Studying bubble-induced methane emissions from the East Siberian Arctic Shelf: the next step towards a quantitative assessment.

Abstract:

Destabilization of subsea permafrost results in increasing permeability for gaseous methane long preserved in seabed deposits within and beneath permafrost. This process manifests as extensive methane ebullition, driving significantly elevated methane aqueous concentrations - up to three orders higher than atmospheric equilibrium. In places, bubbles release as a vigorous flow that often reach the surface; on echograms, such bubble plums create specific flare-like images. To detect, map, monitor, and analyze bubble-induced methane fluxes, in summer 2011 and 2012, sonar data were gathered over extensive seep fields in the East Siberian Arctic Shelf (ESAS) in frame of International Siberian Shelf Study (ISSS). To measure the bubble screen backscattering strength, the acoustic sensors were calibrated using a target (“ideal” sphere) provided by the manufacturer (SIMRAD). To establish a relationship between the backscattering strength of bubbles releasing from the seafloor and methane flux rate, an in-situ calibration using engineered seeps was performed. To apportion fraction of bubbles reaching the sea surface and assess remaining gaseous content of bubbles, in winter 2011-2013, direct in-situ observations of bubbles, ascending from the seafloor, were performed using high-speed high-resolution video camera. Results of inter-calibration between engineered quantitative in-situ calibrations and qualitative calibration recommended by manufacturer were applied to evaluate bubble-induced methane fluxes observed in the ESAS in summer 2011 and 2012.