Abstract
STUDIES in physical oceanography, both by observation (as summarized by Defant1) and by theory (as summarized by Stommel2), have led to the development of the concept of relatively rapidly flowing currents transporting considerable masses of water at intermediate depths northward or southward to and across the equator in the Atlantic Ocean. Measurement in these current systems of the changes in concentration of strontium-90 distributed by fall-out appears to offer an independent approach to the assessment of these circulations. Conversely, substantial agreement between observed patterns of strontium-90 distribution, and details of those predicted on physical oceanographic grounds, may be taken as evidence supporting the accuracy of the radioisotope analyses. The radiochemical and geochemical aspects of strontium-90 analyses have been discussed elsewhere3–8.
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References
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BOWEN, V., NOSHKIN, V. & SUGIHARA, T. Transport of Strontium-90 Towards the Equator at Mid-depths in the Atlantic Ocean. Nature 212, 383–384 (1966). https://doi.org/10.1038/212383a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/212383a0
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