Methane concentration in the atmospheric boundary layer from the measurements at north pole-36 and north pole-39 drifting ice stations

Abstract

Episodic emissions ofmethane with the concentration of4 ppm to the lower atmosphere near the continental slope of the Arctic Ocean are considered. It is revealed that such methane emissions can be associated with the erosion of sediments containing gas hydrates, for example, as a result of the effects of mudflows caused by the instability of slope currents as well as by the geologic activity in the zone of significant depth drops. The high background concentration of methane is registered in the central part of the Arctic Ocean that is probably provoked by biologic activity within sea ice and on its bottom.