Abstract
Despite being the busiest transient sea in the world due to the Suez Canal, radionuclide distribution studies in seawater and sediment of the Red Sea remain rare. A sampling expedition in the Red Sea was conducted from June 9 to July 6, 2021, visiting a transect of several deep sampling stations located along the central axis of the basin from the Gulf of Aqaba to the southern Red Sea (near Farasan Island, Saudi Arabia). The collected seawater profile samples were analyzed for tritium, radiocarbon and oxygen-18. The observed tritium levels in surface waters of the Red Sea peaked at 0.3–0.4 TU, similar to the values observed in the western Arabian Sea (decay corrected). The values observed at waters below 150 m were around 0.2 TU, however, at depths of 450 and 750 m, tritium minima (<0.2 TU) were observed, which could be associated with a partial return flow of bottom waters from the southern to the northern Red Sea. At two stations at the depth of about 550 m, deep Δ14C minima were observed as well (−4‰ and −10‰), documenting ongoing transport of carbon in the water column, important for sink of anthropogenic carbon.
•Observed 3H and 14C water profiles in the Red Sea suggest a common origin of these tracers in the western Arabian Sea.•The vertical distribution of 3H and 14C indicates strong vertical mixing in the Gulf of Aqaba.•The distribution of isotope tracers in the Red Sea reflects different water masses and their circulation.•The results indicate the presence of a returning northward flow of Red Sea bottom waters at a depth of 450–750 m.