compared to observations.
P. Malanotte-Rizzoli, V. Artale, G. L. Borzelli-Eusebi, S. Brenner, A. Crise, M. Gacic, N. Kress, S. Marullo, M. Ribera d'Alcalà, S. Sofianos, T. Tanhua, A. Theocharis, M. Alvarez, Y. Ashkenazy, A. Bergamasco, V. Cardin, S. Carniel, G. Civitarese, F. D'Ortenzio, J. Font, E. Garcia-Ladona, J. M. Garcia-Lafuente, A. Gogou, M. Gregoire, D. Hainbucher, H. Kontoyannis, V. Kovacevic, E. Kraskapoulou, G. Kroskos, A. Incarbona, M. G. Mazzocchi, M. Orlic, E. Ozsoy, A. Pascual, P.-M. Poulain, W. Roether, A. Rubino, K. Schroeder, J. Siokou-Frangou, E. Souvermezoglou, M. Sprovieri, J. Tintoré, and G. Triantafyllou
Ocean Sci., 10, 281–322, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-281-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-281-2014, 2014
A. Schneider, T. Tanhua, W. Roether, and R. Steinfeldt
Ocean Sci., 10, 1–16, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-1-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-1-2014, 2014
Céline Heuzé, Oliver Huhn, Maren Walter, Natalia Sukhikh, Salar Karam, Wiebke Körtke, Myriel Vredenborg, Klaus Bulsiewicz, Jürgen Sültenfuß, Ying-Chih Fang, Christian Mertens, Benjamin Rabe, Sandra Tippenhauer, Jacob Allerholt, Hailun He, David Kuhlmey, Ivan Kuznetsov, and Maria Mallet
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 5517–5534, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-5517-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-5517-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Gases dissolved in the ocean water not used by the ecosystem (or "passive tracers") are invaluable to track water over long distances and investigate the processes that modify its properties. Unfortunately, especially so in the ice-covered Arctic Ocean, such gas measurements are sparse. We here present a data set of several passive tracers (anthropogenic gases, noble gases and their isotopes) collected over the full ocean depth, weekly, during the 1-year drift in the Arctic during MOSAiC.
Tobias R. Juhlke, Jürgen Sültenfuß, Katja Trachte, Frédéric Huneau, Emilie Garel, Sébastien Santoni, Johannes A. C. Barth, and Robert van Geldern
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 3555–3568, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3555-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3555-2020, 2020
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Tritium can serve as a useful tracer in the hydrological cycle; however, aspects of the distribution and exchange of tritium in the atmosphere are not completely understood. In particular, the movement of tritium from its natural origin in the upper atmosphere to its deposition onto the land surface by precipitation has to be quantified further. Therefore, this study collected precipitation event samples and used atmospheric models in order to improve knowledge regarding tritium dynamics.
William J. Jenkins, Scott C. Doney, Michaela Fendrock, Rana Fine, Toshitaka Gamo, Philippe Jean-Baptiste, Robert Key, Birgit Klein, John E. Lupton, Robert Newton, Monika Rhein, Wolfgang Roether, Yuji Sano, Reiner Schlitzer, Peter Schlosser, and Jim Swift
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 11, 441–454, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-11-441-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-11-441-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
This paper describes an assembled dataset containing measurements of certain trace substances in the ocean, their distributions, and evolution with time. These substances, called tracers, result from a combination of natural and artificial processes, and their distribution and evolution provide important clues about ocean circulation, mixing, and ventilation. In addition, they give information about the global hydrologic cycle and volcanic and hydrothermal processes.
R. Steinfeldt, J. Sültenfuß, M. Dengler, T. Fischer, and M. Rhein
Biogeosciences, 12, 7519–7533, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-7519-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-7519-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
The coastal upwelling systems, e.g. off Peru and Mauritania,
are key regions for the emissions of climate relevant trace gases
from the ocean into the atmosphere. Here, gases and nutrients are
transported into the ocean mixed layer from below. The upwelling velocities,
however, are too small to be measured directly.
We use the enhancement of helium-3 in upwelled
waters to quantify the vertical velocity,
which varies between 1.0 and 2.5 metres per day in the coastal regions.
M. Ayache, J.-C. Dutay, P. Jean-Baptiste, and E. Fourré
Ocean Sci., 11, 965–978, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-11-965-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-11-965-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
Helium isotopes are a powerful tool in Earth sciences. We present the first simulation of the terrigenic helium isotope distribution in the whole Mediterranean Sea, using a high-resolution model (NEMO-MED12). In addition to providing constraints on helium isotope degassing fluxes in the Mediterranean, our simulations provide information on the ventilation of the deep Mediterranean waters, which are useful for assessing NEMO-MED12 performance.
M. Ayache, J.-C. Dutay, P. Jean-Baptiste, K. Beranger, T. Arsouze, J. Beuvier, J. Palmieri, B. Le-vu, and W. Roether
Ocean Sci., 11, 323–342, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-11-323-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-11-323-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
The anthropogenic tritium invasion, and its decay product helium-3, was simulated for the first time in the Mediterranean Sea, using a high-resolution regional model (NEMO-MED12). The simulation covers the entire tritium (3H) transient generated by the atmospheric nuclear weapons tests performed in the 1950s and early 1960s and run until 2011. The model correctly simulates the main features of the thermohaline circulation in the Mediterranean Sea, with a realistic time compared to observations.
P. Malanotte-Rizzoli, V. Artale, G. L. Borzelli-Eusebi, S. Brenner, A. Crise, M. Gacic, N. Kress, S. Marullo, M. Ribera d'Alcalà, S. Sofianos, T. Tanhua, A. Theocharis, M. Alvarez, Y. Ashkenazy, A. Bergamasco, V. Cardin, S. Carniel, G. Civitarese, F. D'Ortenzio, J. Font, E. Garcia-Ladona, J. M. Garcia-Lafuente, A. Gogou, M. Gregoire, D. Hainbucher, H. Kontoyannis, V. Kovacevic, E. Kraskapoulou, G. Kroskos, A. Incarbona, M. G. Mazzocchi, M. Orlic, E. Ozsoy, A. Pascual, P.-M. Poulain, W. Roether, A. Rubino, K. Schroeder, J. Siokou-Frangou, E. Souvermezoglou, M. Sprovieri, J. Tintoré, and G. Triantafyllou
Ocean Sci., 10, 281–322, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-281-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-281-2014, 2014
A. Schneider, T. Tanhua, W. Roether, and R. Steinfeldt
Ocean Sci., 10, 1–16, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-1-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-1-2014, 2014
Related subject area
Approach: In situ Observations | Depth range: All Depths | Geographical range: Mediterranean Sea | Phenomena: Chemical Tracers
Ventilation of the Mediterranean Sea constrained by multiple transient tracer measurements
The CO2 system in the Mediterranean Sea: a basin wide perspective
Changes in ventilation of the Mediterranean Sea during the past 25 year
T. Stöven and T. Tanhua
Ocean Sci., 10, 439–457, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-439-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-439-2014, 2014
M. Álvarez, H. Sanleón-Bartolomé, T. Tanhua, L. Mintrop, A. Luchetta, C. Cantoni, K. Schroeder, and G. Civitarese
Ocean Sci., 10, 69–92, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-69-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-69-2014, 2014
A. Schneider, T. Tanhua, W. Roether, and R. Steinfeldt
Ocean Sci., 10, 1–16, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-1-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-10-1-2014, 2014
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