Seep-carbonate lamination controlled by cyclic particle flux

Type Article
Date 2016-11
Language English
Author(s) Himmler Tobias1, 2, 3, Bayon Germain3, Wangner David1, 2, 4, Enzmann Frieder5, Peckmann Joern6, 7, Bohrmann Gerhard1, 2
Affiliation(s) 1 : Univ Bremen, MARUM Ctr Marine & Environm Sci, D-28334 Bremen, Germany.
2 : Univ Bremen, Dept Geosci, D-28334 Bremen, Germany.
3 : IFREMER, Marine Geosci Res Unit, Ctr Bretagne, F-29280 Plouzane, France.
4 : Geol Survey Denmark & Greenland, DK-1350 Copenhagen K, Denmark.
5 : Johannes Gutenberg Univ Mainz, Inst Geosci, D-55128 Mainz, Germany.
6 : Univ Hamburg, Inst Geol, D-20146 Hamburg, Germany.
7 : Univ Vienna, Dept Geodynam & Sedimentol, A-1090 Vienna, Austria.
Source Scientific Reports (2045-2322) (Nature Publishing Group), 2016-11 , Vol. 6 , P. 37439 (1-9)
DOI 10.1038/srep37439
WOS© Times Cited 14
Abstract Authigenic carbonate build-ups develop at seafloor methane-seeps, where microbially mediated sulphate-dependent anaerobic oxidation of methane facilitates carbonate precipitation. Despite being valuable recorders of past methane seepage events, their role as archives of atmospheric processes has not been examined. Here we show that cyclic sedimentation pulses related to the Indian monsoon in concert with authigenic precipitation of methane-derived aragonite gave rise to a well-laminated carbonate build-up within the oxygen minimum zone off Pakistan (northern Arabian Sea). U–Th dating indicates that the build-up grew during past ~1,130 years, creating an exceptional high-resolution archive of the Indian monsoon system. Monsoon-controlled formation of seep-carbonates extends the known environmental processes recorded by seep-carbonates, revealing a new relationship between atmospheric and seafloor processes.
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