Features in REE and Methane Anomalies Distribution in the East China Sea Water Column: a Comparison with the South China Sea

Water Resources - This paper presents review of dissolved Rare Earth Elements (REE) and methane anomalies distribution in the East China Sea water column. In general, the REE concentrations of the...     

Geological Conditions of the Formation and Dissociation of Gas Hydrates in the Sea of Okhotsk: Tectonic and Genetic Aspects

Lithology and Mineral Resources - The paper is dedicated to gas hydrate fields and active underwater gas seeps found in the Sea of Okhotsk. The study of geological conditions of the generation and...     

Distribution and expression of gas seeps in a gas hydrate province of the northeastern Sakhalin continental slope, Sea of Okhotsk

Multidisciplinary surveys were conducted to investigate gas seepage and gas hydrate accumulation on the northeastern Sakhalin continental slope (NESS), Sea of Okhotsk, during joint Korean–Russian–Japanese expeditions conducted from 2003 to 2007 (CHAOS and SSGH projects). One hundred sixty-one gas seeps were detected in a 2000 km² area of the NESS (between 53°45′N and 54°45′N). Active gas seeps in a gas hydrate province on the NESS were evident from features in the water column, on the seafloor, and in the subsurface: well-defined hydroacoustic anomalies (gas flares), side-scan sonar structures with high backscatter intensity (seepage structures), bathymetric structures (pockmarks and mounds), gas- and gas-hydrate-related seismic features (bottom-simulating reflectors, gas chimneys, high-amplitude reflectors, and acoustic blanking), high methane concentrations in seawater, and gas hydrates in sediment near the seafloor. These expressions were generally spatially related; a gas flare would be associated with a seepage structure (mound), below which a gas chimney was present. The spatial distribution of gas seeps on the NESS is controlled by four types of geological structures: faults, the shelf break, seafloor canyons, and submarine slides. Gas chimneys that produced enhanced reflection on high-resolution seismic profiles are interpreted as active pathways for upward gas migration to the seafloor. The chimneys and gas flares are good indicators of active seepage.     

Methane fluxes and gas hydrates as well as seismic activity in the Okhotsk Sea

The research works of methane concentration in water column of the Okhotsk Sea from 1984 to 2005 were reviewed. And some regularities of methane distribution in water column in the North-East Sakhalin slope of the Okhotsk Sea were concluded.     

Distribution of helium and hydrogen in sediments and water on the Sakhalin slope

During the geological survey and prospecting, helium and hydrogen are recognized indicators of minerals, deep-seated faults, seismic activity, and ascending deep fluids. Their anomalous concentrations also serve as a marker of metamorphic processes. Helium survey is applied for tracing deep-seated faults and mapping permeable zones. In this work, the first results of gas geochemical survey in marine sediments and water to study the distribution of helium and hydrogen and their relation with the seismic activity of some geological structures in the southwestern Sea of Okhotsk and northern Sea of Japan. Anomalies of these gases (He up to 60 ppm, H up to 120 ppm) were identified in the hydrate-bearing sediments in the fault zones. It was also found that helium concentrations in the water column of the Tatar Strait are higher than in the studied area of the Sea of Okhotsk, possibly, due to the difference in geological structure and seismotectonic activation. Moreover, coal layers could be a significant source of methane in the gashydrate-bearing layers of the Tatar Strait.     

Distribution of methane content and methane fluxes in the Sea of Japan,Sea of Okhotsk,and near-Kuril Pacific

The spatial distribution of methane content and methane fluxes in the water in the north-western part of the Sea of Japan, in the Kuril basin of the Sea of Okhotsk, and in the near-Kuril part of the Pacific Ocean is studied using the data of marine research expeditions in 2005, 2010, and 2011. The studies revealed the significant variability of the methane flux depending on the source presence and on the sea surface conditions. The high emission of methane from water to the atmosphere is registered in the areas where its concentration exceeds the equilibrium values with the atmosphere. The use of the model of computation of the fields of currents and contaminant transport for the investigated water area enabled explaining the formation of the high concentration of methane in the center of vortices in the zones of sea water convergence in the water areas under study.     

Characteristic features of the occurrence of gas-fluid emanations on the northeastern slope of Sakhalin Island, Sea of Okhotsk

This paper summarizes the results of combined studies in the areas of the occurrence of gas-fluid emanations in the water column, on the seafloor, and in the upper part of the sedimentary section on the northeastern slope of Sakhalin Island (Sea of Okhotsk). The phenomena typical of methane seeps were characterized in detail: the presence of acoustic anomalies, high concentrations of methane in the water and sediments, and the specific features of the sedimentary section (the textural and structural features, the character of the mineral inclusions and gas hydrates, and the chemical composition). The component composition of the gases (including the accompanying gas hydrates), which is almost free of heavy hydrocarbon homologues of methane; the light carbon isotopic compositions of the methane and carbonate concretions; and the low temperatures of the near-bottom water and sediments suggest that the occurrence of numerous methane emanations is related to gas generation in the upper part of the sedimentary sequence. No evidence was found for the existence of a deep center of gas formation within the seafloor area considered. Typical submarine mud volcanic edifices were also not found.     

Kinetics of organic matter degradation, microbial methane generation, and gas hydrate formation in anoxic marine sediments

Seven sediment cores were taken in the Sea of Okhotsk in a south-north transect along the slope of Sakhalin Island. The retrieved anoxic sediments and pore fluids were analyzed for particulate organic carbon (POC), total nitrogen, total sulfur, dissolved sulfate, sulfide, methane, ammonium, iodide, bromide, calcium, and total alkalinity. A novel method was developed to derive sedimentation rates from a steady-state nitrogen mass balance. Rates of organic matter degradation, sulfate reduction, methane turnover, and carbonate precipitation were derived from the data applying a steady-state transport-reaction model. A good fit to the data set was obtained using the following new rate law for organic matter degradation in anoxic sediments:

     

Integrated Geological–Geophysical and Oceanographic Research in the South China Sea: Cruise 88 of the R/V “Akademik M.A. Lavrentyev”

Oceanology - Abstract—The paper gives brief results of comprehensive studies in the South China Sea obtained from a joint Russian–Vietnamese expedition in November 2019 (cruise 88 of...