Alkenone composition of water and sediment samples from the Gulf of Lions

A study of the C37 alkenone compositions in suspended particulate matter in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea has shown a correspondence between Uk'37 and sea surface temperature that significantly deviates from the general equation regularly observed in most marine world areas (Müller et al., 1998, doi:10.1016/S0016-7037(98)00097-0). However, the temperatures measured in the core top sediments using the general equation are in agreement with the annual average water column temperatures between 0-40 m depth. These discrepancies suggest that despite the rather constant correlation between UK'37 and seawater temperature throughout the world oceans, specific calibrations should be developed for each new area of application of the C37 alkenones for paleotemperature determination.

Organic carbon and opal fluxes from Ierapetra sediment trap (from June 2010 to May 2013)

We provide data on organic carbon and opal fluxes and d13C obtained with a sediment trap deployed in the Ierapetra Basin (eastern Mediterranean Sea), from June 2010 to May 2013. Data was obtained within the framework of the REDECO (Regional Drivers of Ecosystem Change and its Influence on Deep-Sea Populations in the Mediterranean) project.