image: Calcium carbonate veins are common in upper ocean crust, where they precipitate from low temperature (<100 C) seawater-derived hydrothermal fluids that have reacted with the basaltic lavas that form the ocean floor. These fluids are modified by chemical exchange with the ocean crust as they heat up. The veins precipitate from the basement fluid at compositions that have evolved away from that of the initial seawater, but from analyses of suites of these veins the chemistry of seawater at that time can be estimated. view more
Credit: Christopher Smith-Duque (NOCS)
The chemical composition of our oceans is not constant but has varied significantly over geological time. In a study published this week in Science, researchers describe a novel method for reconstructing past ocean chemistry using calcium carbonate veins that precipitate from seawater-derived fluids in rocks beneath the seafloor. The research was led by scientists from the University of Southampton's School of Ocean and Earth Science (SOES) hosted at the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton (NOCS).
"Records of ancient seawater chemistry allow us to unravel past changes in climate, plate tectonics and evolution of life in the oceans. These processes affect ocean chemistry and have shaped our planet over millions of years," said Dr Rosalind Coggon, formerly of NOCS now at Imperial College London.
"Reconstructing past ocean chemistry remains a major challenge for Earth scientists, but small calcium carbonate veins formed from warm seawater when it reacts with basalts from the oceanic crust provide a unique opportunity to develop such records," added co-author Professor Damon Teagle from SOES.
Calcium carbonate veins record the chemical evolution of seawater as it flows through the ocean crust and reacts with the rock. The composition of past seawater can therefore be determined from suites of calcium carbonate veins that precipitated millions of years ago in ancient ocean crust.
The researchers reconstructed records of the ratios of strontium to calcium (Sr/Ca) and magnesium to calcium (Mg/Ca) over the last 170 million years. To do this, they analysed calcium carbonate veins from basaltic rocks recovered by several decades of scientific deep-ocean drilling by the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) and its predecessors.
"The carbonate veins indicate that both the Sr/Ca and Mg/Ca ratios of seawater were significantly lower than at present prior to about 25 million years ago. We attribute the increases in seawater Sr/Ca and Mg/Ca since then to the long-term effects of decreased seafloor volcanism and the consequent reduction in chemical exchange between seawater and the ocean crust," said Professor Teagle.
Contact information:
For more information contact the NOCS Press Officer Dr Rory Howlett on +44 (0)23 8059 8490 Email: r.howlett@noc.soton.ac.uk
Scientist contacts
Dr Rosalind Coggon: e-mail: r.coggon@imperial.ac.uk; Mob: +44-(0)78-1504-2123
Professor Damon A.H. Teagle: email Damon.Teagle@soton.ac.uk; telephone +44 (0)23-8059-2723; Mob: +44-(0)7979-796972
31st Jan to 6th Feb, 2010: UCLA Lake Arrowhead Conference Centre, California (IODP Science Plan Working Group Meeting) Tel: 909 337 2478
8th Feb onwards: New Zealand: Tel: +64-(9)-413-8016
Funding: The research was supported by the United Kingdom's Natural Environment Research Council and used samples provided by the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) and Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP). ODP was sponsored by the US National Science Foundation (NSF) and participating countries under management of Joint Oceanographic Institutions Inc. IODP is supported by NSF; Japan's MEXT; ECORD; and the People's Republic of China, Ministry of Science and Technology.
The researchers are Rosalind M. Coggon (Imperial College London), Damon A.H. Teagle, Christopher E. Smith-Duque, and Matthew J. Cooper (SOES, University of Southampton) and Jeffrey C. Alt (University of Michigan).
Publication:
Coggon, R. M., Teagle, D. A. H., Smith-Duque, C. E., Alt, J. C., & Cooper, M. J. Reconstructing past seawater Mg/Ca and Sr/Ca from mid-ocean ridge flank calcium carbonate veins. Science (published online 4 February 2010). Doi:10.1126/science.1182252
The National Oceanography Centre, Southampton is the UK's focus for ocean science. It is one of the world's leading institutions devoted to research, teaching and technology development in ocean and Earth science. Over 500 scientists, support and seagoing staff are based at the centre's purpose-built waterside campus in Southampton along with over 700 undergraduate and postgraduate students.
The National Oceanography Centre, Southampton is a collaboration between the University of Southampton and the Natural Environment Research Council. The NERC royal research ships RRS James Cook and RRS Discovery are based at NOCS as is the National Marine Equipment Pool which includes Autosub and Isis, two of the world's deepest diving research vehicles.
From April 1, 2010, NERC-managed activity at NOCS joins forces with the Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory to form a new, national research organisation - the National Oceanography Centre (NOC). The NOC will work in partnership with the UK marine research community to deliver integrated marine science and technology from the coast to the deep ocean. The University of Southampton will be one of the NOC's two hosting partners.
Journal
Science