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Quantifying the North Pacific silica plume
School of Oceanography, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, Box 357940, 98195-7940, USA
School of Oceanography, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, Box 357940, 98195-7940, USA
School of Oceanography, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, Box 357940, 98195-7940, USA
School of Oceanography, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, Box 357940, 98195-7940, USA
New hydrostations plus a comprehensive compilation of existing data have allowed us to characterize the dissolved silica plume located at midwater depths in the North Pacific. The North Pacific silica plume is a global-scale anomaly, extending from the North American continental margin in the east to beyond the Hawaii-Emperor seamount chain in the west. Inventory of the plume between 2000 and 3000 m depth indicates that it contains 164 Tmols (164 × 1012 mols) of anomalous dissolved silica and is maintained by a horizontal flux of approximately 1.5 Tmols/yr from the east. The source region of this plume has been previously suggested to be Cascadia Basin in the NE Pacific. Biochemical and geothermal processes within this small region can produce approximately one third of the required flux, but the majority of silica contained within the North Pacific plume may originate in crustal fluid venting from the warm upper basement aquifer that underlies the easternmost Pacific plate.
Received 30 June 2005; accepted 13 March 2006; published 10 May 2006.
Citation: (2006), Quantifying the North Pacific silica plume, Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst., 7, Q05011, doi:10.1029/2005GC001065.
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