Abstract. 

"Warming-induced marine anoxia has been hypothesized as an environmental stressor for the end-Triassic mass extinction (ETME), but links between the spread of marine anoxia and the two phases of extinction are poorly constrained. Here, we report iron speciation and trace metal data from the Bristol Channel Basin and Larne Basin of the NW European epicontinental sea (EES), spanning the Triassic–Jurassic (T–J) transition (~ 202–200 Ma). Results show frequent development of anoxic-ferruginous conditions, interspersed with ephemeral euxinic episodes in the Bristol Channel Basin during the latest Rhaetian, whereas the contemporaneous Larne Basin remained largely oxygenated, suggesting heterogeneous redox conditions between basins. Subsequently, more persistent euxinic conditions prevailed across the T–J boundary in both basins, coinciding precisely with the second phase of the ETME. [...]". 

Source: Science Direct

Authors: Tianchen He et al. 

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2022.103771

Read the full article here.

Abstract. 

"During the mid-Cretaceous, the Earth experienced several environmental perturbations, including an extremely warm climate and Oceanic Anoxic Events (OAEs). Submarine volcanic episodes associated with formation of large igneous provinces (LIPs) may have triggered these perturbations. The osmium isotopic ratio (187Os/188Os) is a suitable proxy for tracing hydrothermal activity associated with the LIPs formation, but 187Os/188Os data from the mid-Cretaceous are limited to short time intervals. Here we provide a continuous high-resolution marine 187Os/188Os record covering all mid-Cretaceous OAEs. Several OAEs (OAE1a, Wezel and Fallot events, and OAE2) correspond to unradiogenic 187Os/188Os shifts, suggesting that they were triggered by massive submarine volcanic episodes. However, minor OAEs (OAE1c and OAE1d), which do not show pronounced unradiogenic 187Os/188Os shifts, were likely caused by enhanced monsoonal activity. [...]".

Source: Nature Communications 

Authors: Hironao Matsumoto et al.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-27817-0

Read the full article here.

Abstract. 

"Pulses of the Ediacaran ocean oxygenation were inferred from strong enrichments of redox-sensitive elements (RSEs; particularly Mo, V, U, Re) and negative pyritesulfur isotopes (δ34Spy) in black shales of the Doushantuo Formation in South China. These oceanic oxygenation events (OOEs) have been challenged by the lack of comparable RSE enrichments in correlative strata of northwestern Canada. Here we report four positive chromium isotope (δ53Cr) excursions with peak values (+0.79 ± 0.03‰ to +1.45 ± 0.06‰; 2SD) close to the average δ53Cr value of the modern ocean (+1.0 ± 0.3‰) at the intervals of OOEs, which are separated by low δ53Cr values close to that of the bulk silicate Earth (BSE, −0.124 ± 0.101‰). The positive δ53Cr excursions could be explained by episodic input of oxygenated water from the open ocean to the restricted Nanhua basin, or pulses of ocean oxygenation during the Ediacaran-early Cambrian. The two interpretations can explain the majority of the geochemical data available from the Wuhe section, but both have limitations. [...]". 

Source: Science Direct

Authors: Dongtao Xu et al.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2022.02.019

Read the full article here.

EBUS Conference: September 19 - 23, 2022 in Lima, Peru

"The Open Science Conference on Eastern Boundary Upwelling Systems (EBUS): Past, Present and Future and the Second International Conference on the Humboldt Current System are planned for September 19 - 23 in Lima, Peru. Although the conference aims to be in-person, options for virtual participation will be provided.

The meeting will bring together PhD students, early career scientists and world experts to understand, review, and synthesize what is known about dynamics, sensitivity, vulnerability and resilience of Eastern Boundary Upwelling Systems and their living resources to climate variability, change and extreme events."

For further information please visit the event's homepage.

Abstract. 

"The Gulf of California is a highly biodiverse marine basin located in the northeast Mexican Pacific Ocean. In the past three decades, this basin has experienced increased hypoxia in shallow waters, which threatens its coastal ecosystems. The aim of this study is to analyze δ15N and δ13C isotopes of organic matter in coastal sediments to characterize sources of primary production and shifts in biogeochemical processes that reflect increasing oxygen deficiency in the shallow coast of the eastern Gulf of California. Surface sediments samples were collected from 8 to 47 m deep along the coastal margin of Sinaloa and Sonora. This region is characterized by the development of anthropogenic activities, which could be the main source of organic matter evidenced in the marine environment. [...]". 

Source: Science Direct

Authors: Alberto Sánchez et al. 

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csr.2022.104716

Read the full article here.

Call for Abstracts closing tomorrow

EBUS Conference: September 19 - 23, 2022, in Lima, Peru

This is a quick reminder that the abstract submission deadline for the EBUS Conference 2022 ends tomorrow, May 7, 2022.

Please visit the event's homepage for further information. 

Abstract. 

"The central and northeast Arabian Sea (AS) has an intense and thick oxygen minimum zone (OMZ) and denitrification zone. It is comparable with the strongest OMZ of the north-equatorial Pacific Ocean. Denitrification in the AS is revisited using a set of cruise observations collected during February–March of 2009 by the Centre for Marine Living Resources, India. The region possesses one of the most robust N* depleted water reaching as low as -20 μmol l−1 at depths (~600 m). In AS, the oxygen depletion is mainly due to sluggish circulation, weak lateral and vertical ventilation. The biological respiration in oxygen deficit condition depletes nitrate and further modifies the Redfield ratio at intermediate depths (200-600 m) from 16N:1P to 8N:1P. [...]".

Source: Science Direct

Authors: Anju Mallissery et al.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmarsys.2021.103680

Read the full article here.

Abstract. 

"Picoeukaryotic communities respond rapidly to global climate change and play an important role in marine biological food webs and ecosystems. The formation of oxygen minimum zones (OMZ) is facilitated by the stratification of seawater and higher primary production in the surface layer, and the marine picoeukaryotic community this low-oxygen environment is topic of interest. To better understand the picoeukaryotic community assembly mechanisms in an OMZ, we collected samples from the Bay of Bengal (BOB) in October and November 2020 and used 18S rDNA to study the picoeukaryotic communities and their community assembly mechanisms that they are controlled by in deep-sea and hypoxic zones. The results show that deterministic and stochastic processes combine to shape picoeukaryotic communities in the BOB. [...]".

Source: Science Direct

Authors: Zhuo Chen et al.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.152862

Read the full article here.

Abstract. 

"We present new geochemical evidence of changes in oxygenation of the deep Antarctic Pacific over the last 770 kyr. Our data are derived from redox-sensitive metals and export production proxies extracted from gravity core ANT34/A2-10 at 4217 m water depth. Our results show that oxygen levels in the deep Antarctic Zone (AZ) varied in line with the release of deeply sequestered remineralized carbon to the atmosphere during glacial–interglacial (G–IG) cycles, with lower oxygen concentrations and more carbon storage during glacial periods. Subsequent reductions in the amount of carbon stored at depth were closely associated with improved ventilation during glacial terminations. [...]".

Source: Lithosphere

Authors: Zheng Tang et al. 

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2113/2022/1835176

Read the full article here.

Abstract.

"The tropical Pacific Ocean holds the two largest oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) in the world's oceans, showing a prominent hemispheric asymmetry, with a much stronger and broader OMZ north of the Equator. However, many models have difficulties in reproducing the observed asymmetric OMZs in the tropical Pacific. Here, we apply a fully coupled basin-scale model to evaluate the impacts of stoichiometry and the intensity of vertical mixing on the dynamics of OMZs in the tropical Pacific. We first utilize observational data of dissolved oxygen (DO) to calibrate and validate the basin-scale model. Our model experiments demonstrate that enhanced vertical mixing combined with a reduced O:C utilization ratio can significantly improve our model capability of reproducing the asymmetric OMZs. Our study shows that DO concentration is more sensitive to biological processes over 200–400 m but to physical processes below 400 m. [...]".

Source: Geoscientific Model Development 

Authors: Kai Wang et al. 

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-1017-2022 

Read the full article here.