Published in

Cambridge University Press, Annals of Glaciology, 1(39), p. 34-40

DOI: 10.3189/172756404781814609

Links

Tools

Export citation

Search in Google Scholar

Ultra-high-resolution seasonality of trace-ion species and oxygen isotope ratios in Antarctic firn over four annual cycles

Journal article published in 2004 by Alison Mcmorrow, Tas D. van Ommen ORCID, Vin Morgan, Mark A. J. Curran
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

Full text: Download

Green circle
Preprint: archiving allowed
Green circle
Postprint: archiving allowed
Green circle
Published version: archiving allowed
Data provided by SHERPA/RoMEO

Abstract

AbstractUltra-high-resolution firn-core records covering four annual cycles of oxygen isotope ratios (Δ18O) and trace-ion species were generated from a high-accumulation site on Law Dome, East Antarctica. Event-scale dating of the records was established using hourly snow accumulation measurements from a co-located automatic weather station (AWS). These net accumulation events were used to examine the seasonal timing of Δ18O and a suite of trace-ion species including marine biogenic sulphur compounds (methanesulphonic acid (MSA), non-sea salt sulphate), nitrate and major sea-salt species (sodium, chloride, magnesium). The ultra-high-resolution nature of this study and independent dating scale provide an opportunity to examine exact timings in the seasonality of each species. The traditional summer-maximum species of Δ18O and MSA show consistent relative phasing during midsummer over the four annual cycles. Nitrate shows an erratic seasonal cycle with a general trend characterized by narrow peaks during spring and early summer, preceding the mid-summer peaks in Δ18O and MSA. Non-sea-salt sulphate cycles indicate similar characteristics to MSA signals during summer, but are more comparable to nitrate signals during spring, autumn and winter. This suggests the summer non-sea-salt sulphate signal is driven by biological activity, although this species appears to be linked with nitrate signals outside the summer season. Finally, the sea-salt species indicate a seasonal cycle characterized by maximum concentrations during spring, winter and autumn. Event-scale dating of the firn-core records allows direct comparisons between the seasonal cycles and meteorological conditions. Contemporaneous local air-temperature measurements are compared with the high-resolution Δ18O record. This allows a detailed investigation of the relationship between site temperature and Δ18O signals in the ice core.