Topic summary
Methane clathrate
Methane clathrate (CH4·5.75H2O) or (4CH4·23H2O), also called methane hydrate, hydromethane, methane ice, fire ice, natural gas hydrate, methane gas, or gas hydrate, is a solid clathrate compound (more specifically, a clathrate hydrate) in which a large amount of methane is trapped within a crystal structure of water, forming a solid similar to ice. Originally thought to occur only in the outer regions of the Solar System, where temperatures are low and water ice is common, significant deposits of methane clathrate have been found under sediments on the ocean floors of the Earth (around 1100m below the sea surface). Methane hydrate is formed when hydrogen-bonded water and methane gas come into contact at high pressures and low temperatures in oceans.
Methane clathrates are common constituents of the shallow marine geosphere and they occur in deep sedimentary structures and form outcrops on the ocean floor. Methane hydrates are believed to form by the precipitation or crystallisation of methane migrating from deep along geological faults. Precipitation occurs when the methane comes in contact with water within the sea bed subject to temperature and pressure. In 2008, research on Antarctic Vostok Station and EPICA Dome C ice cores revealed that methane clathrates were also present in deep Antarcticice cores and record a history of atmospheric methane concentrations, dating to 800,000 years ago. The ice-core methane clathrate record is a primary source of data for global warming research, along with oxygen and carbon dioxide.
Methane clathrates used to be considered as a potential source of abrupt climate change, following the clathrate gun hypothesis. In this scenario, heating causes catastrophic melting and breakdown of primarily undersea hydrates, leading to a massive release of methane and accelerating warming. A 2020 review of the climate tipping points research concludes that for methane hydrate release the "likelihood of occurrence remains unclear". The tipping point cascades (such as Arctic ice loss causing further warming and a release of methane from hydrates) have only been studied starting from 2018. The IPCC Sixth Assessment Report ignores the uncertainty, claiming that no "detectable" impact on the global temperatures will occur in this century through this mechanism.