Subsea methane release documented

[andygates]

You know that theory about how methane's trapped under permafrost and it could be a Bad Thing if it was to be released?  Well, it looks like it's happening.

Orjan Gustafsson of Stockholm University, in an Independent article:  "An extensive area of intense methane release was found [in the Laptev Sea, North of Siberia]. At earlier sites we had found elevated levels of dissolved methane. Yesterday, for the first time, we documented a field where the release was so intense that the methane did not have time to dissolve into the seawater but was rising as methane bubbles to the sea surface. These 'methane chimneys' were documented on echo sounder and with seismic [instruments]."

"The conventional thought has been that the permafrost 'lid' on the sub-sea sediments on the Siberian shelf should cap and hold the massive reservoirs of shallow methane deposits in place. The growing evidence for release of methane in this inaccessible region may suggest that the permafrost lid is starting to get perforated and thus leak methane... The permafrost now has small holes. We have found elevated levels of methane above the water surface and even more in the water just below. It is obvious that the source is the seabed."

Oh, crap.

Comments

[ravenbait.livejournal.com]

Oh dear.

Oh dear.

This is one of those things I've always had stashed in the back of my mind as a critical tipping point for phase transition.

[simoneck.livejournal.com]

that's really not good.
(predictable, almost obvious, but really not good)

Combine that with the recent research findings that plants use less CO2 as the temperature goes up and you wonder what the outcome will be.

[despaer.livejournal.com]

Methane releases have been happening for a while. I am sure I remember seeing some footage of someone burning the sea on a telly doc a while ago. Don't get me wrong, this is not a good thing but it has not only just started happening. It is also probably inevitable that it will continue/finish as we can't stop the planet warming up considerably more anyway. If you're Russian or Canadian you may not mind. If you live in subcnotinental Asia then you are screwed. Anywhere else will probably adapt to some degree.

BTW, anybody else read Mother of Storms by John Barnes?