Hydrothermal versus microbial methane degassing pathways: case studies from two Italian shallow coastal systems Article Swipe
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· 2025
· Open Access
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· DOI: https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-10882
· OA: W4408426622
Methane (CH4), even though orders of magnitude less abundant than carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere, is today recognized as one of the most powerful greenhouse gases, being an even stronger absorber of Earth’s emitted thermal infrared radiation than CO2. Atmospheric CH4 concentrations are now more than 2.6 times above estimated pre-industrial equilibrium levels and such an increase is largely the result of anthropogenic emissions related to human activities. In order to verify potential emission reductions linked to the adoption of effective climate change mitigation strategies, a precise quantification of the global CH4 budget is actually needed. According to the most recent modelling, these calculations are still subject to considerable uncertainties, the most important of which is due to the potential ocean natural emissions. In particular, the global marine CH4 flux appears to be mainly driven by shallow marine coastal environments (depth
