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Natural hydrocarbon leakage from the seafloor off northeastern Greenland

The Arctic is warming far faster than the rest of the planet. A new study shows that gas hydrates are being exposed and releasing oil and methane from the seafloor off northeastern Greenland. Scientists, including Adriano Mazzini, Dept. of Geosciences, document hydrocarbon seepage that could impact marine ecosystems and the Arctic carbon cycle; the study has attracted media attention.

Sea ice outside northeastern Greenland in the Artic Ocean. Photo: Adriano Mazzini

Since preindustrial times, rising greenhouse gas levels have caused the Arctic to warm faster than the rest of the world, a process known as Arctic amplification. This rapid warming is driving major environmental shifts, including ice sheet melt and ocean warming, which may influence methane emissions from natural geological sources such as seafloor gas hydrates. Yet the scale and significance of these natural methane releases remain poorly understood, particularly around Greenland, one of the least explored regions of the Arctic Ocean.

Photo: Adriano Mazzini, Associate Professor at the Department of Geosciences, is a co-author of the study and collected data on multiple offshore Greenland expeditions. Photo: Private — Adriano Mazzini, Associate Professor at the Department of Geosciences, is a co-author of the study and collected data on multiple offshore Greenland expeditions. Photo: Private

A new study published in Communications Earth & Environment, has now brought attention to this issue. The international research team—featuring several Norwegian scientists, including Adriano Mazzini from the Dept. of Geosciences—documents active releases of oil and methane from the seafloor off northeastern Greenland.

Led by Christoph Böttner, Aarhus University, the multidisciplinary team presents clear evidence of gas hydrates on the northeastern Greenland continental shelf and shows that these deposits are now being exposed to a warming Arctic Ocean. Such hydrocarbon seepage can influence marine ecosystems and play a role in shaping the Arctic carbon cycle.

The study is among the first to systematically chart oil and gas leaks in this remote region. Because northeastern Greenland has remained largely unexplored, the discovery provides a rare opportunity to observe how natural hydrocarbon emissions occur and how they may contribute to ongoing environmental changes in the Arctic.

Natural hydrocarbon leakage from the seafloor off northeastern Greenland

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