P. Schlosser et al., ARCTIC RIVER-RUNOFF - MEAN RESIDENCE TIME ON THE SHELVES AND IN THE HALOCLINE, Deep-sea research. Part 1. Oceanographic research papers, 41(7), 1994, pp. 1053-1068
The mean residence time of river-runoff on the shelves and in the halo
cline of the Arctic Ocean is estimated from salinity and tracer data (
tritium, He-3 and the O-18/O-16 ratio). These estimates are derived fr
om comparison of apparent tracer ages of the halocline waters using a
combination of tracers that yield different information: (1) the triti
um ''vintage'' age, which records the time that has passed since the r
iver-runoff entered the shelf; and (2) the tritium/He-3 He age, which
reflects the time since the shelf waters left the shelf. The differenc
e between the ages determined by these two methods is about 3-6 years.
Correction for the initial tritium/He-3 age of the shelf waters (abou
t 0.5-1.5 years) yields a mean residence time of the river-runoff on t
he shelves of the Siberian Seas of about 3.5 +/- 2 years.