Back to Table of Contents

42551-AC2
Constraining Changes in the Natural Methane Budget through Stable Isotope Analysis

Edward Brook, Oregon State University

In the 2006-2007 period this award supported the remaining work of Hinrich Schaefer on reconstructing the methane history from the ice margin site at Pakitsoq, Greenland. Remaining funds from this award supported Schaefer's work as a postdoc on the project through February 2007.

During the award period the primary work done on the project was by Schaefer. He wrote a comprehensive manuscript draft on the stratigraphy of the methane records at the Pakitsoq site (second draft currently being reviewed by coauthors), and continued development of isotopic methods for carbon and hydrogen isotopes in methane extracted from ice cores. Several instrument problems created significant delays in obtaining additional data, and the majority of Schaefer's effort was devoted to diagnosing mass spectrometer problems in the laboratory of our collaborator at the University of Victoria. Despite valiant efforts to obtain sufficient instrument stability to analyze the small carbon samples required for this study, it was not possible to obtain significant additional data by February 2007 when the funding for Schaefer's salary was expended.

Nonetheless, Schaefer's work on the stratigraphy of the site, and isotopic data and publications supported by the award in the previous year, provide important new information about the atmospheric methane history, and the potential and limitations of ice margin sites for reconstructing atmospheric history.

Back to top