Radiocesium and other nuclides in the Norwegian-Greenland Seas, 1981-1982

Abstract

This report contains data obtained from measurements of various artificial radiotracers in seawater samples from the Norwegian-Greenland Seas and adjacent seas during 1981-82. The radionuclides measured include 137Cs, 134Cs, 90Sr and 3H. The sampling and analytical work result from the efforts of several laboratories viz. Deutsches Hydrographisches Institut, Germany; Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Fisheries Laboratory), U.K.; Riso National Laboratory, Denmark; University of Miami Tritium Laboratory, U.S.A.; and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, U.S.A. The data set includes a large number of measurements in surface water in the region and a substantial number of vertical profiles in the various water masses. The radiotracers in the region originate from nuclear fallout from atmospheric nuclear weapons tests and from low level releases of liquid waste to European coastal waters in association with the reprocessing of nuclear fuel. The data represent a comprehensive series of measurements suitable for gaining new insight in respect to the rates and routes of the regional circulation and to the dispersal pattern of pollutants introduced to European shelf waters.