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Methane clathrate (CH 4 ·5.75H 2 O) or (4CH 4 ·23H 2 O), also called methane hydrate, hydromethane, methane ice, fire ice, natural gas hydrate, or gas hydrate, is a solid clathrate compound (more specifically, a clathrate hydrate) in which a large amount of methane is trapped within a crystal structure of water, forming a solid similar to ice.
Methane clathrate, also known commonly as methane hydrate, is a form of water ice that contains a large amount of methane within its crystal structure. Potentially large deposits of methane clathrate have been found under sediments on the ocean floors of the Earth, although the estimates of total resource size given by various experts differ by ...
The worms colonize the methane ice and appear to survive by gleaning bacteria, which in turn metabolize the clathrate. In 1997, Charles Fisher, professor of biology at Pennsylvania State University, discovered the worm living on mounds of methane ice at a depth of half a mile (~800 m) on the ocean floor in the Gulf of Mexico. [2]
In the Arctic, the main human-influenced sources of methane are thawing permafrost, Arctic sea ice melting, clathrate breakdown and Greenland ice sheet melting. This methane release results in a positive climate change feedback (meaning one that amplifies warming), as methane is a powerful greenhouse gas. [ 3 ]
With the recent discovery of a methane seep in the Southern Ocean, [16] cold seeps are now known in all major oceans. [4] Cold seeps are common along continental margins in areas of high primary productivity and tectonic activity, where crustal deformation and compaction drive emissions of methane-rich fluid. [ 4 ]
Large stores of methane can be found in the form of methane ice under permafrost and on continental shelves. Additional methane is produced by the anaerobic decay of organic material and is produced in organisms' digestive tracts, soil, etc. Natural methane production accounts 10-30% of global methane sources. [12]
There is an interest in a potential release of methane gas, a potent greenhouse gas, from methane clathrates present in the Arctic continental shelf sediments, if sufficient ocean warming were to occur. As much as 80% of the ocean surface is covered by ice in winter, declining to about 60% in summer; ice cover has been declining at a steady and ...
It is possible that the methane ice could float for a time as it probably contains bubbles of nitrogen gas from Titan's atmosphere. [27] Temperatures close to the freezing point of methane (90.4 K; −182.8 °C; −296.9 °F) could lead to both floating and sinking ice - that is, a hydrocarbon ice crust above the liquid and blocks of ...