Cold Surface Water Research Articles

Hydrogeochemical and rare earth element properties of geothermal waters and the use of abandoned oil wells in Diyarbakır

Türkiye is one of the most tectonically active regions in the world. Diyarbakır, which was chosen as the study area, is located in the south-eastern Anatolian region of Türkiye and also in the south of the Bitlis-Zagros Suture Zone (BZSZ). Some of the geothermal resources in Diyarbakır are actively exploited. The temperature of Çermik geothermal waters was recorded at 40–51 °C by MTA (General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration) between 2010 and 2014. However, subsequent measurements conducted following the Kahramanmaraş earthquake (Mw: 7.7 on 6 February 2023) revealed that the surface temperature of geothermal fluids had increased to between 52 and 56 °C. Previous studies have indicated that there are also many abandoned oil wells in the region where the wellhead temperatures are around 107 °C. As a result of hydrogeochemical analyses, deep circulating geothermal waters such as Çermik have Na-HCO3 composition, while shallow circulating and mixed cold surface waters such as Çınar, Bismil and Sur have Na-Ca-Cl-HCO3 composition. According to the chalcedony geothermometer results, the reservoir temperatures in the study area vary between 90 °C and 173 °C. REY (Rare Earth Elements and Yttrium) results show that geothermal fluids in the study area have negative cerium (Ce), europium (Eu) and yttrium (Y) anomalies. The negative Ce anomaly indicates that the colder aquifers are close to oxygen-rich surface waters and thermal fluids interact with Karacadağ volcanic rocks. Eu anomalies in groundwater are controlled by preferential mobilisation of Eu2+ during water-rock interaction compared to Eu3+, and negative Eu anomalies indicate leakage of geothermal fluids from granites. The Y/Ho values of the thermal fluids in the study area are between 30 and 40. This value is due to the active contribution of fluorine during the mobilisation of REY as a fluoride or fluorocarbonate ligand complex, causing Y to behave as a heavy pseudolanthanide. δ18O and δ2H isotope values show that the geothermal waters in the study area are of meteoric origin. The obtained results reveal that Diyarbakir province has a geothermal potential and usage potential can be increased by using the abandoned oil wells.

Regional Hydro-Chemistry of Hydrothermal Springs in Northeastern Algeria, Case of Guelma, Souk Ahras, Tebessa and Khenchela Regions

Hydrothermal units are characterized by the emergence of several large-flow thermo-mineral springs (griffons), each with varying temperature and physico-chemical characteristics depending on the point of emergence. It seems, however, that there is variability between the different systems, although it is not easy to characterize it because the variability within each system is high. The regional dimension of the chemical composition of thermal waters is, therefore, an aspect that has received very little attention in the literature due to the lack of access to the deep reservoir. In this study, we investigated the spatial variability, on a regional scale, in the characteristics of thermal waters in northeastern Algeria, and more specifically the hydrothermal systems of Guelma, Souk Ahras, Khenchela and Tébessa. Thirty-two hot water samples were taken between December 2018 and October 2019, including five samples of low-temperature mineral spring water. Standard physico-chemical parameters, major anions and cations and lithium were analyzed. The data were log-transformed data and processed via principal component analysis, discriminant analysis and unsupervised classification. The results show that thermal waters are the result of a mixture of hot waters, whose chemical profile has a certain local character, and contaminated by cold surface waters. These surface waters may also have several chemical profiles depending on the location. In addition to the internal variability in each resource, there are differences in water quality between these different hydrothermal systems. The Guelma region differs the most from the other thermal regions studied, with a specific calcic sulfate chemical profile. This question is essential for the rational development of these regional resources in any field whatsoever.

Subsurface Warming of the West Antarctic Continental Shelf Linked to El Niño‐Southern Oscillation

AbstractRecent observations suggest that El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) impacts basal melting of West Antarctic ice shelves, yet sparse ocean observations limit our understanding of the associated processes. Here we investigate how ENSO events modulate subsurface West Antarctic shelf temperatures using high‐resolution global ocean‐sea ice model simulations. During El Niño, the subsurface shelf warming between 150 m and the shelf bottom can be up to 0.5°C in front of ice shelves. This warming arises from a weaker Amundsen Sea Low (ASL) and weaker coastal easterlies that reduce on‐shelf Ekman transport of cold surface waters, enabling enhanced transport of warm Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW) onto the shelf. A largely opposite response occurs during La Niña, with a stronger ASL and stronger Ekman transport that results in less cross‐shelf CDW transport and cooling in the subsurface. These findings have implications for interpreting basal melting on interannual to decadal time‐scales in West Antarctica.

East Greenland Prograded Margin and Oceanic Composite Tectono-Sedimentary Element, offshore East Greenland

Abstract The East Greenland Prograded Margin and Oceanic Composite Tectono-Sedimentary Element (EGPMO CTSE) consists of the East Greenland Prograded Margin Tectonic-Sedimentary Element (TSE) and the East Greenland Oceanic (EGO) TSE located over continental and oceanic crust, respectively. The East Greenland Prograded Margin TSE (EGPM TSE) is made up of six segments, with their basal part deferring from Maastrichtian to Miocene in age. The variation reflects the different timing in transition from syn- to post-rift, controlled by the lateral migration of rifting and diachronic continental break-up in the northern North Atlantic. The post-rift history can be subdivided into a pre-break-up Maastrichtian–Paleocene post-rift phase developed entirely offshore NE Greenland and an earliest Eocene–Miocene syn- to post-break-up phase developed in the wake of progressive continental rupture. Finally, the CTSE started to develop as a unified body from Miocene time after the complete separation of Greenland from Eurasia and the Jan Mayen microcontinent. The EGO TSE has formed since the earliest Eocene commencement of seafloor spreading. The structural and depositional outline of the EGPMO CTSE depicts its tectonic history but also reflects phases of volcanism, denudation and intensified icehouse conditions since the middle Miocene that were triggered by the opening of the Fram Strait and the uplift of East Greenland. The first major northern hemisphere glaciations started in NE Greenland. Glaciations expanded southwards during the late Miocene as the Denmark Strait was transgressed and cold surface water from the high arctic started flowing along SE Greenland, cooling the region. The petroleum potential of the EGPM TSE is conceivably modest but a potential exists locally offshore northern NE Greenland where hydrocarbons sourced mainly from the Jurassic–Cretaceous section may have charged structures cored by Maastrichtian–Eocene sandstone reservoirs sealed by overlying marine mudstones.

An Extraterrestrial Pt Anomaly during the Late Glacial-Younger Dryas: Viso Massif (Italy and France)

Paleosol evidence supporting the Younger Dryas Impact Hypothesis (YDIH) on the Viso Massif of France and Italy is expanded by a Pt anomaly at all sites investigated, accompanied by elevated Os, Ir, Ru, and Rh concentrations at several sites, thus affirming a cosmic driver to the YD climatic shift at 12.8 ka. Original, thin Allerød soils prevalent at the end of the Late Glacial comprise sediments affected by an airburst from a hypothesized secondary daughter fragment or fragments of the main 2P/Encke progenitor comet train that intersected Earth’s land surface and its alpine-continental ice sheets. This event has been previously postulated to have breached Lake Agassiz and other proglacial lakes in North America, released meltwater into the Atlantic Ocean through the St. Lawrence and into the Arctic through the Mackenzie River system, after which cold surface water shut down the thermohaline circulation of the Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic. This thermohaline event is the traditional explanation for YD cooling, but was it fast enough to match the pollen evidence, which confirms rapid temperature reversal? Or was an “impact winter” involved? Cosmic signatures reported here include elevated Pt/Pd ratios, Os, Ir, Ru, and Rh concentrations with orders of magnitude (OM) for Ir used to establish the main center of conflagrations that helped trigger an impact winter. While most sections show variable distributions of PGEs, some are fully affected by concentrations entirely through the unweathered substrate or parent material horizons (called “Cu” horizons). Peak distributions of platinum group elements (PGEs) provide new information on the dispersal patterns of grains that add the Western European Alps to the intercontinental array of sites containing the Younger Dryas boundary (YDB) layer, also sometimes called the black mat (BM). Previously, most age determinations for the Alps were derived from relative dating determinations (RD), but here, we report an AMS C14 date from one LG paleosol (G11-Bw) yielding an age of 12,816 ±44 cal yr BP age, coeval with the average 12.8 ka age of the BM.

Hydrochemistry, controlling mechanisms and water quality index in hot springs of the Kullu-Manali region, India

The present study highlights the unique chemical characteristics of hot springs and their comparison with cold springs, surface water, and groundwater in the same area. The hot springs' temperature ranges from 27 to 96 °C, which induce variable degree of hydrochemical alteration of hot springs' water. The concentrations of Na+ and K+ are highly correlated with Cl−, HCO3−, and SO42− in hot springs, while Ca2+ and Mg2+ behave erratically. The Na/Cl ionic ratios give clues of a restricted geological environment of thermal waters, mixing in cold springs and groundwater, and a meteoric origin of the surface water. The SiO2 behave conservatively, with little change in different water types except surface water. The concentrations of SiO2, highest in the hot springs and lowest in the surface water, help draw depth profiling of different water types. Mixing of ascending hot springs with overlying waters of different origins creates ambiguity in chemical interpretations. Due to mixing with different water types, Chalcedony thermometry better represents hot springs than Na–K–Mg geothermometry. As a result, hot springs alter from Na–Cl and Na–Cl–SO4 type facies with high SiO2 and gradually evolved in Ca–Mg–Na–HCO3–Cl type water. Similarly, most cold springs show mix-type and Ca–HCO3 water types. The chemical characteristics of cold springs are similar to groundwater and equally sensitive to seasonal variation due to mixing with meteoric recharge. The surface water is characterized by Ca–Cl2 type water. All water types acquire unique chemical signatures due to the combined effect of geological formations, depth, temperature, degree of meteoric recharge, and, to some extent, anthropogenic pollution. The Water Quality Index (WQI) assessment revealed that three samples from the Kullu and Kalath regions fall in poor WQI, requiring immediate protection from anthropogenic pollution.

Sediment-water fluxes of inorganic carbon and nutrients in the Pacific Arctic during the sea ice melt season

The Bering and Chukchi Seas are important oceanic regions of carbon dioxide (CO2) uptake owing to enhanced gas solubility in cold surface waters and highly productive spring phytoplankton blooms. Over the past several decades, sea ice extent in the Arctic Ocean has decreased and the ice-melt season has started earlier in the year, but the biogeochemical impacts of these systematic changes are unclear. As these marginal seas of the Arctic Ocean are quite shallow (mostly <60 m depth) there is extensive interaction across air-sea-sediment boundaries, and export production rates are high during the spring bloom, delivering organic carbon to the sediments. However, the subsequent transformations and fluxes of carbon in Bering and Chukchi Sea sediments have not been directly quantified. In May–June 2021, we collected sediment cores at 5 stations spanning the eastern Bering Sea and southern and eastern Chukchi Sea. These stations encompassed a range of surface water ice coverage history, from greater than one month to less than one day of ice-free conditions. In the Chukchi Sea, dissolved nutrient and inorganic carbon (DIC) effluxes from the sediments decreased northward. The highest and most variable DIC fluxes were observed in the southern Chukchi Sea, north of the Bering Strait, ranging from 2.0 to 21.5 mmol m−2 d−1, while the lowest DIC fluxes were observed at the northernmost Chukchi Sea station near Cape Lisburne, ranging from 1.1 to 2.3 mmol m−2 d−1. Moving northward, the surface water had greater sea ice concentrations, inhibiting surface productivity and air-sea exchange of CO2. The reduced export of labile carbon to the seafloor likely resulted in decreased benthic respiration and thus a lower flux of remineralization products from the sediments to the water column. Some duplicate core measurements were highly heterogeneous, especially in the Bering Sea, illustrating the dynamic nature of this macrofauna-dominated benthic environment and the range of fluxes under different rates of infaunal activity. Core replicates with relatively higher effluxes of remineralization products also had high fluxes of radon-222, a proxy for bio-irrigation in sediments, illustrating the dominant role of benthic macrofauna in benthic-pelagic coupling in this region. While these observations serve as a seasonal reference, they may also demonstrate how sedimentary fluxes will evolve under future conditions wherein sea ice retreats earlier in the season.

Estimation of reservoir temperature and analysis of the mechanism of origin of a granite dome-controlled geothermal system in the western Wugongshan area, southeast China

The escalating issues of worldwide energy scarcity and environmental contamination have brought geothermal resources into the spotlight as a sustainable and eco-friendly energy alternative. The circum-Wugongshan geothermal belt has abundant geothermal resources at a medium-low temperature, offering significant potential for development and utilization. In this study, samples of geothermal groundwater, cold spring water, and surface water were collected from the western Wugongshan area. Hydrochemical and thermodynamic methods were used to estimate the reservoir temperature and analyze its mechanism of origin. The results of these analyses indicated that, in terms of hydrochemical characteristics, most geothermal groundwater samples were Na-HCO3 and Na-SO4, while cold spring and surface water samples were Na-HCO3 and Ca-HCO3, respectively. Quartz and multicomponent geothermometers provided the most reliable estimations of reservoir temperatures, ranging from 64.8°C to 93.4°C. The circulation depth of geothermal water was found to range from 1729.3 m to 2,292.5 m. A mixing model indicated that shallow cold water was blended at a rate of 62.1%–78.8%. The δD and δ18O values validated the conclusion that the geothermal water originates from atmospheric precipitation, with recharge elevations varying between 503.1 m and 1,375.6 m. Based on the above analysis, a conceptual model is proposed to illustrate the mechanism of geothermal groundwater genesis.

‘Cold shock’ has few physiological effects on cultured Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) acclimated to low temperatures

With climate change, winter storms are predicted to increase in frequency and intensity, and result in rapid declines in water temperatures at sea-cages due to the mixing of deeper waters with cold surface waters. Given that winter storms have been associated with mortalities of Atlantic salmon in sea-cages, we acclimated fish for 5 weeks to 3 °C and: 1) maintained one group of fish at 3 °C (control group); and 2) exposed two other groups to a decline in temperature from 3 to 0 °C over 3 h, and then held them at this temperature for 4 or 24 h (i.e., to provide a ‘cold shock’). At the end of the experiment, the temperature for these latter groups was returned to 3 °C, and the fish were recovered for 5 days. Blood samples were taken before and at the end of the ‘cold shock’ (i.e., while still at 0 °C), and at 6, 24, 72 and 120 h after the fish were returned to 3 °C. A moderate stress response was measured after the ‘cold shock’ with: plasma cortisol levels transiently (at 24 h) increasing to ∼30 and ∼ 25 ng ml−1 in fish exposed to 0 °C for 4 and 24 h, respectively; and glucose increasing from ∼3.8 mM to 5.5–6.0 mM. There were no changes in plasma lactate, indices of tissue damage, or in plasma ion concentrations. However, gill Na+-K+-ATPase activity was ∼5-fold higher in fish given a ‘cold shock’ compared with those maintained at 3 °C. Finally, there were no mortalities within 120 h of the end of the ‘cold shock’. Collectively, these data indicate that Atlantic salmon have the capacity to withstand rapid declines in seawater temperature to close to 0 °C, and suggest that such phenomena alone are unlikely to be responsible for winter-related mortalities at salmon cage-sites in Iceland and Canada.

Assessing the performance of a multi-nested ocean circulation model using satellite remote sensing and in situ observations

This study presents a multi-nested ocean circulation model developed recently for the central Scotian Shelf. The model consists of four submodels downscaling from the eastern Canadian Shelf to the central Scotian Shelf. The model is driven by tides, river discharges, and atmospheric forcing. The model results are validated against observations, including satellite remote sensing data from GHRSST and Aquarius and in situ measurements taken by tide gauges, a marine buoy, ADCPs and CTDs. The ocean circulation model is able to capture variations of sea level, hydrography and the Nova Scotia Current on timescales of days to seasons over the central Scotian Shelf. Model results are used in a process study to examine the effect of tidal mixing and wind-driven coastal upwelling in the formation of cold surface waters along the coast of Nova Scotia.

Reservoir Temperature Calculation and Modeling for Convective Geothermal Systems: Case Study of Five Major Hot Springs in Lushan, Henan, China

The thermal storage temperature and water-rock interaction process of the Lushan convective geothermal system (Qinling stratigraphic zonation fracture zone in China) are clarified by using surface cold water and geothermal fluid as the research objects. In this study, a conceptual model of the temperature profile of the geothermal system in the study area was developed using surface temperature inversion, the cation temperature scale, the SiO2 temperature scale method, the mineral equilibrium phase method, the silicon-enthalpy model, the FixAl method, and the Cl-enthalpy model. The inversion temperature at the surface is in the range of 33-39°C, and the temperature difference indicates the direction of the Checun-Lushan fracture. The study area is recharged from atmospheric precipitation, and the temperature of the recharge area is approximately 5.8–7.7°C (the temperature of the alkali field is approximately 10°C), and the recharge elevation is approximately 1200 m. The thermal storage pattern in the study area is near-surface hydrothermal thermal storage transferred to shallow thermal storage and then to deep thermal storage. The near-surface hydrothermal thermal storage temperature is at a constant temperature of 60°C, and the shallow thermal storage temperature is calculated by K-Mg and Li-Mg geothermometers to be between 99 and 112°C. The thermal storage temperature is simulated using the FixAl method, with deviation values ranging from 2.9% to 15.0%. The silicon-enthalpy model calculates the deep thermal storage temperature to be between 181 and 230°C. The mixing ratio of geothermal water in the study area is extremely high, with a cold water mixing ratio of 85.4–94.8%. The home ground fluid temperature was estimated to be approximately 282°C using the Cl-enthalpy model. The main thermally controlled conductivity channel in the study area is the Checun-Lushan fracture zone. The water vapor formed by convection at depth moves upward to approximately 5 km to form a deep thermal reservoir, and this convection and upward movement cause it to mix with cold water from the fracture zone to form a shallow thermal reservoir, which moves to the near-surface, forming a hydrothermal-type reservoir, which is later discharged in the form of a spring. The conceptual model of geothermal system temperature established in this study provides a basis for further development and utilization of Lushan hot springs and provides guidance for future thermal storage temperature calculations of convection-type geothermal systems in uplifted mountains.

A Deeper Dive into Wintry, Carbon-Absorbing Antarctic Waters

Cold surface water in the Southern Ocean is a critical component in ocean carbon uptake. A new study profiles it using state-of-the-art research techniques.

The Impact of the Eastern Pacific Fresh and Warm Pools on the Bimodal Seasonality of Barrier Layers

AbstractObservations of Argo profiles and TAO/TRITON array confirm the significant seasonality of the barrier layer (BL) and temperature inversion (TI) in the northeastern tropical Pacific (NETP). Statistical result of the occurrence based on the Argo profiles reveals a bimodal variability of the BL, with two peaks in July and October. This bimodal seasonality of BL is attributed to the out‐of‐phase variations of the eastern Pacific fresh and warm pools. The fresh and warm pools both expand westward from May to July, when the Inter‐Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) becomes intense and broad. Heavy rainfall is the dominant contributor to the extension of the fresh and warm pools, leading to a high frequency of thick BL (40%). This frequent thick BL provides a precondition for its another development after August. The fresh pool is stable from August to November, while the warm pool contracts sharply. The cold tongue becomes active due to a prevailing trade wind and horizontal advection transports surface cold water to the northeastern warm pool. This cold advection deepens the isothermal layer and contributes to a frequent TI (30%) and thick BL (46%). The results suggest that the ITCZ rainfall and northward cold advection from equator dominate the upper layer stratification of NETP in summer and autumn, respectively.

Magmatic fluid input controlling the geochemical and isotopic characteristics of geothermal waters along the Yadong-Gulu rift, southern Tibetan Plateau

Geothermal resources, regarded as sustainable green energy, are attracting increasing attention. The southern Tibetan Plateau possesses the most abundant intermediate-high geothermal resources in China and has enormous potential for geothermal exploration. Geothermal waters from the Yadong-Gulu Rift (YGR), which is considered as the most active geothermal belt of the plateau, are studied based on hydrochemical and isotopic characteristics to understand the spatial variations of fluid origin, evolution, and circulation mechanism as well as heat sources. The hydrochemical characteristics of cold springs and surface waters are consistently characterized by Ca-HCO3 dominated (Ca-HCO3 and Ca-HCO3·SO4) waters while those of geothermal springs present extensive variability with Na-Cl dominated (Na-Cl·HCO3, Na-HCO3·Cl, Na·Ca-Cl·HCO3) and Na-HCO3 waters. The main geochemical processes controlling the geothermal springs are combinations of silicate weathering, carbonate dissolution, and cation exchange. The characteristics of trace alkali metals and B indicate they undergone common/similar deep process and the potential input of magmatic degassing. The δD and δ18O values suggest that cold springs and surface waters are recharged by meteoric water, and geothermal springs are replenished by meteoric water, snow-melt, and magmatic fluid. The mass balance model reveal that dominant carbon sources for geothermal waters can be deeply derived CO2 (i.e., magmatic source and metamorphic source), contributing from 77% to 99%. Based on empirical chemical geothermometers, Si-Enthalpy mixing model, and geothermometrical modelling, the calculated reservoir temperatures are highly variable (137-312 °C). The circulation depths of geothermal waters are 2.45-6.85 km. A conceptual model is proposed to reveal the deep groundwater circulation.

The Bornholm intermediate waters: Origination, pathway, and detection within the cold intermediate layer of the Baltic Sea

The Cold Intermediate Layer (CIL) is a distinctive feature of the Baltic Sea thermohaline structure: it is evident annually from March to December between the upper freshened layer and the deep layer with saline waters of oceanic origin. Water parameters are vertically inhomogeneous within the CIL, reflecting a complicated process of its formation that hasn’t been exhaustively described yet. On the base of field measurements and remote sensing data, a detailed study of the CIL formation in spring 2006 was performed. It showed that the core of the CIL (the coldest water) has a specific T,S-index that indicates the source of these waters in the south-western part of the sea. The data of CTD measurements, satellite-derived sea surface temperature (SST), and meteorological information were used to distinguish and trace the CIL core waters. The abrupt transformation of the SST field was observed in March 2006 when the coldest waters (0.9–2.1 °C) of moderate salinity (7.6–8.1) plunged from the upper mixed layer in the vicinity of Bornholm Island into intermediate layers. These waters were later identified as the sublayer of the CIL in the Baltic Proper in April and May 2006. The drivers of the penetration of winter-cold surface waters into the intermediate layers are suggested to be the negative surface buoyancy flux due to warming of cold surface waters with temperature below that of the density maximum and the intensification of easterly winds. Considering the importance of the CIL formation process for the entire Baltic Sea conveyor belt, these CIL core waters were termed the Bornholm Intermediate Waters (BIW). The T,S-index of the BIW shall vary from year to year, reflecting the severity of the past winter and the conditions of the particular spring. However, the BIW location right above the pycno/halocline, the lowest (specific for the current year) water temperature and its characteristic salinity of 7.6–8.1 are repeatedly confirmed by field observations in the Baltic Proper in spring. Joint application of satellite observations, field measurements, and meteorological data provides a coherent view on the process of the BIW waters origination. The results are particularly important it the context of growing hypoxia of deep Baltic waters, providing evidence of the mechanism of seasonal ventilation of intermediate water layers.

On the additivity of climate responses to the volcanic and solar forcing in the early 19th century

Abstract. The early 19th century was the coldest period over the past 500 years, when strong tropical volcanic events and a solar minimum coincided. The 1809 unidentified eruption and the 1815 Tambora eruption happened consecutively during the Dalton minimum of solar irradiance; however, the relative role of the two forcing (volcano and solar) agents is still unclear. In this study, we examine the responses from a set of early 19th century simulations with combined and separated volcanic and solar forcing agents, as suggested in the protocol for the past1000 experiment of the Paleoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project – Phase 4 (PMIP4). From 20-member ensemble simulations with the Max Planck Institute Earth system model (MPI-ESM1.2-LR), we find that the volcano- and solar-induced surface cooling is additive in the global mean/large scale, regardless of combining or separating the forcing agents. The two solar reconstructions (SATIRE (Spectral and Total Irradiance REconstruction-Millennia model) and PMOD (Physikalisch-Meteorologisches Observatorium Davos)) contribute to a cooling before and after 1815 of ∼0.05 and ∼0.15 K monthly average near-surface air cooling, respectively, indicating a limited solar contribution to the early 19th century cold period. The volcanic events provide the main cooling contributions, inducing a surface cooling that peaks at ∼0.82 K for the 1809 event and ∼1.35 K for Tambora. After the Tambora eruption, the temperature in most regions increases toward climatology largely within 5 years, along with the reduction of volcanic forcing. In the northern extratropical oceans, the temperature increases slowly at a constant rate until 1830, which is related to the reduction of seasonality and the concurrent changes in Arctic sea-ice extent. The albedo feedback of Arctic sea ice is found to be the main contributor to the Arctic amplification of the cooling signal. Several non-additive responses to solar and volcanic forcing happen on regional scales. In the atmosphere, the stratospheric polar vortex tends to strengthen when combining both volcano and solar forcing, even though the two forcing agents separately induce opposite-sign changes in stratospheric temperatures and zonal winds. In the ocean, when combining the two forcings, additional surface cold water propagates to the northern extratropics from the additional solar cooling in the tropics, which results in regional cooling along the propagation. Overall, this study not only quantifies the surface responses from combinations of the volcano and solar forcing, but also highlights the components that cannot be simply added from the responses of the individual forcing agents, indicating that a relatively small forcing agent (such as solar in early 19th century) can impact the response from the large forcing (such as the 1815 Tambora eruption) when considering regional climates.

Exceptional freshening and cooling in the eastern subpolar North Atlantic caused by reduced Labrador Sea surface heat loss

Abstract. Observations of the eastern subpolar North Atlantic in the 2010s show exceptional freshening and cooling of the upper ocean, peaking in 2016 with the lowest salinities recorded for 120 years. Published theories for the mechanisms driving the freshening include: reduced transport of saltier, warmer surface waters northwards from the subtropics associated with reduced meridional overturning; shifts in the pathways of fresher, cooler surface water from the Labrador Sea driven by changing patterns of wind stress; and the eastward expansion of the subpolar gyre. Using output from a high-resolution hindcast model simulation, we propose that the primary cause of the exceptional freshening and cooling is reduced surface heat loss in the Labrador Sea. Tracking virtual fluid particles in the model backwards from the eastern subpolar North Atlantic between 1990 and 2020 shows the major cause of the freshening and cooling to be an increased outflow of relatively fresh and cold surface waters from the Labrador Sea; with a minor contribution from reduced transport of warmer, saltier surface water northward from the subtropics. The cooling, but not the freshening, produced by these changing proportions of waters of subpolar and subtropical origin is mitigated by reduced along-track heat loss to the atmosphere in the North Atlantic Current. We analyse modelled boundary exchanges and water mass transformation in the Labrador Sea to show that since 2000, while inflows of lighter surface waters remain steady, the increasing output of these waters is due to reduced surface heat loss in the Labrador Sea beginning in the early 2000s. Tracking particles further upstream reveals that the primary source of the increased volume of lighter water transported out of the Labrador Sea is increased recirculation of water, and therefore longer residence times, in the upper 500–1000 m of the subpolar gyre.

Geochemical characterisation and modelling of the Luchon hydrothermal system (Central Pyrenees, France) and lessons learnt for the use of geochemical modelling techniques in granite-hosted alkaline thermal waters

Alkaline hydrothermal systems hosted in granitic rocks have been extensively investigated as natural analogues for radioactive waste disposal and for the geological storage of CO2. Thereby, their geochemical characterisation provides useful information for the long-term performance assessment predictions. The geochemical modelling of one of these alkaline hydrothermal systems has been performed in Luchon (France), together with the application of different geothermometrical techniques to determine the temperature, pH and mineral equilibrium conditions at depth. The modelling results show that the main processes controlling the hydrogeochemical evolution of this system are: (1) the mixing between deep thermal and cold surface waters, (2) the conductive cooling and (3) the external input of CO2. Other important results are that the most alkaline thermal waters are characterised by a high pH-buffering capacity during the mixing processes, and that the high pH values that characterise these thermal waters are not only inherited from the deep reservoir but strongly enhanced by conductive cooling. The reservoir temperature predicted by the geothermometrical modelling is in the range of 117 ± 8 °C, in good agreement with the temperatures ranging from 108 to 133 °C predicted by the classical geothermometers. The results of these calculations indicate as well that the thermal solutions have reached equilibrium with quartz, albite, potassium feldspar, zoisite and prehnite, and that a re-equilibirum with kaolinite and calcite is reached during their ascent to the surface. Another important outcome is that the precipitation of calcite in the deep reservoir could take place as a CO2 mineral trapping mechanism in similar systems. Further, the sharp influence of the surface waters on the deep thermal waters reveals a high susceptibility of the system to potential contamination processes.

Changes in the oxygen isotope composition of the Bering Sea contribution to the Arctic Ocean are an independent measure of increasing freshwater fluxes through the Bering Strait.

A large volume of freshwater is incorporated in the relatively fresh (salinity ~32–33) Pacific Ocean waters that are transported north through the Bering Strait relative to deep Atlantic salinity in the Arctic Ocean (salinity ~34.8). These freshened waters help maintain the halocline that separates cold Arctic surface waters from warmer Arctic Ocean waters at depth. The stable oxygen isotope composition of the Bering Sea contribution to the upper Arctic Ocean halocline was established as early as the late 1980’s as having a δ18OV-SMOW value of approximately -1.1‰. More recent data indicates a shift to an isotopic composition that is more depleted in 18O (mean δ18O value ~-1.5‰). This shift is supported by a data synthesis of >1400 water samples (salinity from 32.5 to 33.5) from the northern Bering and Chukchi seas, from the years 1987–2020, which show significant year-to-year, seasonal and regional variability. This change in the oxygen isotope composition of water in the upper halocline is consistent with observations of added freshwater in the Canada Basin, and mooring-based estimates of increased freshwater inflows through Bering Strait. Here, we use this isotopic time-series as an independent means of estimating freshwater flux changes through the Bering Strait. We employed a simple end-member mixing model that requires that the volume of freshwater (including runoff and other meteoric water, but not sea ice melt) flowing through Bering Strait has increased by ~40% over the past two decades to account for a change in the isotopic composition of the 33.1 salinity water from a δ18O value of approximately -1.1‰ to a mean of -1.5‰. This freshwater flux change is comparable with independent published measurements made from mooring arrays in the Bering Strait (freshwater fluxes rising from 2000–2500 km3 in 2001 to 3000–3500 km3 in 2011).

Ocean Dynamics and Methane Plume Activity in Tatar Strait, Far Eastern Federal District, Russia as Revealed by Seawater Chemistry, Hydroacoustics, and Noble Gas Isotopes

This investigation presents methane, noble gas isotopes, CTD, and stable isotopic data for water samples collected in Niskin bottles at Tatar Strait during the spring seasons of 2015 and 2019 onboard the Russian R/V Akademik M.A. Lavrentyev. The results are compared to previous research carried out in 1999 in a nearby portion of the Strait and demonstrate that salinity and temperature can change appreciably. The CTD data from 1999 shows warm surface waters underlain by cold subsurface waters. In contrast, the 2015 data show the CTD data that show warm temperatures and high salinity extending down from the surface well into intermediate waters, while the 2019 data show cold surface waters underlain by even colder subsurface waters. CTD data collected above active gas plume sites along Sakhalin Island’s western shore show no substantial difference in temperature or salinity from the non-plume sites, and the methane concentrations at all of the measured sites are significantly above saturation, even in the shallow waters. Hydroacoustic data also suggest the presence of free gas and gas hydrate–coated methane bubbles from the seafloor at least to the base of upper intermediate waters. All of the intermediate and deep Japan Sea Proper waters in Tatar Strait still retain tritiogenic3He, similar to that observed throughout much of the Japan Sea, indicating limited vertical exchange between these layers and surface waters. An analysis of the δ13C of dissolved inorganic carbon in the seawater shows that positive values are limited to surface waters and that the waters become progressively more depleted in13C with depth. The results are consistent with research over the past several decades which has shown that ventilation of intermediate and deep Japan Sea Proper water is somewhat limited, while both the temperature and salinity of surface and subsurface water layers within the strait are sensitive to the balance between cold, less saline waters contributed by the Amur River/Primorye Current from the north and warm, saline waters contributed by the Tsushima Current from the south.