Abstract
The existence of the cosmogenic radioisotope of beryllium, 10Be(t1/2 = 1.5 Myr), was first confirmed1,2 almost 25 yr ago. Subsequently, Merrill et al.3 worked out the sedimentary geochemistry of the stable isotope of the element, 9Be. The geochronological potential of 10 Be could not be exploited, however, because of its extremely low abundance (global average production rate 1.08 atoms cm−2 min−1)4 and the difficulties associated with the analysis of the stable species 9Be, particularly in natural waters. This situation is changing dramatically with the application of accelerator techniques to the detection of the radioisotope5. It thus becomes important to obtain a detailed understanding of the geochemistry of 9Be since the potential use of the stable isotope for normalization purposes would significantly enhance the usefulness of the radioactive species in dating studies. We report here the first detailed profile for 9Be in the oceanic water column.
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Measures, C., Edmond, J. Beryllium in the water column of the central North Pacific. Nature 297, 51–53 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1038/297051a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/297051a0
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