Bomb radiocarbon chronologies in the Arctic, with implications for the age validation of lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) and other Arctic species

Radiocarbon generated by atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons (bomb radiocarbon) produced a strong signal with an abrupt onset in the 1950s, which serves as a dated marker for tracing oceanic circulation and confirming age in animals forming growth bands. Here, we report the first prebomb and postbomb radiocarbon chronologies for marine and freshwater environments in the Canadian Arctic, extend the radiocarbon chronology for the northwest Atlantic Ocean, and use the onset of the bomb signal to validate our age interpretations of lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) in Arctic lakes. Both surface and deepwater Arctic chronologies became detectable on or around 1958, similar to the year of onset elsewhere in the world. In contrast, the freshwater Arctic chronology increased sharply in 1957, with a peak value sixfold higher than the adjacent marine environment. The radiocarbon content of the adult otolith core validated our age interpretation criteria for Arctic lake trout to an age of at least 50 years. Otolith growth in such slow-growing fish was so low as to be unresolvable under conventional examination with a dissecting microscope. With these new radiocarbon reference chronologies, age validation of a large number of Arctic organisms should now be possible.