Natural hydrocarbon seepage at the Northeast Greenland continental shelf

Abstract In the Arctic, substantial amounts of methane are stored in marine sediments. Yet, the distribution and stability of methane reservoirs is poorly understood, especially offshore Greenland. As Arctic warming accelerates, understanding natural methane seepage is crucial for assessing its role in the carbon cycle and climate impact. Here, we present a unique interdisciplinary geoscientific data set that spans the ice-covered Northeast Greenland shelf and captures entire fluid flow systems from source to sink. Our data documents widespread natural seepage of oil and gas from the seafloor through the water column, locally reaching the sea surface. The released hydrocarbons are sourced from deep petroleum systems and primarily migrate along permeable beds towards the seafloor. Glacial erosion during the Quaternary has effectively removed the sealing units, creating geologic windows that allow widespread natural seepage. Our first-order estimates suggest that minimum 677–1460 Mt of thermogenic gas ( ~ 0.5–1.1 Gt of carbon) has been released into the ocean since grounded ice retreated from the shelf around ~15 ka BP. These findings provide new insight into the impact of active natural seepage in a rapidly changing climate and have substantial implications for the Arctic Ocean’s carbon cycle and marine ecosystems.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Communications Earth & Environment
Published
2025-11-12
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02932-8
Primary Topic
Methane Hydrates and Related Phenomena
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

Funders

Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
article

Natural hydrocarbon seepage at the Northeast Greenland continental shelf

Christoph Böttner, Adriano Mazzini, Jan Sverre Laberg, John R. Hopper et al.
Communications Earth & Environment
Methane Hydrates and Related Phenomena
article

Natural hydrocarbon seepage at the Northeast Greenland continental shelf

Christoph Böttner, Adriano Mazzini, Jan Sverre Laberg, John R. Hopper, Monica Winsborrow, Katrine Juul Andresen, Marit‐Solveig Seidenkrantz, Stéphane Polteau, Frank Werner Jakobsen, Muhammad Rizwan Asif, Sverre Planke, Tøve Nielsen, Oliver Jon Sigurd Millinge, Reidun Myklebust
article en

Abstract

Abstract In the Arctic, substantial amounts of methane are stored in marine sediments. Yet, the distribution and stability of methane reservoirs is poorly understood, especially offshore Greenland. As Arctic warming accelerates, understanding natural methane seepage is crucial for assessing its role in the carbon cycle and climate impact. Here, we present a unique interdisciplinary geoscientific data set that spans the ice-covered Northeast Greenland shelf and captures entire fluid flow systems from source to sink. Our data documents widespread natural seepage of oil and gas from the seafloor through the water column, locally reaching the sea surface. The released hydrocarbons are sourced from deep petroleum systems and primarily migrate along permeable beds towards the seafloor. Glacial erosion during the Quaternary has effectively removed the sealing units, creating geologic windows that allow widespread natural seepage. Our first-order estimates suggest that minimum 677–1460 Mt of thermogenic gas ( ~ 0.5–1.1 Gt of carbon) has been released into the ocean since grounded ice retreated from the shelf around ~15 ka BP. These findings provide new insight into the impact of active natural seepage in a rapidly changing climate and have substantial implications for the Arctic Ocean’s carbon cycle and marine ecosystems.

Communications Earth & EnvironmentVol. 6(1)
University of Copenhagen (DK), Geological Survey of Norway (NO), Stockholm University (SE), University of Oslo (NO), Aarhus University (DK), Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (DK), Institute for Energy Technology (NO), TGS (Norway) (NO), Volcanic Basin Petroleum Research (Norway) (NO), UiT The Arctic University of Norway (NO)
European Commission, Norges Forskningsråd, Stockholms Universitet, HORIZON EUROPE Framework Programme
Openalex Percentile: Top 70%
Methane Hydrates and Related Phenomena
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.