Title | Distributed natural gas venting offshore along the Cascadia margin |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 2018 |
Authors | Riedel, M, Scherwath, M, Romer, M, Veloso, M, Heesemann, M, Spence, GD |
Journal | Nature Communications |
Volume | 9 |
Pagination | 3264 |
Type of Article | Journal Article |
Abstract | Widespread gas venting along the Cascadia margin is investigated from acoustic water column data and reveals a nonuniform regional distribution of over 1100 mapped acoustic flares. The highest number of flares occurs on the shelf, and the highest flare density is seen around the nutrition-rich outflow of the Juan de Fuca Strait. We determine ∼430 flow-rates at ∼340 individual flare locations along the margin with instantaneous in situ values ranging from ∼6 mL min−1 to ∼18 L min−1. Applying a tidal-modulation model, a depth-dependent methane density, and extrapolating these results across the margin using two normalization techniques yields a combined average in situ flow-rate of ∼88 × 106 kg y−1. The average methane flux-rate for the Cascadia margin is thus estimated to ∼0.9 g y−1m−2. Combined uncertainties result in a range of these values between 4.5 and 1800% of the estimated mean values. |
DOI | 10.1038/s41467-018-05736-x |
Array | Regional Cabled |
Bibliometrics |
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