Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 04/25/2008 - 04:13

Hello,

I was wondering why do the radon levels change at different depths of the core. and do the levels go down or up the further down the core you go.

Colin, Hartford High

Emily S. Davenport

Hi Colin!
Great question! Radon is a gas- and it can leave the sediment and go into the water above the mud, so we expect there to be less radon in the top layers of the sediment because it is escaping into the water. As you get deeper into a sediment core, the radon gas has a harder time escaping the sediment, so it gets trapped in the sediment. We expect to find more radon gas deeper in the core than in the top of the core. Animals in the sediment help release this radon gas, by digging around and stirring up the sediment...and we can actually use the radon data (and some fancy math) to help us get an idea of how much animal activity is occurring in the sediment. Pretty cool!!
Thanks for your question!