Alaskan glacial dust is an important iron source to surface waters of the Gulf of Alaska
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Abstract
This work evaluates glacial dust as a source of sediment, and associated iron (Fe), to the Fe-limited Gulf of Alaska (GoA). A reanalysis of GoA sediment data, using rare earth elements and thorium as provenance tracers, suggests a flux to the ocean surface of Copper River (AK) glacial dust, and associated Fe, that is comparable to the flux of dust from Asia, at least 1,000 km from the narrow mountain valley glacial dust source area. This work suggests dust from Asia may not be the largest source of Fe to the GoA. Dust models fail to accurately simulate this glacial dust transport because their coarse resolution underestimates wind speeds, and the dust flux. This work suggests that glacial dust fluxes may have been important in the geologic past (e.g., the last glacial maximum) from locations where there was more extensive coverage by glaciers than at present.
Study Area
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Alaskan glacial dust is an important iron source to surface waters of the Gulf of Alaska |
| Series title | Geophysical Research Letters |
| DOI | 10.1029/2023GL106778 |
| Volume | 51 |
| Issue | 12 |
| Publication Date | June 21, 2024 |
| Year Published | 2024 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | American Geophysical Union |
| Contributing office(s) | Alaska Science Center Water |
| Description | e2023GL106778, 10 p. |
| Country | United States |
| State | Alaska |
| Other Geospatial | Gulf of Alaska |