EARTH DEGASSING IN THE ARCTIC: THE GENESIS OF NATURAL AND ANTHROPOGENIC METHANE EMISSIONS

Through the analysis of the methane concentration in the Circum-Arctic region according to the data of the TROPOMI spectrometer (satellite Sentinel-5P ESA) the authors revealed strong natural anomalies in the Arctic zone of Russia and suggested possible reasons for their formation. For the northern part of the Siberian platform, the authors have substantiated models of the elevated methane emissions into the atmosphere due to sub-vertical migration from the Cambrian deposits and/or sub-horizontal gas migrations from the regional coal-bearing deposits of the Tunguska, Lena and Taimyr basins. According to ultra-high resolution remote sensing data, the researchers have identified 1860 zones of active degassing with gas emission craters at the bottom of 1667 thermokarst lakes, 2 bays and 4 rivers on the Yamal Peninsula. These zones have unambiguous connection with the areas of elevated methane concentration in the atmosphere recorded by the TROPOMI spectrometer. The authors have outlined the necessity of further TROPOMI data validation in different natural conditions of Arctic land and water, including zones of active subsurface use.

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