Radiocarbon in the Weddell Sea as observed in a deep‐sea coral and in Krill

Abstract

Radiocarbon measurements were performed on krill and coral samples collected from the Weddell Sea during IWSOE ′80. These are the first radiocarbon measurements available from this area since 1973. These data reveal carbon‐14 levels for Weddell surface water and southern Weddell Shelf water. These data indicate that the radiocarbon levels in surface waters in 1980 were the same or slightly lower than those present in 1973. In addition, an unusually low Δ14C value for shelf water (from coral) at 500 m is evidence that Warm Deep Water (WDW) may penetrate much further and more frequently onto the shelf region than had previously been expected. Copyright 1983 by the American Geophysical Union.