Sources of Carbon Dioxide in the Atmosphere: Hydrocarbon Emission from Gas Hydrates in Focus

The concentration of carbon dioxide and methane in the atmosphere has significantly increased over the last 60 years. One of the factors in the growth of methane and its homologue emissions is the intense thawing of gas hydrates, mainly from the Arctic shelf, which remains one of the less studied sources of atmospheric hydrocarbon emissions. Oxidation of methane and light-saturated hydrocarbons by ozone in the upper part of the atmosphere leads to the formation of CO2. The analysis of several datasets presented in this paper allows us to find the correlation between CH4 and CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere. This finding suggests that methane and its homologues released from gas hydrates mainly in the Arctic shelf zone become a significant source of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Because the amount of hydrocarbons located in gas hydrate deposits on the Arctic shelf is huge, further evolution of this process can become a serious challenge.

Automated summary

The concentration of carbon dioxide and methane in the atmosphere has significantly increased in the past 60 years. Thawing of gas hydrates, especially in the Arctic shelf, is a major contributor to the growth of methane and its homologue emissions. The oxidation of methane and light-saturated hydrocarbons by ozone leads to the formation of carbon dioxide. The correlation between methane and carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere suggests that methane released from gas hydrates in the Arctic shelf zone has become a significant source of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The large amount of hydrocarbons in gas hydrate deposits poses a serious challenge for future evolution of this process.