Trace Element Dynamics in the Oligotrophic Northwest Pacific: Insights from the China GEOTRACES GP09 Cruise
This special highlight summarises published articles from the GP09 cruise in the Northwest Pacific Ocean…
Thorium Isotopes
Variable dissolution rates and fates of lithogenic tracers at the air-sea interface
Roy-Barman and co-authors established the dissolution rates from Saharan dust reaching Mediterranean seawater.
Time series thorium-230 data reveal scavenging intensification over the last 15 years in the Arctic Ocean
Authors demonstrate that the later hypothesis is likely explaining thorium-230-depletion in intermediate layers of the Amundsen basin.
Surface water trace element and isotope data challenge dust flux models
Using measurements of dissolved and particulate thorium-230 and thorium-232 along a section across the South Pacific, authors estimated the dust flux over this remote area
Particulate fluxes and circulation in a changing Arctic Ocean: tracer data and modeling
A complete review of published and new water column profiles of thorium-230 (230Th) and protactinium-231 (231Pa) concentrations and neodymium (Nd) isotopic compositions collected in the Amerasian Basin of the Arctic […]
South Pacific particulate organic carbon fate challenges Martin’s Law
Joint Science Highlight with US-Ocean Carbon & Biogeochemistry (OCB). Carbon storage in the ocean is sensitive to the depths at which particulate organic carbon (POC) is respired back to CO2 […]
Using the three thorium isotope toolbox to probe the particle dynamic within an East Pacific Rise hydrothermal plume
The insoluble radiogenic isotopes of thorium (Th) are produced at a known rate in the water column via the decay of soluble uranium (234Th, 230Th) and radium (228Th) isotopes. These […]
More realistic oceanic particle field improved the thorium-230 and protactinium-231 modeling
Thorium-230 (230Th) and protactinium-231 (231Pa) are two geochemical tracers extensively used for investigating particle transport in the ocean and reconstructing past ocean circulation. A key feature in reproducing their distributions by […]
Ever wonder how long your favourite element remains in the ocean before it’s gone again?
This timeframe, sometimes called a residence time, ranges from decades for the most reactive trace elements to millions of years for the most unreactive elements such as the major components […]
Influence of particle composition on the rate constants of thorium adsorption
Chemical species are constantly exchanged between seawater (solution, D) and particles (solid material, P). This continuous D-P exchange is a key process determining the chemical composition of the ocean. Particles […]
Contrasting lithogenic inputs from North Atlantic to North Pacific Oceans traced by thorium isotopes
Dissolved thorium (Th) isotopes and iron (Fe) are used to document the transfer of lithogenic material to the ocean. Two contrasting areas are compared: the Atlantic Ocean around Barbados Islands, […]
Inference about rates of thorium and particle cycling in the ocean water column
Insoluble thorium (Th) isotopes are particle reactive while their radioactive parents are fairly soluble. This difference of behaviour has allowed chemical oceanographers to use Th isotopes to develop understanding about […]
Insights into Particle Cycling from Thorium and Particle Data
Phoebe Lam and Olivier Marchal (2015, see reference below) propose to describe, with the same model, the dynamics of particles in the oceanic water column and its effects –on four […]
Long-lived thorium isotopes: powerful tools to estimate lithogenic fluxes to the ocean
Hayes and co-workers are back with another rich contribution, based on dissolved thorium-232 (232Th) and thorium-230 (230Th) (click here to access previous highlight from the same author). The game is […]
New strategy to evaluate trace element fluxes to the ocean from aerosols
Scientists participating in GEOTRACES have developed a new strategy to evaluate trace element fluxes to the ocean from aerosols (Hsieh et al, 2011). The new approach uses the common geochemical behaviour […]