Arctic river-runoff: mean residence time on the shelves and in the halocline

Peter Schlosser, Dorothea Bauch, Richard Fairbanks, Gerhard Bönisch

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

129 Scopus citations

Abstract

The mean residence time of river-runoff on the shelves and in the halocline of the Arctic Ocean is estimated from salinity and tracer data (tritium, 3He and the 18O/16O ratio). These estimates are derived from comparison of apparent tracer ages of the halocline waters using a combination of tracers that yield different information: (1) the tritium "vintage" age, which records the time that has passed since the river-runoff entered the shelf; and (2) the tritium/3He age, which reflects the time since the shelf waters left the shelf. The difference between the ages determined by these two methods is about 3-6 years. Correction for the initial tritium/3He age of the shelf waters (about 0.5-1.5 years) yields a mean residence time of the river-runoff on the shelves of the Siberian Seas of about 3.5 ± 2 years.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1053-1068
Number of pages16
JournalDeep-Sea Research Part I
Volume41
Issue number7
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 1994
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Oceanography
  • Aquatic Science

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