New Constraints on Global Geochemical Cycling During Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (Late Cretaceous) From a 6‐Million‐year Long Molybdenum‐Isotope Record
Abstract Intervals of extreme warmth are predicted to drive a decrease in the oxygen content of the oceans. This prediction has been tested for the acme of short (<1 million years) episodes of significant marine anoxia in the Phanerozoic geological record known as Oceanic Anoxic Events (OAEs). Ho...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2021-03-01
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| Series: | Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GC009246 |
| _version_ | 1827771623585873920 |
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| author | Alexander J. Dickson Hugh C. Jenkyns Erdem Idiz Tim C. Sweere Melissa J. Murphy Sander H. J. M. van den Boorn Micha Ruhl James S. Eldrett Donald Porcelli |
| author_facet | Alexander J. Dickson Hugh C. Jenkyns Erdem Idiz Tim C. Sweere Melissa J. Murphy Sander H. J. M. van den Boorn Micha Ruhl James S. Eldrett Donald Porcelli |
| author_sort | Alexander J. Dickson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Intervals of extreme warmth are predicted to drive a decrease in the oxygen content of the oceans. This prediction has been tested for the acme of short (<1 million years) episodes of significant marine anoxia in the Phanerozoic geological record known as Oceanic Anoxic Events (OAEs). However, there is a paucity of data spanning prolonged multimillion‐year intervals of geological time before and after OAEs. We present a Mo‐isotope record from limestones and marlstones of the Eagle Ford Group, South Texas, which was deposited in the southern Cretaceous Western Interior Seaway of North America during a 6‐million‐year period encompassing OAE 2 (Late Cenomanian–early Turonian: ∼94 Ma). Mo‐isotope compositions from deposits that formed in euxinic (sulfidic) conditions before OAE 2 allow the paleo‐seawater composition to be constrained to 1.1%–1.9%. This range of values overlaps previous estimates of up to ∼1.5% for the peak of OAE 2 determined from similarly sulfidic sediments deposited in the restricted proto‐North Atlantic Ocean. Mo‐isotopes thus varied by less than a few tenths of per mil across one of the most extreme intervals of global deoxygenation in the Late Phanerozoic. Rather than a limited change in oceanic deoxygenation, we suggest that the new data reflect changes to global iron cycling linked to basalt‐seawater interaction, terrestrial weathering and expanded partially oxygenated shallow shelf‐seas that played a key role in the burial of isotopically light molybdenum, thus acting as a counterbalance to its removal into sulfidic sediments. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T12:57:53Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c854fd9d2f794f62b8bd2eee45f42ddd |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1525-2027 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T12:57:53Z |
| publishDate | 2021-03-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems |
| spelling | doaj.art-c854fd9d2f794f62b8bd2eee45f42ddd2023-11-03T17:00:24ZengWileyGeochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems1525-20272021-03-01223n/an/a10.1029/2020GC009246New Constraints on Global Geochemical Cycling During Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (Late Cretaceous) From a 6‐Million‐year Long Molybdenum‐Isotope RecordAlexander J. Dickson0Hugh C. Jenkyns1Erdem Idiz2Tim C. Sweere3Melissa J. Murphy4Sander H. J. M. van den Boorn5Micha Ruhl6James S. Eldrett7Donald Porcelli8Department of Earth Sciences University of Oxford Oxford UKDepartment of Earth Sciences University of Oxford Oxford UKDepartment of Earth Sciences University of Oxford Oxford UKDepartment of Earth Sciences University of Oxford Oxford UKDepartment of Earth Sciences University of Oxford Oxford UKShell Global Solutions International B.V Amsterdam The NetherlandsDepartment of Earth Sciences University of Oxford Oxford UKShell Global Solutions International B.V Amsterdam The NetherlandsDepartment of Earth Sciences University of Oxford Oxford UKAbstract Intervals of extreme warmth are predicted to drive a decrease in the oxygen content of the oceans. This prediction has been tested for the acme of short (<1 million years) episodes of significant marine anoxia in the Phanerozoic geological record known as Oceanic Anoxic Events (OAEs). However, there is a paucity of data spanning prolonged multimillion‐year intervals of geological time before and after OAEs. We present a Mo‐isotope record from limestones and marlstones of the Eagle Ford Group, South Texas, which was deposited in the southern Cretaceous Western Interior Seaway of North America during a 6‐million‐year period encompassing OAE 2 (Late Cenomanian–early Turonian: ∼94 Ma). Mo‐isotope compositions from deposits that formed in euxinic (sulfidic) conditions before OAE 2 allow the paleo‐seawater composition to be constrained to 1.1%–1.9%. This range of values overlaps previous estimates of up to ∼1.5% for the peak of OAE 2 determined from similarly sulfidic sediments deposited in the restricted proto‐North Atlantic Ocean. Mo‐isotopes thus varied by less than a few tenths of per mil across one of the most extreme intervals of global deoxygenation in the Late Phanerozoic. Rather than a limited change in oceanic deoxygenation, we suggest that the new data reflect changes to global iron cycling linked to basalt‐seawater interaction, terrestrial weathering and expanded partially oxygenated shallow shelf‐seas that played a key role in the burial of isotopically light molybdenum, thus acting as a counterbalance to its removal into sulfidic sediments.https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GC009246cretaceous western interior seawayeagle ford shalemolybdenum isotopesoceanic anoxic event 2redoxtrace metals |
| spellingShingle | Alexander J. Dickson Hugh C. Jenkyns Erdem Idiz Tim C. Sweere Melissa J. Murphy Sander H. J. M. van den Boorn Micha Ruhl James S. Eldrett Donald Porcelli New Constraints on Global Geochemical Cycling During Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (Late Cretaceous) From a 6‐Million‐year Long Molybdenum‐Isotope Record Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems cretaceous western interior seaway eagle ford shale molybdenum isotopes oceanic anoxic event 2 redox trace metals |
| title | New Constraints on Global Geochemical Cycling During Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (Late Cretaceous) From a 6‐Million‐year Long Molybdenum‐Isotope Record |
| title_full | New Constraints on Global Geochemical Cycling During Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (Late Cretaceous) From a 6‐Million‐year Long Molybdenum‐Isotope Record |
| title_fullStr | New Constraints on Global Geochemical Cycling During Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (Late Cretaceous) From a 6‐Million‐year Long Molybdenum‐Isotope Record |
| title_full_unstemmed | New Constraints on Global Geochemical Cycling During Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (Late Cretaceous) From a 6‐Million‐year Long Molybdenum‐Isotope Record |
| title_short | New Constraints on Global Geochemical Cycling During Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (Late Cretaceous) From a 6‐Million‐year Long Molybdenum‐Isotope Record |
| title_sort | new constraints on global geochemical cycling during oceanic anoxic event 2 late cretaceous from a 6 million year long molybdenum isotope record |
| topic | cretaceous western interior seaway eagle ford shale molybdenum isotopes oceanic anoxic event 2 redox trace metals |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GC009246 |
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