The warming of ocean waters due to changes in the Gulf Stream is posing a threat to the stability of methane hydrate deposits along the American coast. This could lead to continental slope failures and a massive release of methane, which could drastically and rapidly alter the climate. International researchers estimate that there are trillions of tons of methane hydrate deposits worldwide, found at numerous continental margins at depths of several hundred meters. However, seismic analyses in North Carolina suggest that methane hydrate covering an area of around 10,000 square kilometers on the East Coast of the U.S. is at risk of melting and becoming unstable. The sudden instability of methane hydrate is likely due to the warm waters of the Gulf Stream, which have increased water temperatures in the western Atlantic by about eight degrees Celsius over the last 5,000 years.
Methane hydrate is a solid compound of methane gas and water that can remain stable on the ocean floor for millions of years under high pressure and low temperatures. However, if the water temperature rises above four degrees Celsius or the pressure drops, the ice cage surrounding the methane molecule breaks down, releasing the methane and causing it to rise to the surface. The methane is highly compressed at the ocean floor due to the high pressure, resulting in 164 times the amount of usable methane gas when it rises. Seismic analysis has shown that the stability of around 2.5 billion tons of methane hydrate in shallow coastal waters is no longer secure, and the sudden release of methane could trigger a chain reaction, leading to further warming of the Earth’s climate.
Although researchers have only been able to demonstrate the potential instability of methane hydrate along the American East Coast, they believe that this is not a regional phenomenon. It is unlikely that the western North Atlantic is the only ocean region where changes in ocean currents have led to a temperature increase. Methane hydrate is considered a ticking time bomb by climate scientists, as it is highly sensitive to temperature changes. Even a slight increase in water temperature due to climate change could cause the massive deposits to become unstable and release methane, which could have catastrophic consequences for the environment and the world’s population.
