FY 1992

Studies of deep water formation and circulation in the Weddell Sea using natural and anthropogenic tracers

Schlosser, P., J.L. Bullister, and R. Bayer

Mar. Chem., 35(1–4), 97–122, doi: 10.1016/S0304-4203(09)90011-1 (1991)

The application of natural and anthropogenic trace substances in oceanographic studies of the Weddell Sea is reviewed. The potential of some steady-state and transient tracers (tritium, CFC- 11 and CFC-12, ¹⁸O, and helium isotopes) for studies of deep water formation and circulation is discussed on the basis of data sets collected mainly on cruises of R/V "Polarstern" to the Weddell Sea during the 1980s. CFC/tritium ratio dating of young water masses is applied to estimate mean age and transit times of water involved in Weddell Sea Bottom Water formation. The history of the CFC-11/tritium ratio through time is derived for Weddell Sea shelf waters.