Frozen Methane Under the Seabed is Thawing – And It's Worse Than We Thought
Earth so, despite being hundreds of metres below the seafloor, it is right at the point of instability.Some layers of sediment are permeable and create a complex underground plumbing for the gas to move through if it’s liberated during climatic warming. Just like holding a football underwater methane gas wants to push upwards because of its buoyancy and burst through the 100s of metres of sediment layers.Imposed upon this complex geology has been the seven glacials (or ice ages) and interglacials, which warmed and cooled the system repeatedly over the last million years.Example of the sort of
Nord Stream Breaches a Stark Reminder of Undersea Infrastructure Vulnerabilities
following gradual supply reductions during the summer.Nord Stream 2 was never launched as Germany refused to certify it following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Europe was not counting on the resumption of supplies from either pipeline.While the pipelines were not transmitting gas, they contained methane gas to maintain pressure.The amount of gas released is hard to quantify. Estimates suggest that roughly 300,000 tonnes of methane (or the equivalent of 7.5 million tonnes of carbon) has probably been released into the atmosphere, making it the largest release of methane in a single event (and over
Uncrewed Saildrone to Explore Remote Alaskan Waters
Okeanos Explorer. Scheduled for 2023, these expeditions will continue to fill additional seafloor mapping gaps and use remotely operated vehicles to further explore and sample features and resources of interest identified during the Aleutians Uncrewed Ocean Exploration expedition (e.g., seamounts, methane gas seeps, hydrothermal vents).The Aleutians Uncrewed Ocean Exploration expedition is the first project to result from a January 2022 interagency agreement between NOAA and BOEM that facilitates more efficient resource sharing and supports at-sea fieldwork in areas of common mission interest.NOAA
Linnaeus University: Seabed Pollution Helps Measure Effects of Climate Change
Stockholm University and the Geological Survey of Sweden. The route begins in Norrbotten, in the far north of Sweden, and ends in Skåne, in the south, with the group making 14 sampling stops along the way. During the voyage, researchers study water temperature, salinity, oxygen levels, sediment, methane gas, organic material, and other chemical parameters.Aside from identifying the quantity of hazardous metals, the researchers hope to analyze the amount of methane gas, and how much of that is emitted from the seabed into the water and air, thereby increasing the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere
Researchers Find Mysterious Seafloor Holes
sides than the pockmarks and are often elongated in one direction.Map showing the locations of some of the pockmarks and proposed wind-farm areas off Central California. Image: © 2019 MBARISeafloor pockmarks have been found elsewhere around the world, and have been associated with releases of methane gas or other fluids from the seafloor. Such methane releases could potentially cause the seafloor to be unstable, which could pose risks for structures such as offshore oil platforms or wind turbines. However MBARI researchers found no evidence of methane in the sediment or seawater in this
New Tech Simulates Methane Hydrate Recovery
deposits and cobalt rich crust.In particular, shallow methane hydrate — an ice-like solid material composed of water and methane molecules — can only exist in stable form under the low-temperature, high-pressure conditions of the seabed. Methane hydrate partially dissociates into methane gas and water as it is being raised from the seabed to the ocean surface, leading to major changes in the proportions of solid (methane hydrate), gas (methane) and liquid (seawater) in vertical lifting pipes used to raise the material to the surface.Developers seeking to design equipment for subsea
Methane: The Arctic's Buried Treasure
carbon recycling system related to gas hydrates from the sub-seabed to the atmosphere. First, we accomplish 4D time-lapse seismic studies to visualize potential sub-seabed gas hydrate accumulation and gas migration pathway areas. Second, we work in the water column taking both ocean spatial and methane gas concentration measurements using different types of laser spectrometers but also test new technologies in collaboration with the Laboratoire de Glaciologie et Géophysique de l’Environnement (LGGE) in Grenoble, France. Oxygen isotope measurements identify where the methane sources
Let There Be Laser Light
could illuminate key environmental gases Earth’s warming climate is poised to cause changes on our planet. In the Arctic, permafrost has begun to thaw, releasing methane, a heat-trapping greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere. On the seafloor, warmer ocean temperatures threaten to release methane gas by thawing solid deposits of methane hydrates found in cold depths. Such changes are potentially momentous, but how can we detect evidence that they are happening? How can we measure tiny trickles of gases wafting over enormous and remote areas? One answer may lie
ROV Put to the Test
after being called into action, thanks to its “home” position on the seafloor. Having an on-call ROV system can significantly reduce the time and resources needed for an ROV operation, especially in emergency situations. Stinger also wanted to test the use of a resident ROV to monitor methane gas buildup, which pose a threat to offshore oil & gas operations. If left undetected, gas buildups can cause explosions, resulting in costly and even fatal damages to wells, platforms and the environment. These buildups are especially of critical concern in Norway, where methane levels have risen
February 2024
