Molecular Fossil Record of Elevated Methane Levels in Late Pleistocene Coastal Waters

Accumulating evidence suggests that methane has been released episodically from hydrates trapped in sea floor sediments during many intervals of rapid climate warming. Here we show that sediments from the Santa Barbara Basin deposited during warm intervals in the last glacial period contain molecula...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 2003-02, Vol.299 (5610), p.1214-1217
Main Authors: Hinrichs, Kai-Uwe, Hmelo, Laura R., Sylva, Sean P.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aerobiosis
Anaerobiosis
Animals
Archaea - metabolism
Bacteria - metabolism
Bacteria, Aerobic - metabolism
Bacteria, Anaerobic - metabolism
Biological markers
Biomass
Carbon Isotopes
Chemical composition
Climate
Coastal ecology
Consortia
Discovery and exploration
Earth sciences
Earth, ocean, space
Eukaryota - physiology
Evidence
Exact sciences and technology
Fossils
Geologic Sediments - chemistry
Geologic Sediments - microbiology
Geological time
Glacial epoch
Hydrates
Ice ages
Marine
Marine and continental quaternary
Methane
Methane - analysis
Methane - metabolism
Methylococcaceae - metabolism
Molecular biology
Oxygen
Oxygen - analysis
Plankton - physiology
Sea water
Seawater - chemistry
Seawater - microbiology
Sediments
Shallow water
Surface water
Surficial geology
Triterpenes - analysis
Water
Water Microbiology
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Description
Summary:Accumulating evidence suggests that methane has been released episodically from hydrates trapped in sea floor sediments during many intervals of rapid climate warming. Here we show that sediments from the Santa Barbara Basin deposited during warm intervals in the last glacial period contain molecular fossils that are diagnostic of aerobic and anaerobic methanotrophs. Sediment intervals with high abundances of these compounds indicate episodes of vigorous methanotrophic activity in methane-laden water masses. Signals for anaerobic methanotrophy in 44, 100-year-old sediment are evidence for particularly intense methane emissions and suggest that the basin's methane cycle can profoundly affect oxygen budgets in the water column.
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.1079601