2008/01/01 by T. F. Bristow, M. J. Kennedy · 3 citations
Earth and Planetary Sciences · #Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils #Geology and Paleoclimatology Research #Geochemistry and Elemental Analysis
paper · doi:10.1130/g24968a.1
openalex publication_date 2008/01/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/15
Research Article| November 01, 2008 Carbon isotope excursions and the oxidant budget of the Ediacaran atmosphere and ocean Thomas F. Bristow; Thomas F. Bristow * 1Department of Earth Sciences, University of California–Riverside, Riverside, California 92521, USA *E-mail: [email protected] Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Martin J. Kennedy Martin J. Kennedy 1Department of Earth Sciences, University of California–Riverside, Riverside, California 92521, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Thomas F. Bristow * 1Department of Earth Sciences, University of California–Riverside, Riverside, California 92521, USA Martin J. Kennedy 1Department of Earth Sciences, University of California–Riverside, Riverside, California 92521, USA *E-mail: [email protected] Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 18 Mar 2008 Revision Received: 10 Jul 2008 Accepted: 22 Jul 2008 First Online: 02 Mar 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 © 2008 Geological Society of America Geology (2008) 36 (11): 863–866. https://doi.org/10.1130/G24968A.1 Article history Received: 18 Mar 2008 Revision Received: 10 Jul 2008 Accepted: 22 Jul 2008 First Online: 02 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Permissions Search Site Citation Thomas F. Bristow, Martin J. Kennedy; Carbon isotope excursions and the oxidant budget of the Ediacaran atmosphere and ocean. Geology 2008;; 36 (11): 863–866. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G24968A.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract A possible global drop in marine carbon isotope values to as low as −12‰ Peedee belemnite (PDB), recorded in the Ediacaran Shuram Formation of Oman, has been attributed to the non-steady-state oxidation of oceanic dissolved organic carbon (DOC) resulting from the rise in atmospheric oxygen to near modern values at the end of the Precambrian. Geologic constraints indicate that the excursion lasted between 25 and 50 m.y., requiring a DOC pool thousands of times to 10,000 times the modern inventory to conform with carbon isotope mass balance calculations for a −12‰ excursion. At the consequent rates of DOC oxidation, oceanic sulfate and oxygen in the atmosphere and oceans are exhausted on a time scale of ~800 k.y. Oxidant depletion is incompatible with independent geochemical and biological indicators that show oceanic sulfate and oxygen levels were maintained or increased during the Shuram excursion. Furthermore, a DOC-driven excursion does not explain strong covariation between the carbon and oxygen isotope record. These indicators show that negative isotope excursions recorded in the Shuram and other Ediacaran sections are unlikely to represent a global ocean signal. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.