{"dp_type": "Project", "free_text": "Chemical Composition"}
[{"awards": "1744961 Olesik, John", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((161.711586 -77.75758,161.71322740000002 -77.75758,161.7148688 -77.75758,161.71651020000002 -77.75758,161.7181516 -77.75758,161.719793 -77.75758,161.72143440000002 -77.75758,161.7230758 -77.75758,161.72471720000001 -77.75758,161.7263586 -77.75758,161.728 -77.75758,161.728 -77.75784200000001,161.728 -77.758104,161.728 -77.758366,161.728 -77.758628,161.728 -77.75889000000001,161.728 -77.759152,161.728 -77.75941399999999,161.728 -77.759676,161.728 -77.759938,161.728 -77.7602,161.7263586 -77.7602,161.72471720000001 -77.7602,161.7230758 -77.7602,161.72143440000002 -77.7602,161.719793 -77.7602,161.7181516 -77.7602,161.71651020000002 -77.7602,161.7148688 -77.7602,161.71322740000002 -77.7602,161.711586 -77.7602,161.711586 -77.759938,161.711586 -77.759676,161.711586 -77.75941399999999,161.711586 -77.759152,161.711586 -77.75889000000001,161.711586 -77.758628,161.711586 -77.758366,161.711586 -77.758104,161.711586 -77.75784200000001,161.711586 -77.75758))", "dataset_titles": "Elemental composition of individual nanoparticles and fine particles in 28 Taylor Glacier ice core samples 9000 to 44000 yrs BP; Taylor Glacier Atmospheric Mineral Nanoparticles and Microparticles in Antarctic Ice during the last Climatic Cycle", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601879", "doi": "10.15784/601879", "keywords": "Antarctica; Cryosphere; Particle Size; Taylor Glacier", "people": "Olesik, John; Carter, Lucas; Sullivan, Ryan; Lomax-Vogt, Madeleine; Lowry, Greg; Kutuzov, Stanislav; Gabrielli, Paolo", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Elemental composition of individual nanoparticles and fine particles in 28 Taylor Glacier ice core samples 9000 to 44000 yrs BP", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601879"}, {"dataset_uid": "200426", "doi": "https://doi.org/10.25921/bd1k-mv46", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "NOAA\u0027s National Centers for Environmental Information World Data Service Paleo archive", "science_program": null, "title": "Taylor Glacier Atmospheric Mineral Nanoparticles and Microparticles in Antarctic Ice during the last Climatic Cycle", "url": "https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/paleo-search/study/40380"}], "date_created": "Mon, 06 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "The main goal of this project is to identify and geochemically characterize atmospheric mineral nanoparticles and fine microparticles in pre-industrial Antarctic ice during the last climatic cycle. Recent technological and industrial development is introducing a large number of natural and engineered nanoparticles and fine microparticles into Earth\u0027s atmosphere. These constitute a concern for human health, mainly due to their high chemical reactivity. While many atmospheric nanoparticle studies have been performed in modern urban environments, there is essentially no information about their occurrence in a pristine pre-industrial atmosphere. This information is critical, as it constitutes an important benchmark for comparison to the modern atmosphere. Information on nanoparticles from the pre-industrial atmosphere can be obtained from atmospheric mineral nanoparticles that are entrapped in remote pre-industrial Antarctic ice covering the last climatic cycles. Mineral nanoparticles and fine microparticles can also affect several climatic processes. First, they directly influence the global energy balance by reflecting solar radiation and indirectly influence through changes in cloud formation (and clouds also reflect solar radiation). Second, atmospheric mineral nanoparticles such as iron oxides could have fertilized the oceans, causing blooms of marine phytoplankton that may have drawn part of the atmospheric carbon dioxide into the oceans during glacial ages (the \"biological pump\"). Third, a significant amount of extraterrestrial material entering the Earth atmosphere is thought to be transported to the poles as nanoparticles called \"meteoric smoke\" that form polar stratospheric clouds implicated in changes of the ozone hole.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eThis project aims to establish the natural background of unknown classes of glacial particles whose size is below the detection limit of the conventional dust analyzers. The team will take advantage of ice samples from the \"horizontal ice core\", already extracted from the remote Taylor Glacier (coastal East Antarctica) covering the last ~44,000 years. These ancient samples are particularly suited to project scope because i) a large ice volume is available ii) the team expects to find a markedly different geochemistry between nanoparticles deposited during the last glacial age and during the current interglacial. A set of advanced techniques including Transmission Electron Microscopy, Single Particle Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (spICP-MS), and spICP-Time of Flight MS will be employed to determine mineral nanoparticle and fine microparticle sizes, number/volume, and chemical composition. So far, the elemental composition of dust entrapped in polar ice has been mainly determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma Sector Field Mass Spectrometry and it is generally assumed to be descriptive of the coarse aeolian dust fraction. However, project will test whether or not the determined elemental composition is instead mainly linked to the previously unobserved smaller mineral nanoparticle content. Results on nanoparticles will be compared with a set of new experiments of total dust composition measured by Inductively Coupled Plasma Sector Field Mass Spectrometry, using the same ice samples from Taylor Glacier.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eThis award reflects NSF\u0027s statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation\u0027s intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.", "east": 161.728, "geometry": "POINT(161.719793 -77.75889000000001)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "MICROPARTICLE CONCENTRATION; Taylor Glacier", "locations": "Taylor Glacier", "north": -77.75758, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Glaciology", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Olesik, John", "platforms": null, "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "NOAA\u0027s National Centers for Environmental Information World Data Service Paleo archive; USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -77.7602, "title": "Atmospheric Mineral Nanoparticles in Antarctic Ice during the last Climatic Cycle", "uid": "p0010492", "west": 161.711586}, {"awards": "1941483 Yager, Patricia; 1941327 Stammerjohn, Sharon; 1941292 St-Laurent, Pierre; 1941304 Sherrell, Robert; 1941308 Fitzsimmons, Jessica", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-120 -71,-118 -71,-116 -71,-114 -71,-112 -71,-110 -71,-108 -71,-106 -71,-104 -71,-102 -71,-100 -71,-100 -71.4,-100 -71.8,-100 -72.2,-100 -72.6,-100 -73,-100 -73.4,-100 -73.8,-100 -74.2,-100 -74.6,-100 -75,-102 -75,-104 -75,-106 -75,-108 -75,-110 -75,-112 -75,-114 -75,-116 -75,-118 -75,-120 -75,-120 -74.6,-120 -74.2,-120 -73.8,-120 -73.4,-120 -73,-120 -72.6,-120 -72.2,-120 -71.8,-120 -71.4,-120 -71))", "dataset_titles": "Dataset: A numerical simulation of the ocean, sea ice and ice shelves in the Amundsen Sea (Antarctica) over the period 2006-2022 and its associated code and input files; Expedition Data of NBP2202; Numerical experiments examining the response of onshore oceanic heat supply to yearly changes in the Amundsen Sea icescape (Antarctica); Vertical ocean profiles collected by a Conductivity-Temperature-Depth (CTD) package in the Amundsen Sea", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "200399", "doi": "10.25773/bt54-sj65", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "William \u0026 Mary ScholarWorks", "science_program": null, "title": "Dataset: A numerical simulation of the ocean, sea ice and ice shelves in the Amundsen Sea (Antarctica) over the period 2006-2022 and its associated code and input files", "url": "https://doi.org/10.25773/bt54-sj65"}, {"dataset_uid": "601785", "doi": "10.15784/601785", "keywords": "Amundsen Sea; Antarctica; Cryosphere; CTD; NBP2202; Oceanography; R/v Nathaniel B. Palmer", "people": "Stammerjohn, Sharon", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Thwaites (ITGC)", "title": "Vertical ocean profiles collected by a Conductivity-Temperature-Depth (CTD) package in the Amundsen Sea", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601785"}, {"dataset_uid": "200311", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition Data of NBP2202", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/NBP2202"}, {"dataset_uid": "200400", "doi": "10.17882/99231", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "SEANOE", "science_program": null, "title": "Numerical experiments examining the response of onshore oceanic heat supply to yearly changes in the Amundsen Sea icescape (Antarctica)", "url": "https://doi.org/10.17882/99231"}], "date_created": "Fri, 20 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT", "description": " The Amundsen Sea hosts the most productive polynya in all of Antarctica, with its vibrant green waters visible from space, and an atmospheric CO2 uptake density 10x higher than the Southern Ocean average. The region is vulnerable to climate change, experiencing rapid losses in sea ice, a changing icescape, and some of the fastest melting glaciers flowing from the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS). ARTEMIS aims to characterize the climate-sensitive nature of glacial meltwater-driven micronutrient (iron, Fe) contributions driving ecosystem productivity and CO2 uptake in the coastal Antarctic. We propose to integrate observations and ocean modeling of these processes to enhance predictive capabilities. Currently, basal melt resulting from warm deep waters penetrating ice shelf cavities dominates mass losses of WAIS, contributing to sea level rise. These physical melting processes are being studied by the International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration (ITGC). The impact of melting on the marine ecosystem has also been explored, and we know that productivity is due in part to Fe-rich, glacial meltwater-driven outflow. The biogeochemical composition of the outflow from the glaciers surrounding the Amundsen Sea is largely unstudied, however. Improved knowledge would provide keys to understanding meltwater\u0027s future impact on the ecosystem. An ongoing field program (TARSAN, part of the ITGC) offers the ideal physical oceanographic framework for our biogeochemical effort. We propose here to collaborate with TARSAN-supported UK scientists, providing value added to both team efforts. ARTEMIS will add shipboard measurements (trace metals, carbonate system, nutrients, organic matter, microorganisms) and biogeochemical sensors on autonomous vehicles to gather critical knowledge needed to understand the impact of the melting WAIS on both the coastal ecosystem and the regional carbon (C) cycle. Driving questions include: 1) what are the fluxes and chemical forms of Fe, C, and microorganisms in the ice shelf outflow? 2) what are the relative contributions to the ouflow from deep water, benthic, and glacial melt sources, and how do these inputs combine to affect the bioavailability of Fe? 3) How are Fe and C compounds modified as the outflow advects along the coastal current and mixes into the bloom region? and 4) what will be the effect of increased glacial melting, changes in the coastal icescape, and declining sea ice on theecosystem of the Amundsen Sea? Such questions fall outside the focus of the ITGC, but are of keen interest to Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems and Antarctic Integrated System Science programs.", "east": -100.0, "geometry": "POINT(-110 -73)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLES; USA/NSF; USAP-DC; AMD; Amundsen Sea; Amd/Us; SHIPS", "locations": "Amundsen Sea", "north": -71.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Yager, Patricia; Medeiros, Patricia; Sherrell, Robert; St-Laurent, Pierre; Fitzsimmons, Jessica; Stammerjohn, Sharon", "platforms": "WATER-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e VESSELS \u003e SURFACE \u003e SHIPS", "repo": "William \u0026 Mary ScholarWorks", "repositories": "R2R; SEANOE; USAP-DC; William \u0026 Mary ScholarWorks", "science_programs": "Thwaites (ITGC)", "south": -75.0, "title": "NSFGEO-NERC: Collaborative Research: Accelerating Thwaites Ecosystem Impacts for the Southern Ocean (ARTEMIS)", "uid": "p0010249", "west": -120.0}, {"awards": "1744871 Robinson, Rebecca", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-180 -60,-144 -60,-108 -60,-72 -60,-36 -60,0 -60,36 -60,72 -60,108 -60,144 -60,180 -60,180 -63,180 -66,180 -69,180 -72,180 -75,180 -78,180 -81,180 -84,180 -87,180 -90,144 -90,108 -90,72 -90,36 -90,0 -90,-36 -90,-72 -90,-108 -90,-144 -90,-180 -90,-180 -87,-180 -84,-180 -81,-180 -78,-180 -75,-180 -72,-180 -69,-180 -66,-180 -63,-180 -60))", "dataset_titles": "Diatom assemblage from IODP Site U1357; Diatom-bound and bulk sedimentary N isotopes from ODP Site 1098, Western Antarctic Peninsula; Diatom-bound and bulk sedimentary nitrogen isotopes from IODP Site U1357; Dissolved nutrients, cell counts, and nitrogen isotope measurements from Chaetoceros socialis culture experiments; ODP Site 1098 deglacial diatom assemblage; Sediment chemistry of ODP Site 1098", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601817", "doi": "10.15784/601817", "keywords": "Antarctica; Cryosphere; Wilkes Land", "people": "Dove, Isabel; Robinson, Rebecca; Kelly, Roger", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Diatom-bound and bulk sedimentary nitrogen isotopes from IODP Site U1357", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601817"}, {"dataset_uid": "601777", "doi": "10.15784/601777", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Cryosphere; Sediment Core Data", "people": "Dove, Isabel", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "ODP Site 1098 deglacial diatom assemblage", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601777"}, {"dataset_uid": "601778", "doi": "10.15784/601778", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Cryosphere", "people": "Dove, Isabel", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Sediment chemistry of ODP Site 1098", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601778"}, {"dataset_uid": "601818", "doi": "10.15784/601818", "keywords": "Antarctica; Cryosphere; Geochemistry; Sediment; Wilkes Land", "people": "Dove, Isabel", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Diatom assemblage from IODP Site U1357", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601818"}, {"dataset_uid": "601727", "doi": "10.15784/601727", "keywords": "Antarctica", "people": "Dove, Isabel", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Dissolved nutrients, cell counts, and nitrogen isotope measurements from Chaetoceros socialis culture experiments", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601727"}, {"dataset_uid": "601816", "doi": "10.15784/601816", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Cryosphere; Geochemistry; Sediment", "people": "Dove, Isabel; Kelly, Roger; Robinson, Rebecca; Jones, Colin", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Diatom-bound and bulk sedimentary N isotopes from ODP Site 1098, Western Antarctic Peninsula", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601816"}], "date_created": "Wed, 28 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "The chemical composition of diatom fossils in the Southern Ocean provides information about the environmental history of Antarctica, including sea ice extent, biological production, and ocean nutrient distribution. The sea ice zone is an important habitat for a group of diatoms, largely from the genus Chaetoceros, that have a unique life cycle stage under environmental stress, when they produce a structure called a resting spore. Resting spores are meant to reseed the surface ocean when conditions are more favorable. The production of these heavy resting spores tends to remove significant amounts of carbon and silicon, essential nutrients, out of the surface ocean. As a result, this group has the potential to remove carbon from the surface ocean and can impact the sedimentary record scientists use to reconstruct environmental change. \r\n\r\nThis project explores the role of resting spores and nutrients in the sedimentary record using the nitrogen isotopic signature of these fossils and how those measurements are used to estimate carbon cycle changes. Measurements of nitrogen stable isotopes of nitrate, biomass, and diatom-bound nitrogen and silicon-to-nitrogen ratios of individual species grown in the laboratory are used to quantify how resting spores record nutrient drawdown in the water column and to what degree their signature is biased toward low nutrient conditions. Laboratory incubations were conducted with surface sediment containing Chaetoceros spp.. The emergence of vegetative cells and subsequent formation of resting spores is manipulated with the addition of nutrients, primarily nitrate. The resulting samples, both of vegetative cells and resting spores were measured for diatom-bound d15N. Resting spore d15N values are consistently lower than the vegetative d15N \r\n from the same incubations. The incubation results will be used to quantify nutrient drawdown in sea ice environments during two contrasting intervals in earth history, the last ice age and the warm Pliocene. The project provided training and research opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students. Research efforts in Antarctic earth sciences are disseminated through an interactive display at the home institution and during university sponsored events.\r\n\r\nThis work addresses uncertainties in how Chaetoceros resting spores record surface nutrient conditions in their nitrogen stable isotopic composition, the relative impact of their specific signal with respect to the full sedimentary assemblage, and their potential to bias or enhance environmental reconstructions in the sea ice zone. \r\n", "east": 180.0, "geometry": "POINT(0 -89.999)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Amd/Us; USAP-DC; Antarctica; ISOTOPES; MARINE SEDIMENTS; LABORATORY; USA/NSF; NITROGEN; AMD", "locations": "Antarctica", "north": -60.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Earth Sciences", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Robinson, Rebecca", "platforms": "OTHER \u003e PHYSICAL MODELS \u003e LABORATORY", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -90.0, "title": "The nitrogen isotopic composition of diatom resting spores in Southern Ocean sediments: A source of bias and/or paleoenvironmental information?", "uid": "p0010234", "west": -180.0}, {"awards": "1643494 Saal, Alberto", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-68.074 -57.345,-66.6033 -57.345,-65.1326 -57.345,-63.6619 -57.345,-62.1912 -57.345,-60.7205 -57.345,-59.2498 -57.345,-57.7791 -57.345,-56.3084 -57.345,-54.8377 -57.345,-53.367 -57.345,-53.367 -58.12517,-53.367 -58.90534,-53.367 -59.68551,-53.367 -60.46568,-53.367 -61.24585,-53.367 -62.02602,-53.367 -62.80619,-53.367 -63.58636,-53.367 -64.36653,-53.367 -65.1467,-54.8377 -65.1467,-56.3084 -65.1467,-57.7791 -65.1467,-59.2498 -65.1467,-60.7205 -65.1467,-62.1912 -65.1467,-63.6619 -65.1467,-65.1326 -65.1467,-66.6033 -65.1467,-68.074 -65.1467,-68.074 -64.36653,-68.074 -63.58636,-68.074 -62.80619,-68.074 -62.02602,-68.074 -61.24585,-68.074 -60.46568,-68.074 -59.68551,-68.074 -58.90534,-68.074 -58.12517,-68.074 -57.345))", "dataset_titles": "Major, trace elements contents and radiogenic isotopes of erupted lavas Antarctic Peninsula and Phoenix Ridge", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601519", "doi": "10.15784/601519", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Chemical Composition; Chemistry:rock; Chemistry:Rock; Geochemistry; Isotope Data; Trace Elements", "people": "Saal, Alberto", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Major, trace elements contents and radiogenic isotopes of erupted lavas Antarctic Peninsula and Phoenix Ridge", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601519"}], "date_created": "Tue, 22 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "The focus of our research is to examine the regional geochemical variations of well-characterized Pliocene-recent basalt samples along a transect from the Phoenix-Antarctic ridge to James Ross Island (through the South Shetland Islands, Bransfield Strait and the Antarctic Peninsula). The goal is to understand 1) the processes responsible for the generation of chemically diverse basalts in close spatial and temporal proximity within the Antarctic Peninsula and 2) the nature (lithology, composition and temperature) of the heterogeneous mantle source beneath the region.", "east": -53.367, "geometry": "POINT(-60.7205 -61.24585)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Antarctic Peninsula; USA/NSF; USAP-DC; TRACE ELEMENTS; MAJOR ELEMENTS; Amd/Us; LABORATORY; ROCKS/MINERALS/CRYSTALS; Magmatic Volatiles; AMD", "locations": "Antarctic Peninsula", "north": -57.345, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Earth Sciences", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Saal, Alberto", "platforms": "OTHER \u003e PHYSICAL MODELS \u003e LABORATORY", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -65.1467, "title": "Magmatic Volatiles, Unraveling the Reservoirs and Processes of the Volcanism in the Antarctic Peninsula", "uid": "p0010196", "west": -68.074}, {"awards": "1744584 Klein, Andrew; 1744602 Iken, Katrin; 1744550 Amsler, Charles; 1744570 Galloway, Aaron", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-70 -61,-69 -61,-68 -61,-67 -61,-66 -61,-65 -61,-64 -61,-63 -61,-62 -61,-61 -61,-60 -61,-60 -61.772,-60 -62.544,-60 -63.316,-60 -64.088,-60 -64.86,-60 -65.632,-60 -66.404,-60 -67.176,-60 -67.948,-60 -68.72,-61 -68.72,-62 -68.72,-63 -68.72,-64 -68.72,-65 -68.72,-66 -68.72,-67 -68.72,-68 -68.72,-69 -68.72,-70 -68.72,-70 -67.948,-70 -67.176,-70 -66.404,-70 -65.632,-70 -64.86,-70 -64.088,-70 -63.316,-70 -62.544,-70 -61.772,-70 -61))", "dataset_titles": "Average global horizontal solar irradiance at study sites; Carbon and nitrogen isotope data along a gradient at the Antarctic Peninsula; Chemical composition data for Desmarestia menziesii; Chemical composition data for Himantothallus grandifolius; Chemical composition data for Iridaea ; Chemical composition data for Sarcopeltis antarctica ; Computed fetch for project study sites; Five year mean annual and summer sea ice concentration grids for the Western Antarctic Peninsula from AMSR2, National Ice Center Charts and the Sea Ice Index ; Gridded sea ice concentrations from National Ice Center (NIC) Charts 2014-2019 for Western Antarctic Peninsula ; Initial release of code and data associated with Whippo et al. (2024) Fatty acid profiles and stable isotope composition of Antarctic macroalgae: A baseline for a combined biomarker approach in food web studies.; Landsat Sea Ice/Cloud classifications surrounding project study sites; Latitude and longitude data for project study sites; LMG1904 expedition data; Macroalgal species collected along horizontal transect components ; Modelled Solar Irradiance for Western Antarctic Pennisula; Sea Ice Concentration Timeseries for study sites; Underwater transect videos used for community analyses; Underwater video transect community analysis data; VIIRS KD(490) diffuse attenuation coefficients for study sites", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601649", "doi": "10.15784/601649", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; LMG1904; National Ice Center Charts; Sea Ice Concentration", "people": "Klein, Andrew", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Five year mean annual and summer sea ice concentration grids for the Western Antarctic Peninsula from AMSR2, National Ice Center Charts and the Sea Ice Index ", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601649"}, {"dataset_uid": "601651", "doi": "10.15784/601651", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Biota; GIS; GIS Data; LMG1904; R/v Laurence M. Gould; Solar Radiation", "people": "Klein, Andrew", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Modelled Solar Irradiance for Western Antarctic Pennisula", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601651"}, {"dataset_uid": "601653", "doi": "10.15784/601653", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Biota; Carbon; Carbon Isotopes; LMG1904; Nitrogen Isotopes; Oceans", "people": "Iken, Katrin", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Carbon and nitrogen isotope data along a gradient at the Antarctic Peninsula", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601653"}, {"dataset_uid": "601654", "doi": "10.15784/601654", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; GIS; LANDSAT; LMG1904; Remote Sensing; R/v Laurence M. Gould", "people": "Klein, Andrew", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Landsat Sea Ice/Cloud classifications surrounding project study sites", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601654"}, {"dataset_uid": "200147", "doi": "10.7284/908260", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "LMG1904 expedition data", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/LMG1904"}, {"dataset_uid": "200402", "doi": "10.5281/zenodo.10524919", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "Zendo", "science_program": null, "title": "Initial release of code and data associated with Whippo et al. (2024) Fatty acid profiles and stable isotope composition of Antarctic macroalgae: A baseline for a combined biomarker approach in food web studies.", "url": "https://zenodo.org/records/10524920"}, {"dataset_uid": "601884", "doi": "10.15784/601884", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Cryosphere; Macroalgae", "people": "Amsler, Charles", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Chemical composition data for Iridaea ", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601884"}, {"dataset_uid": "601882", "doi": "10.15784/601882", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Cryosphere; Macroalgae", "people": "Amsler, Charles", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Chemical composition data for Desmarestia menziesii", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601882"}, {"dataset_uid": "601883", "doi": "10.15784/601883", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Cryosphere; Macroalgae", "people": "Amsler, Charles", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Chemical composition data for Himantothallus grandifolius", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601883"}, {"dataset_uid": "601330", "doi": "10.15784/601330", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Biota; LMG1904; R/v Laurence M. Gould; Sample Location", "people": "Amsler, Charles", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Latitude and longitude data for project study sites", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601330"}, {"dataset_uid": "601885", "doi": "10.15784/601885", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Cryosphere; Macroalgae", "people": "Amsler, Charles", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Chemical composition data for Sarcopeltis antarctica ", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601885"}, {"dataset_uid": "601725", "doi": "10.15784/601725", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula", "people": "Amsler, Charles", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Macroalgal species collected along horizontal transect components ", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601725"}, {"dataset_uid": "601610", "doi": "10.15784/601610", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Benthic Communities; Biota; Macroalgae; Macroinvertebrates; Oceans; Video Transects", "people": "Amsler, Charles", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Underwater transect videos used for community analyses", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601610"}, {"dataset_uid": "601619", "doi": "10.15784/601619", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Benthic Communities; Biota; Macroalgae; Macroinvertebrates; Oceans; Video Transects", "people": "Amsler, Charles", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Underwater video transect community analysis data", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601619"}, {"dataset_uid": "601639", "doi": "10.15784/601639", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Biota; Fetch; LMG1904; R/v Laurence M. Gould", "people": "Klein, Andrew", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Computed fetch for project study sites", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601639"}, {"dataset_uid": "601640", "doi": "10.15784/601640", "keywords": "Antarctica; Biota; Diffuse Attenuation Coefficient; LMG1904; R/v Laurence M. Gould; Turbidity", "people": "Klein, Andrew", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "VIIRS KD(490) diffuse attenuation coefficients for study sites", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601640"}, {"dataset_uid": "601641", "doi": "10.15784/601641", "keywords": "Antarctica; Average Global Horizontal Solar Irradiance; Biota; LMG1904; R/v Laurence M. Gould", "people": "Klein, Andrew", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Average global horizontal solar irradiance at study sites", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601641"}, {"dataset_uid": "601642", "doi": "10.15784/601642", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Biota; LMG1904; R/v Laurence M. Gould; Sea Ice Concentration", "people": "Klein, Andrew", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Sea Ice Concentration Timeseries for study sites", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601642"}, {"dataset_uid": "601643", "doi": "10.15784/601643", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; LMG1904; National Ice Center Charts; R/v Laurence M. Gould; Sea Ice Concentration", "people": "Klein, Andrew", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Gridded sea ice concentrations from National Ice Center (NIC) Charts 2014-2019 for Western Antarctic Peninsula ", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601643"}], "date_created": "Thu, 04 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "The western Antarctic Peninsula has become a model for understanding cold water communities and how they may be changing in Antarctica and elsewhere. Brown macroalgae (seaweeds) form extensive undersea forests in the northern portion of this region where they play a key role in providing both physical structure and a food (carbon) source for shallow water communities. Yet between Anvers Island (64 degrees S latitude) and Adelaide Island (67 S latitude) these macroalgae become markedly less abundant and diverse. This is probably because the habitat to the south is covered by more sea ice for a longer period, and the sea ice reduces the amount of light that reaches the algae. The reduced macroalgal cover undoubtedly impacts other organisms in the food web, but the ways in which it alters sea-floor community processes and organization is unknown. This project will quantitatively document the macroalgal communities at multiple sites between Anvers and Adelaide Islands using a combination of SCUBA diving, video surveys, and algal collections. Sea ice cover, light levels, and other environmental parameters on community structure will be modelled to determine which factors have the largest influence. Impacts on community structure, food webs, and carbon flow will be assessed through a mixture of SCUBA diving and video surveys. Broader impacts include the training of graduate students and a postdoctoral researcher, as well as numerous informal public education activities including lectures, presentations to K-12 groups, and a variety of social media-based outreach.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eMacroalgal communities are more abundance and diverse to the north along the Western Antarctic Peninsula, perhaps due to the greater light availability that is associated with shorter period of sea-ice cover. This project will determine the causes and community level consequence of this variation in algal community structure. First, satellite data on sea ice extent and water turbidity will be used to select study sites between 64 S and 69 S where the extent of annual sea ice cover is the primary factor influencing subsurface light levels. Then, variations in macroalgal cover across these study sites will be determined by video line-transect surveys conducted by SCUBA divers. The health, growth, and physiological status of species found at the different sites will be determined by quadrat sampling. The relative importance of macroalgal-derived carbon to the common invertebrate consumers in the foodweb will be assessed with stable isotope and fatty acid biomarker techniques. This will reveal how variation in macroalgal abundance and species composition across the sea ice cover gradient impacts sea floor community composition and carbon flow throughout the food web. In combination, this work will facilitate predictions of how the ongoing reductions in extent and duration of sea ice cover that is occurring in the region as a result of global climate change will impact the structure of nearshore benthic communities.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eThis award reflects NSF\u0027s statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation\u0027s intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.", "east": -60.0, "geometry": "POINT(-65 -64.86)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "COASTAL; R/V LMG; MACROALGAE (SEAWEEDS); BENTHIC; USAP-DC; Antarctic Peninsula", "locations": "Antarctic Peninsula", "north": -61.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Amsler, Charles; McClintock, James; Iken, Katrin; Galloway, Aaron; Klein, Andrew", "platforms": "WATER-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e VESSELS \u003e SURFACE \u003e R/V LMG", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "R2R; USAP-DC; Zendo", "science_programs": null, "south": -68.72, "title": "Collaborative Research: Sea ice as a driver of Antarctic benthic macroalgal community composition and nearshore trophic connectivity", "uid": "p0010104", "west": -70.0}, {"awards": "1543313 VanTongeren, Jill", "bounds_geometry": null, "dataset_titles": "U-Pb ages and mineral compositions from Dufek Intrusion", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601132", "doi": "10.15784/601132", "keywords": "Antarctica; Chemical Composition; Chemistry:rock; Chemistry:Rock; Crystallization; Dufek Complex; Geochemistry; Magma Chamber Procesess; Mass Spectrometry; Rocks; Snow/ice; Snow/Ice; Solid Earth; TIMS; Volcanic Deposits", "people": "VanTongeren, Jill", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "U-Pb ages and mineral compositions from Dufek Intrusion", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601132"}], "date_created": "Mon, 29 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "The solidified remnants of large magma bodies within the continental crust hold the key to understanding the chemical and physical evolution of volcanic provinces through time. These deposits also commonly contain some of the world\u0027s most important ore deposits. Exposed deposits in South Africa, Greenland, USA, Canada, and Antarctica have led researchers to propose that the bigger the magma body, the faster it will crystallize. While this might seem counter-intuitive (typically it is thought that more magma = hotter = harder to cool), the comparison of these exposures show that bigger magma chambers maintain a molten top that is always in contact with the colder crust; whereas smaller magma chambers insulate themselves by crystallizing at the margins. The process is similar to the difference between a large cup of coffee with no lid, and a smaller cup of coffee held in a thermos. The large unprotected cup of coffee will cool down much faster than that held in the thermos. This research project of VanTongeren and Schoene will use previously collected rocks from the large (~8-9 km thick) Dufek Intrusion in Antarctica to precisely quantify how fast the magma chamber crystallized, and compare that rate to the much smaller magma chamber exposed in the Skaergaard Intrusion of E. Greenland. The work is an important step towards improving our understanding of time-scales associated with the thermal and chemical evolution of nearly all magma chambers on Earth, which will ultimately lead to better predictions of volcanic hazards globally. The work will also yield important insights into the timescales and conditions necessary for developing vast magmatic ore deposits, which is essential to the platinum and steel industries in the USA and abroad.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eBased on observations of solidification fronts in six of the world\u0027s most completely exposed layered mafic intrusions, it was recently proposed that bigger magma chambers must crystallize faster than small magma chambers. While this is initially counter-intuitive, the hypothesis falls out of simple heat balance equations and the observation that the thickness of cumulates at the roofs of such intrusions is negatively proportional to the size of the intrusion. In this study, VanTongeren and Schoene will directly test the hypothesis that bigger magma chambers crystallize faster by applying high precision U-Pb zircon geochronology on 5-10 samples throughout the large Dufek Intrusion of Antarctica. Due to uncertainties in even the highest-precision ID-TIMS analyses, the Dufek Intrusion of Antarctica is the only large layered mafic intrusion on Earth where this research can be accomplished. VanTongeren and Schoene will place the geochronological measurements of the Dufek Intrusion into a comprehensive petrologic framework by linking zircon crystallization to other liquidus phases using mineral geochemistry, zircon saturation models, and petrologic models for intrusion crystallization. The research has the potential to radically change the way that we understand the formation and differentiation of large magma bodies within the shallow crust. Layered intrusions are typically thought to cool and crystallize over very long timescales allowing for significant differentiation of the magmas and reorganization of the cumulate rocks. If the \u0027bigger magma chambers crystallize faster hypothesis\u0027 holds this could reduce the calculated solidification time scales of the early earth and lunar magma oceans and have important implications for magma chamber dynamics of active intraplate volcanism and long-lived continental arcs. Furthermore, while the Dufek Intrusion is one of only two large layered intrusions exposed on Earth, very little is known about its petrologic evolution. The detailed geochemical and petrologic work of VanTongeren and Schoene based on analyses of previously collected samples will provide important observations with which to compare the Dufek and other large magma chambers.", "east": null, "geometry": null, "instruments": "NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE", "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "NOT APPLICABLE; USAP-DC", "locations": null, "north": null, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Earth Sciences", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "VanTongeren, Jill", "platforms": "OTHER \u003e NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": null, "title": "Collaborative Research: Testing the Hypothesis that Bigger Magma Chambers Crystallize Faster", "uid": "p0000135", "west": null}, {"awards": "1443306 Mayewski, Paul; 1443263 Higgins, John", "bounds_geometry": null, "dataset_titles": "Allan Hills ice water stable isotope record for dD, d18O; Carbon dioxide concentration and its stable carbon isotope composition in Allan Hills ice cores; Elemental and isotopic composition of heavy noble gases in Allan Hills ice cores; Elemental and isotopic composition of nitrogen, oxygen, and argon in Allan Hills ice cores; Greenhouse gas composition in the Allan Hills S27 ice core; Methane concentration in Allan Hills ice cores; Stable isotope composition of the trapped air in the Allan Hills S27 ice core; Stable water isotope data for the AH-1502 ice core drilled at the Allan Hills Blue ice area; Stable water isotope data for the AH-1503 ice core drilled at the Allan Hills Blue ice area; Stable water isotope data for the surface samples collected at the Allan Hills Blue ice area", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601128", "doi": "10.15784/601128", "keywords": "Allan Hills; Antarctica; Blue Ice; Chemistry:ice; Chemistry:Ice; Delta 18O; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Ice Core Records; Isotope Record; Mass Spectrometry; Stable Water Isotopes", "people": "Introne, Douglas; Yan, Yuzhen; Kurbatov, Andrei V.; Mayewski, Paul A.", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Allan Hills", "title": "Stable water isotope data for the AH-1503 ice core drilled at the Allan Hills Blue ice area", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601128"}, {"dataset_uid": "601203", "doi": "10.15784/601203", "keywords": "Allan Hills; Allan Hills Project; Antarctica; Chemistry:ice; Chemistry:Ice; Gas Chromatography; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Greenhouse Gas; Ice; Ice Core Data; Ice Core Gas Records; Methane; Snow/ice; Snow/Ice", "people": "Brook, Edward J.; Yan, Yuzhen; Bender, Michael; Higgins, John", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Allan Hills", "title": "Methane concentration in Allan Hills ice cores", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601203"}, {"dataset_uid": "601202", "doi": "10.15784/601202", "keywords": "Allan Hills; Allan Hills Project; Antarctica; Carbon Dioxide; Carbon Isotopes; Chemistry:ice; Chemistry:Ice; CO2; Gas Chromatography; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Ice; Ice Core Data; Ice Core Gas Records; Ice Core Records; Mass Spectrometer; Mass Spectrometry; Methane; Snow/ice; Snow/Ice", "people": "Brook, Edward J.; Yan, Yuzhen; Higgins, John; Bender, Michael", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Allan Hills", "title": "Carbon dioxide concentration and its stable carbon isotope composition in Allan Hills ice cores", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601202"}, {"dataset_uid": "601201", "doi": "10.15784/601201", "keywords": "Allan Hills; Allan Hills Project; Antarctica; Argon; Chemistry:ice; Chemistry:Ice; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Ice Core; Ice Core Data; Ice Core Gas Records; Krypton; Mass Spectrometer; Noble Gas; Snow/ice; Snow/Ice; Xenon", "people": "Ng, Jessica; Higgins, John; Severinghaus, Jeffrey P.; Bender, Michael; Yan, Yuzhen", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Allan Hills", "title": "Elemental and isotopic composition of heavy noble gases in Allan Hills ice cores", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601201"}, {"dataset_uid": "601512", "doi": "10.15784/601512", "keywords": "Allan Hills; Antarctica; Blue Ice; Ice Core; Ice Core Gas Records; Isotope; Nitrogen; Oxygen", "people": "Yan, Yuzhen; Bender, Michael; Higgins, John", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Allan Hills", "title": "Stable isotope composition of the trapped air in the Allan Hills S27 ice core", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601512"}, {"dataset_uid": "601483", "doi": "10.15784/601483", "keywords": "Allan Hills; Antarctica; Argon; Ice; Ice Core Data; Ice Core Gas Records; Isotope; Mass Spectrometry; Nitrogen; Oxygen", "people": "Yan, Yuzhen; Bender, Michael; Higgins, John", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Allan Hills", "title": "Elemental and isotopic composition of nitrogen, oxygen, and argon in Allan Hills ice cores", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601483"}, {"dataset_uid": "601425", "doi": "10.15784/601425", "keywords": "Allan Hills; Antarctica; Blue Ice; Carbon Dioxide; Ice Core; Methane", "people": "Yan, Yuzhen; Brook, Edward J.", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Allan Hills", "title": "Greenhouse gas composition in the Allan Hills S27 ice core", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601425"}, {"dataset_uid": "601863", "doi": null, "keywords": "Allan Hills; Antarctica; Cryosphere; Isotope Data", "people": "Kurbatov, Andrei V.; Mayewski, Paul A.; Introne, Douglas; Severinghaus, Jeffrey P.; Higgins, John; Brook, Edward", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Allan Hills", "title": "Allan Hills ice water stable isotope record for dD, d18O", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601863"}, {"dataset_uid": "601863", "doi": null, "keywords": "Allan Hills; Antarctica; Cryosphere; Isotope Data", "people": "Higgins, John; Brook, Edward; Introne, Douglas; Severinghaus, Jeffrey P.; Kurbatov, Andrei V.; Mayewski, Paul A.", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "COLDEX", "title": "Allan Hills ice water stable isotope record for dD, d18O", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601863"}, {"dataset_uid": "601130", "doi": "10.15784/601130", "keywords": "Allan Hills; Allan Hills Project; Antarctica; Blue Ice; Chemistry:ice; Chemistry:Ice; Delta 18O; Delta Deuterium; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Ice Core Gas Records; Ice Core Records; Oxygen; Snow/ice; Snow/Ice; Stable Water Isotopes; Transantarctic Mountains", "people": "Mayewski, Paul A.; Introne, Douglas; Yan, Yuzhen; Kurbatov, Andrei V.", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Allan Hills", "title": "Stable water isotope data for the surface samples collected at the Allan Hills Blue ice area", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601130"}, {"dataset_uid": "601129", "doi": "10.15784/601129", "keywords": "Allan Hills; Allan Hills Project; Antarctica; Blue Ice; Delta 18O; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Ice Core; Ice Core Chemistry; Ice Core Records; Isotope Data; Oxygen; Snow/ice; Snow/Ice; Stable Water Isotopes; Transantarctic Mountains", "people": "Yan, Yuzhen; Introne, Douglas; Mayewski, Paul A.; Kurbatov, Andrei V.", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Allan Hills", "title": "Stable water isotope data for the AH-1502 ice core drilled at the Allan Hills Blue ice area", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601129"}], "date_created": "Thu, 18 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Bubbles of ancient air trapped in ice cores permit the direct reconstruction of atmospheric composition and allow us to link greenhouse gases and global climate over the last 800,000 years. Previous field expeditions to the Allan Hills blue ice area, Antarctica, have recovered ice cores that date to one million years, the oldest ice cores yet recovered from Antarctica. These records have revealed that interglacial CO2 concentrations decreased by 800,000 years ago and that, in the warmer world 1 million years ago, CO2 and Antarctic temperature were linked as during the last 800,000 years. This project will return to the Allan Hills blue ice area to recover additional ice cores that date to 1 million years or older. The climate records developed from the drilled ice cores will provide new insights into the chemical composition of the atmosphere and Antarctic climate during times of comparable or even greater warmth than the present day. Our results will help answer questions about issues associated with anthropogenic change. These include the relationship between temperature change and the mass balance of Antarctic ice; precipitation and aridity variations associated with radiatively forced climate change; and the climate significance of sea ice extent. The project will entrain two graduate students and a postdoctoral scholar, and will conduct outreach including workshops to engage teachers in carbon science and ice cores.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eBetween about 2.8-0.9 million years ago, Earth\u0027s climate was characterized by 40,000-year cycles, driven or paced by changes in the tilt of Earth\u0027s spin axis. Much is known about the \"40,000-year\" world from studies of deep-sea sediments, but our understanding of climate change during this period is incomplete because we lack records of Antarctic climate and direct records of atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations. We propose to address these issues by building on our recent studies of ancient ice from the Main Ice Field, Allan Hills, Antarctica. During previous field seasons we recovered ice extending, discontinuously, from 0.1-1.0 million years old. Ice was dated by measuring the 40Ar/38Ar (Argon) ratio of the trapped gases. Our discovery of million year-old ice demonstrates that there is gas-record-quality ice from the 40,000-year world in the Allan Hills Main Ice Field. We have identified two different sites, each overlying bedrock at ~ 200 m depth, that are attractive targets for coring ice dating to 1 million years and older. This project aims to core the ice at these two sites, re-occupy a previous site with million year-old ice and drill it down to the bedrock, and generate 10-20 short (~10-meter) cores in areas where our previous work and terrestrial meteorite ages suggest ancient surface ice. We plan to date the ice using the 40Ar/38Ar ages of trapped Argon. We also plan to characterize the continuity of our cores by measuring the deuterium and oxygen isotope ratios in the ice, methane, ratios of Oxygen and Argon to Nitrogen in trapped gas, the Nitrogen-15 isotope (d15N) of Nitrogen, and the Oxygen-18 isotope (d18O) of Oxygen. As the ice may be stratigraphically disturbed, these measurements will provide diagnostic properties for assessing the continuity of the ice-core records. Successful retrieval of ice older than one million years will provide the opportunity for follow-up work to measure the CO2 concentration and other properties within the ice to inform on the temperature history of the Allan Hills region, dust sources and source-area aridity, moisture sources, densification conditions, global average ocean temperature, and greenhouse gas concentrations. We will analyze the data in the context of leading hypotheses of the 40,000-year world and the Mid-Pleistocene Transition to the 100,000-year world. We expect to advance understanding of climate dynamics during these periods.", "east": null, "geometry": null, "instruments": "IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e CORERS \u003e CORING DEVICES", "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Amd/Us; AMD; Allan Hills; USA/NSF; FIELD INVESTIGATION; USAP-DC; Ice Core; LABORATORY", "locations": "Allan Hills", "north": null, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Glaciology; Antarctic Glaciology", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Mayewski, Paul A.; Kurbatov, Andrei V.; Higgins, John; Bender, Michael", "platforms": "LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e FIELD SITES \u003e FIELD INVESTIGATION; OTHER \u003e PHYSICAL MODELS \u003e LABORATORY", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": "Allan Hills", "south": null, "title": "Collaborative Research: Window into the World with 40,000-year Glacial Cycles from Climate Records in Million Year-old Ice from the Allan Hills Blue Ice Area", "uid": "p0000760", "west": null}, {"awards": "0838970 Foreman, Christine", "bounds_geometry": "POINT(161.667 -77.117)", "dataset_titles": "The Biogeochemical Evolution of Dissolved Organic Matter in a Fluvial System on the Cotton Glacier, Antarctica", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "600104", "doi": "10.15784/600104", "keywords": "Antarctica; Biota; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Microbiology", "people": "Foreman, Christine", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "The Biogeochemical Evolution of Dissolved Organic Matter in a Fluvial System on the Cotton Glacier, Antarctica", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/600104"}], "date_created": "Fri, 10 Oct 2014 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Dissolved organic matter (DOM) comprises a significant pool of Earth\u0027s organic carbon that dwarfs the amount present in living aquatic organisms. The properties and reactivity of DOM are not well defined, and the evolution of autochthonous DOM from its precursor materials in freshwater has not been observed. Recent sampling of a supraglacial stream formed on the Cotton Glacier in the Transantarctic Mountains revealed DOM that more closely resembles an assemblage of recognizable precursor organic compounds, based upon its UV-VIS and fluorescence spectra. It is suggested that the DOM from this water evolved over time to resemble materials present in marine and many inland surface waters. The transient nature of the system i.e., it reforms seasonally, also prevents any accumulation of the refractory DOM present in most surface waters. Thus, the Cotton Glacier provides us with a unique environment to study the formation of DOM from precursor materials. An interdisciplinary team will study the biogeochemistry of this progenitor DOM and how microbes modify it. By focusing on the chemical composition of the DOM as it shifts from precursor material to the more humified fractions, the investigators will relate this transition to bioavailability, enzymatic activity, community composition and microbial growth efficiency. This project will support education at all levels, K-12, high school, undergraduate, graduate and post-doc and will increase participation by under-represented groups in science. Towards these goals, the investigators have established relationships with girls\u0027 schools and Native American programs. Additional outreach will be carried out in coordination with PolarTREC, PolarPalooza, and if possible, an Antarctic Artist and Writer.", "east": 161.667, "geometry": "POINT(161.667 -77.117)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Not provided", "locations": null, "north": -77.117, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Foreman, Christine", "platforms": "Not provided", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -77.117, "title": "Collaborative Research: The Biogeochemical Evolution of Dissolved Organic Matter in a Fluvial System on the Cotton Glacier, Antarctica", "uid": "p0000458", "west": 161.667}, {"awards": "0944078 Albert, Mary", "bounds_geometry": "POINT(112.05 79.28)", "dataset_titles": "Firn Permeability and Density at WAIS Divide", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "609602", "doi": "10.7265/N57942NT", "keywords": "Antarctica; Firn; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Ice Core Records; Physical Properties; WAIS Divide; WAIS Divide Ice Core", "people": "Albert, Mary R.", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "WAIS Divide Ice Core", "title": "Firn Permeability and Density at WAIS Divide", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/609602"}], "date_created": "Fri, 15 Aug 2014 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "This award supports a project to investigate the transformations from snow to firn to ice and the underlying physics controlling firn\u0027s ability to store atmospheric samples from the past. Senior researchers, a graduate student, and several undergraduates will make high-resolution measurements of both the diffusivity and permeability profiles of firn cores from several sites in Antarctica and correlate the results with their microstructures quantified using advanced materials characterization techniques (scanning electron microscopy and x-ray computed tomography). The use of cores from different sites will enable us to examine the influence of different local climate conditions on the firn structure. We will use the results to help interpret existing measurements of firn air chemical composition at several sites where firn air measurements exist. There are three closely-linked goals of this project: to quantify the dependence of interstitial transport properties on firn microstructure from the surface down to the pore close-off depth, to determine at what depths bubbles form and entrap air, and investigate the extent to which these features exhibit site-to-site differences, and to use the measurements of firn air composition and firn structure to better quantify the differences between atmospheric composition (present and past), and the air trapped in both the firn and in air bubbles within ice by comparing the results of the proposed work with firn air measurements that have been made at the WAIS Divide and Megadunes sites. The broader impacts of this project are that the study will this study will enable us to elucidate the fundamental controls on the metamorphism of firn microstructure and its impact on processes of gas entrapment that are important to understanding ice core evidence of past atmospheric composition and climate change. The project will form the basis for the graduate research of a PhD student at Dartmouth, with numerous opportunities for undergraduate involvement in cold room measurements and outreach. The investigators have a track record of successfully mentoring women students, and will build on this experience. In conjunction with local earth science teachers, and graduate and undergraduate students will design a teacher-training module on the role of the Polar Regions in climate change. Once developed and tested, this module will be made available to the broader polar research community for their use with teachers in their communities.", "east": -112.05, "geometry": "POINT(-112.05 -79.28)", "instruments": "EARTH REMOTE SENSING INSTRUMENTS \u003e PASSIVE REMOTE SENSING \u003e PHOTON/OPTICAL DETECTORS \u003e MICROTOMOGRAPHY; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e PHOTON/OPTICAL DETECTORS \u003e MICROSCOPES; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e PHOTON/OPTICAL DETECTORS \u003e SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPES", "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Firn Air; FIELD SURVEYS; Physics; GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS; Antarctica; Megadunes; Tomography; Wais Divide-project; Firn Core; FIELD INVESTIGATION; Not provided; Firn Permeability; LABORATORY; Visual Observations; Ice; Firn; WAIS Divide; Microstructure; Density", "locations": "Antarctica; WAIS Divide", "north": -79.28, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Glaciology", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Baker, Ian; Albert, Mary R.", "platforms": "LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e FIELD SITES \u003e FIELD INVESTIGATION; LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e FIELD SITES \u003e FIELD SURVEYS; LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e PERMANENT LAND SITES \u003e GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS; Not provided; OTHER \u003e PHYSICAL MODELS \u003e LABORATORY", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": "WAIS Divide Ice Core", "south": -79.28, "title": "Firn Metamorphism: Microstructure and Physical Properties", "uid": "p0000049", "west": -112.05}, {"awards": "0902957 Robinson, Laura", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-70.5 -54.5,-66.95 -54.5,-63.4 -54.5,-59.85 -54.5,-56.3 -54.5,-52.75 -54.5,-49.2 -54.5,-45.65 -54.5,-42.1 -54.5,-38.55 -54.5,-35 -54.5,-35 -55.2,-35 -55.9,-35 -56.6,-35 -57.3,-35 -58,-35 -58.7,-35 -59.4,-35 -60.1,-35 -60.8,-35 -61.5,-38.55 -61.5,-42.1 -61.5,-45.65 -61.5,-49.2 -61.5,-52.75 -61.5,-56.3 -61.5,-59.85 -61.5,-63.4 -61.5,-66.95 -61.5,-70.5 -61.5,-70.5 -60.8,-70.5 -60.1,-70.5 -59.4,-70.5 -58.7,-70.5 -58,-70.5 -57.3,-70.5 -56.6,-70.5 -55.9,-70.5 -55.2,-70.5 -54.5))", "dataset_titles": "LGM and Deglacial Radiocarbon from U-series Dated Drake Passage Deep-sea Corals", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "600111", "doi": "10.15784/600111", "keywords": "Biota; Corals; Drake Passage; Geochronology; NBP0805; Oceans; Paleoclimate; Radiocarbon; Southern Ocean", "people": "Robinson, Laura", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "LGM and Deglacial Radiocarbon from U-series Dated Drake Passage Deep-sea Corals", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/600111"}], "date_created": "Tue, 28 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). The proposal seeks funds to continue a follow-up analytical work of deep-sea corals collected in the Drake Passage during a research cruise. The project\u0027s goal is paleo-climate research looking to constrain the depth structure and time evolution of the radiocarbon content of the Southern Ocean during the glacial and deglaciation. Radiocarbon is a versatile tracer of past climate; its radioactive decay provides an internal clock with which to assess the rates of processes, and it can be used to trace the movement of carbon through the Earth\u0027s system. It enters the ocean through air-sea gas exchange, so processes that limits this will, therefore, reduce the radiocarbon content of both surface and deep waters. The Southern Ocean is a critical location for exchange of heat and carbon between the deep-ocean and atmospheric reservoirs, and the deep waters formed there fill large volumes of the global deep and intermediate oceans. As strong currents tend to scour away sediments, carbonate preservation is limited, and radiocarbon reservoir ages are poorly constrained, many traditional paleoceanographic techniques become impractical. It is proposed to alleviate these difficulties analyzing the chemical composition of deep-sea coral skeletons. Their aragonitic skeletons can be precisely dated using U-series decay, and when coupled with radiocarbon analyses will allow to calculate the C14/C12 ratio of the past water column.", "east": -35.0, "geometry": "POINT(-52.75 -58)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Not provided", "locations": null, "north": -54.5, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Earth Sciences", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Robinson, Laura", "platforms": "Not provided", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -61.5, "title": "LGM and Deglacial Radiocarbon from U-series Dated Drake Passage Deep-sea Corals", "uid": "p0000519", "west": -70.5}, {"awards": "0538495 Albert, Mary; 0537532 Liston, Glen; 0963924 Steig, Eric; 0538416 McConnell, Joseph; 0538103 Scambos, Ted; 0538422 Hamilton, Gordon", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-180 -72.01667,-161.74667 -72.01667,-143.49334 -72.01667,-125.24001 -72.01667,-106.98668 -72.01667,-88.73335 -72.01667,-70.48002 -72.01667,-52.22669 -72.01667,-33.97336 -72.01667,-15.72003 -72.01667,2.5333 -72.01667,2.5333 -73.815003,2.5333 -75.613336,2.5333 -77.411669,2.5333 -79.210002,2.5333 -81.008335,2.5333 -82.806668,2.5333 -84.605001,2.5333 -86.403334,2.5333 -88.201667,2.5333 -90,-15.72003 -90,-33.97336 -90,-52.22669 -90,-70.48002 -90,-88.73335 -90,-106.98668 -90,-125.24001 -90,-143.49334 -90,-161.74667 -90,180 -90,162.25333 -90,144.50666 -90,126.75999 -90,109.01332 -90,91.26665 -90,73.51998 -90,55.77331 -90,38.02664 -90,20.27997 -90,2.5333 -90,2.5333 -88.201667,2.5333 -86.403334,2.5333 -84.605001,2.5333 -82.806668,2.5333 -81.008335,2.5333 -79.210002,2.5333 -77.411669,2.5333 -75.613336,2.5333 -73.815003,2.5333 -72.01667,20.27997 -72.01667,38.02664 -72.01667,55.77331 -72.01667,73.51998 -72.01667,91.26665 -72.01667,109.01332 -72.01667,126.75999 -72.01667,144.50666 -72.01667,162.25333 -72.01667,-180 -72.01667))", "dataset_titles": "Ice Core Chemistry from the Norwegian-U.S. Scientific Traverse of East Antarctica, IPY 2007-2009; Norwegian-U.S. Scientific Traverse of East Antarctica; This data set contains data from the publication Steig et al., Nature Geoscience, vol. 6, pages 372\u00e2\u20ac\u201c375 (doi:10.1038/ngeo1778), which includes isotope data from the Norway-US traverse in East Antarctica.", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "001305", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "NSIDC", "science_program": null, "title": "This data set contains data from the publication Steig et al., Nature Geoscience, vol. 6, pages 372\u00e2\u20ac\u201c375 (doi:10.1038/ngeo1778), which includes isotope data from the Norway-US traverse in East Antarctica.", "url": "http://nsidc.org/data/nsidc-0536.html"}, {"dataset_uid": "609520", "doi": "10.7265/N5H41PC9", "keywords": "Antarctica; Chemistry:ice; Chemistry:Ice; East Antarctica; Geochemistry; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Ice Core Records", "people": "McConnell, Joseph", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Ice Core Chemistry from the Norwegian-U.S. Scientific Traverse of East Antarctica, IPY 2007-2009", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/609520"}, {"dataset_uid": "000112", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "Project website", "science_program": null, "title": "Norwegian-U.S. Scientific Traverse of East Antarctica", "url": "http://traverse.npolar.no/"}], "date_created": "Wed, 23 Feb 2011 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "This award supports a project of scientific investigations along two overland traverses in East Antarctica: one going from the Norwegian Troll Station (72deg. S, 2deg. E) to the United States South Pole Station (90deg. S, 0deg. E) in 2007-2008; and a return traverse starting at South Pole Station and ending at Troll Station by a different route in 2008-2009. The project will investigate climate change in East Antarctica, with the goals of understanding climate variability in Dronning Maud Land of East Antarctica on time scales of years to centuries and determining the surface and net mass balance of the ice sheet in this sector to understand its impact on sea level. The project will also investigate the impact of atmospheric and oceanic variability and human activities on the chemical composition of firn and ice in the region, and will revisit areas and sites first explored by traverses in the 1960\u0027s, for detection of possible changes and to establish benchmark datasets for future research efforts. In terms of broader impacts, the results of this study will add to understanding of climate variability in East Antarctica and its contribution to global sea level change. The project includes international exchange of graduate students between the institutions involved and international education of undergraduate students through classes taught by the PI\u0027s at UNIS in Svalbard. It involves extensive outreach to the general public both in Scandinavia and North America through the press, television, science museums, children\u0027s literature, and web sites. Active knowledge sharing and collaboration between pioneers in Antarctic glaciology from Norway and the US, with the international group of scientists and students involved in this project, provide a unique opportunity to explore the changes that half a century have made in climate proxies from East Antarctica, scientific tools, and the culture and people of science. The project is relevant to the International Polar Year (IPY) since it is a genuine collaboration between nations: the scientists involved have complementary expertise, and the logistics involved relies on assets unique to each nation. It is truly an endeavor that neither nation could accomplish alone. This project is a part of the Trans- Antarctic Scientific Traverse Expeditions Ice Divide of East Antarctica (TASTE-IDEA) which is also part of IPY.", "east": 2.5333, "geometry": "POINT(0 -89.999)", "instruments": "IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e CORERS \u003e CORING DEVICES; EARTH REMOTE SENSING INSTRUMENTS \u003e PASSIVE REMOTE SENSING \u003e POSITIONING/NAVIGATION \u003e GPS \u003e GPS; EARTH REMOTE SENSING INSTRUMENTS \u003e ACTIVE REMOTE SENSING \u003e PROFILERS/SOUNDERS \u003e RADAR SOUNDERS \u003e GPR; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e MAGNETIC/MOTION SENSORS \u003e GRAVIMETERS \u003e GRAVIMETERS; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e TEMPERATURE/HUMIDITY SENSORS \u003e THERMISTORS \u003e THERMISTORS; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e CHEMICAL METERS/ANALYZERS \u003e FLUOROMETERS; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e SPECTROMETERS/RADIOMETERS \u003e MASS SPECTROMETERS; EARTH REMOTE SENSING INSTRUMENTS \u003e PASSIVE REMOTE SENSING \u003e PHOTON/OPTICAL DETECTORS \u003e PHOTOMETERS \u003e SPECTROPHOTOMETERS", "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "FIELD INVESTIGATION; East Antarctic Plateau; FIXED OBSERVATION STATIONS; Glaciology; LABORATORY; FIELD SURVEYS; Permeability; Ice Core; Climate Variability; Firn; Accumulation Rate; Mass Balance; Snow; Gravity; Ice Sheet; GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS; Traverse; Not provided; Antarctic; Ice Core Chemistry; Antarctica; Density", "locations": "Antarctica; Antarctic; East Antarctic Plateau", "north": -72.01667, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Glaciology; Antarctic Glaciology; Antarctic Glaciology; Antarctic Glaciology; Antarctic Glaciology; Antarctic Glaciology", "paleo_time": "PHANEROZOIC \u003e CENOZOIC \u003e QUATERNARY \u003e HOLOCENE", "persons": "Courville, Zoe; Bell, Eric; Liston, Glen; Scambos, Ted; Hamilton, Gordon S.; McConnell, Joseph; Albert, Mary R.; Steig, Eric J.", "platforms": "LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e FIELD SITES \u003e FIELD INVESTIGATION; LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e FIELD SITES \u003e FIELD SURVEYS; LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e PERMANENT LAND SITES \u003e FIXED OBSERVATION STATIONS; LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e PERMANENT LAND SITES \u003e GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS; Not provided; OTHER \u003e PHYSICAL MODELS \u003e LABORATORY", "repo": "NSIDC", "repositories": "NSIDC; Project website; USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -90.0, "title": "Collaborative Research: Norwegian-United States IPY Scientific Traverse: Climate Variability and Glaciology in East Antarctica", "uid": "p0000095", "west": 2.5333}, {"awards": "0440478 Tang, Kam", "bounds_geometry": "POINT(166.66267 -77.85067)", "dataset_titles": "Environmental and Ecological Regulation of Differences and Interactions between Solitary and Colonial Forms of Phaeocystis Antarctica", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "600043", "doi": "10.15784/600043", "keywords": "Biota; McMurdo Sound; Oceans; Phytoplankton; Ross Sea; Southern Ocean; Zooplankton", "people": "Tang, Kam; Smith, Walker", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Environmental and Ecological Regulation of Differences and Interactions between Solitary and Colonial Forms of Phaeocystis Antarctica", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/600043"}], "date_created": "Mon, 04 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Phaeocystis Antarctica is a widely distributed phytoplankton that forms dense blooms and aggregates in the Southern Ocean. This phytoplankton and plays important roles in polar ecology and biogeochemistry, in part because it is a dominant primary producer, a main component of organic matter vertical fluxes, and the principal producer of volatile organic sulfur in the region. Yet P. Antarctica is also one of the lesser known species in terms of its physiology, life history and trophic relationships with other organisms; furthermore, information collected on other Phaeocystis species and from different locations may not be applicable to P. Antarctica in the Ross Sea. P. Antarctica occurs mainly as two morphotypes: solitary cells and mucilaginous colonies, which differ significantly in size, architecture and chemical composition. Relative dominance between solitary cells and colonies determines not only the size spectrum of the population, but also its carbon dynamics, nutrient uptake and utilization. Conventional thinking of the planktonic trophic processes is also challenged by the fact that colony formation could effectively alter the predator-prey interactions and interspecific competition. However, the factors that regulate the differences between solitary and colonial forms of P. Antarctica are not well-understood. The research objective of this proposal is therefore to address these over-arching questions:\u003cbr/\u003eo Do P. Antarctica solitary cells and colonies differ in growth, composition and\u003cbr/\u003ephotosynthetic rates?\u003cbr/\u003eo How do nutrients and grazers affect colony development and size distribution of P. \u003cbr/\u003eAntarctica?\u003cbr/\u003eo How do nutrients and grazers act synergistically to affect the long-term population\u003cbr/\u003edynamics of P. Antarctica? Experiments will be conducted in the McMurdo station with natural P. Antarctica assemblages and co-occurring grazers. Laboratory experiments will be conducted to study size-specific growth and photosynthetic rates of P. Antarctica, size-specific grazing mortality due to microzooplankton and mesozooplankton, the effects of macronutrients on the (nitrogen compounds) relative dominance of solitary cells and colonies, and the effects of micronutrient (Fe) and grazing related chemical signals on P. Antarctica colony development. Because this species is of critical importance in the Southern Ocean, and because this research will provide critical information on factors that regulate the role of P.Antarctica in food webs and biogeochemical cycles, a major gap in knowledge will be addressed. This project will train two marine science PhD students. The investigators will also collaborate with the School of Education and a marine science museum to communicate polar science to a broader audience.", "east": 166.66267, "geometry": "POINT(166.66267 -77.85067)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Not provided", "locations": null, "north": -77.85067, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Tang, Kam; Smith, Walker", "platforms": "Not provided", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -77.85067, "title": "Environmental and Ecological Regulation of Differences and Interactions between Solitary and Colonial forms of Phaeocystis antarctica", "uid": "p0000214", "west": 166.66267}, {"awards": "0230452 Severinghaus, Jeffrey", "bounds_geometry": "POINT(124.5 -80.78)", "dataset_titles": "Antarctic megadunes", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "000191", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "NSIDC", "science_program": null, "title": "Antarctic megadunes", "url": "http://nsidc.org/antarctica/megadunes/"}], "date_created": "Wed, 27 Sep 2006 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "This award supports a study of the chemical composition of air in the snow layer (firn) in a region of \"megadunes\" near Vostok station, Antarctica. It will test the hypothesis that a deep \"convective zone\" of vigorous wind-driven mixing can prevent gas fractionation in the upper one-third of the polar firn layer. In the megadunes, ultralow snow accumulation rates lead to structural changes (large grains, pipes, and cracks) that make the permeability of firn to air movement orders of magnitude higher than normal. The unknown thickness of the convective zone has hampered the interpretation of ice core 15N/14N and 40Ar/36Ar ratios as indicators of past firn thickness, which is a key constraint on the climatically important variables of temperature, accumulation rate, and gas age-ice age difference. Studying this \"extreme end-member\" example will better define the role of the convective zone in gas reconstructions. This study will pump air from a profile of ~20 depths in the firn, to definitively test for the presence of a convective zone based on the fit of observed 15 N/14N and 40Ar/36Ar to a molecular- and eddy-diffusion model. Permeability measurements on the core and 2-D air flow modeling (in collaboration with M. Albert) will permit a more physically realistic interpretation of the isotope data and will relate mixing vigor to air velocities. A new proxy indicator of convective zone thickness will be tested on firn and ice core bubble air, based on the principle that isotopes of slow-diffusing heavy noble gases (Kr, Xe) should be more affected by convection than isotopes of fast-diffusing N2 . These tools will be applied to a test of the hypothesis that the megadunes and a deep convective zone existed at the Vostok site during glacial periods, which would explain the anomalously low 15N/14N and 40Ar/36Ar in the Vostok ice core glacial periods. The broader impacts of this work include 1) clarification of phase relationships of greenhouse gases and temperature in ice core records, with implications for understanding of past and future climates, 2) education of one graduate student, and 3) building of collaborative relationships with five investigators.", "east": 124.5, "geometry": "POINT(124.5 -80.78)", "instruments": "IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e CORERS \u003e CORING DEVICES; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e SAMPLERS \u003e BOTTLES/FLASKS/JARS \u003e FLASKS", "is_usap_dc": false, "keywords": "Antarctica; Methane; Carbon-14; Permeability; CO2; Firn Core; FIELD SURVEYS; Deuterium Excess; GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS; LABORATORY; Isotope; Ice Core Density; Firn Air; Megadunes; Ice Core; Not provided; FIELD INVESTIGATION", "locations": "Antarctica", "north": -80.78, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Glaciology", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Bauer, Rob; Albert, Mary R.; Severinghaus, Jeffrey P.", "platforms": "LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e FIELD SITES \u003e FIELD INVESTIGATION; LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e FIELD SITES \u003e FIELD SURVEYS; LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e PERMANENT LAND SITES \u003e GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS; Not provided; OTHER \u003e PHYSICAL MODELS \u003e LABORATORY", "repo": "NSIDC", "repositories": "NSIDC", "science_programs": null, "south": -80.78, "title": "How Thick Is the Convective Zone: A Study of Firn Air in the Megadunes Near Vostok, Antarctica", "uid": "p0000097", "west": 124.5}, {"awards": "9527262 Gow, Anthony", "bounds_geometry": null, "dataset_titles": "Physical and Structural Properties of the Siple Dome Ice Cores", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "609128", "doi": "10.7265/N5668B34", "keywords": "Antarctica; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Ice Core Records; Photo/video; Photo/Video; Siple Dome; Siple Dome Ice Core; WAISCORES", "people": "Gow, Tony; Meese, Deb", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Siple Dome Ice Core", "title": "Physical and Structural Properties of the Siple Dome Ice Cores", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/609128"}], "date_created": "Wed, 14 May 2003 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "This award is for support for a program to investigate the visual stratigraphy, index physical properties, relaxation characteristics and crystalline structure of ice cores from Siple Dome, West Antarctica. This investigation will include measurements of a time-priority nature that must be initiated at the drill site on freshly-drilled cores. This will be especially true of cores from the brittle ice zone, which is expected to comprise a significant fraction of the ice core. The brittle zone includes ice in which relaxation , resulting from the release of confining pressure is maximized and leads to significant changes in the mechanical condition of the core that must be considered in relation to the processing and analysis of ice samples for entrapped gas and chemical studies. This relaxation will be monitored via precision density measurements made initially at the drill site and repeated at intervals back in the U.S. Other studies will include measurement of the annual layering in the core to as great a depth as visual stratigraphy can be deciphered, crystal size measurements as a function of depth and age, c-axis fabric studies, and analysis of the physical properties of any debris-bearing basal ice and its relationship to the underlying bedrock. Only through careful documentation and analysis of these key properties can we hope to accurately assess the dynamic state of the ice and the age-depth relationships essential to deciphering the paleoclimate record at this location.", "east": null, "geometry": null, "instruments": "IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e CORERS \u003e CORING DEVICES", "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Siple Dome; Antarctica; Stratigraphy; Ice Sheet; GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS; Density; Siple; Chemical Composition; Volcanic Deposits; Siple Coast; WAISCORES; Not provided; GROUND STATIONS; Pico; Ice Core; Tephra; Fabric; Glaciology; Snow", "locations": "Antarctica; Siple; Siple Coast; Siple Dome", "north": null, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Glaciology", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Gow, Tony; Meese, Deb", "platforms": "LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e PERMANENT LAND SITES \u003e GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS; LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e PERMANENT LAND SITES \u003e GROUND STATIONS; Not provided", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": "Siple Dome Ice Core", "south": null, "title": "Physical and Structural Properties of the Siple Dome Core", "uid": "p0000064", "west": null}, {"awards": "9615554 Fitzpatrick, Joan", "bounds_geometry": null, "dataset_titles": "Digital Images of Thin Sections from Siple Dome; Digital Imaging for Siple Dome Ice Core Analysis, Antarctica", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "609127", "doi": "10.7265/N59Z92T4", "keywords": "Antarctica; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Ice Core Records; Photo/video; Photo/Video; Siple Dome; Siple Dome Ice Core; WAISCORES", "people": "Fitzpatrick, Joan", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Siple Dome Ice Core", "title": "Digital Images of Thin Sections from Siple Dome", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/609127"}, {"dataset_uid": "609413", "doi": "10.7265/N5XG9P2G", "keywords": "Antarctica; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Ice Core Records; Photo/video; Photo/Video; Siple Dome; Siple Dome Ice Core", "people": "Alley, Richard; Spencer, Matthew; Fitzpatrick, Joan", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "Siple Dome Ice Core", "title": "Digital Imaging for Siple Dome Ice Core Analysis, Antarctica", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/609413"}], "date_created": "Wed, 14 May 2003 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "This award is for support for two years to develop the technology and methodology for digitizing the photographs and analyzing the thin sections from ice cores. In addition, the application of digital technology for whole-core stratigraphy, using digital photography, image enhancement and image processing will be investigated. The thin section analysis will be piloted with samples already in hand from the Taylor Dome ice core. If successful, these techniques will be applied to samples from the Siple Dome ice core, in cooperation with Principal Investigators already funded to retrieve and examine these sections. The original digital images with all original data annotation files will be distributed to Siple Dome principal investigators for their use in the interpretation of their own data. All software and hardware acquired for this project will become part of the permanent equipment inventory at the U.S. National Ice Core Laboratory and will be available for use by clients at the facility.", "east": null, "geometry": null, "instruments": "EARTH REMOTE SENSING INSTRUMENTS \u003e PASSIVE REMOTE SENSING \u003e PHOTON/OPTICAL DETECTORS \u003e CAMERAS \u003e CAMERAS; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e CORERS \u003e CORING DEVICES", "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Antarctica; Glaciology; Ice Sheet; Siple; Ice Core; Stratigraphy; GROUND STATIONS; Siple Dome; WAISCORES; Trapped Air Bubbles; Photo; Snow; Density; Volcanic Deposits; Not provided; Ice Core Data; GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS; Siple Coast; Chemical Composition", "locations": "Siple Dome; Antarctica; Siple; Siple Coast", "north": null, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Glaciology", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Fitzpatrick, Joan; Alley, Richard; Spencer, Matthew", "platforms": "LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e PERMANENT LAND SITES \u003e GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS; LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e PERMANENT LAND SITES \u003e GROUND STATIONS; Not provided", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": "Siple Dome Ice Core", "south": null, "title": "Digital Imaging for Ice Core Analysis", "uid": "p0000011", "west": null}, {"awards": "9980538 Lohmann, Kyger", "bounds_geometry": "POINT(-56 -64)", "dataset_titles": "Stable isotope and minor element proxies for Eocene climate of Seymour Island, Antarctica", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "600019", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": "Lohmann, Kyger", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Stable isotope and minor element proxies for Eocene climate of Seymour Island, Antarctica", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/600019"}], "date_created": "Mon, 11 Jun 2001 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "This award, provided by the Antarctic Geology and Geophysics Program of the Office of Polar Programs, supports research for construction of a long-term record of climate during the late Cretaceous and early Paleogene to assess the annual seasonality in temperature on the coastal margin of Antarctica. Stable isotope and element compositions of well-preserved bivalve shells collected on Seymour Island will be the primary source of data used to reconstruct paleoenvironmental conditions. Seasonal temperature records collected through high-resolution sampling along growth structures in bivalve shells will allow seasonality to be assessed during different climate states and during periods of rapid climate change. In addition, high stratigraphic resolution will enable this project to detect the presence and frequency of short-lived thermal excursions that may have extended to such high latitudes.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eTo compile a reliable temporal record of paleoclimate, two major avenues of investigation will be undertaken: 1) precise stratigraphic (and therefore, temporal) placement of fossils over a large geographic area will be employed through the use of a graphical technique employing geometric projections; 2) stable isotope and elemental analyses will be performed to derive paleotemperatures and to evaluate diagenetic alteration of shell materials. To provide realistic comparisons of paleotemperatures across stratigraphic horizons, this study will focus on a single taxon, thus avoiding complications due to the mixing of faunal assemblages that have been encountered in previous studies of this region.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eThe near-shore marine fossil record on Seymour Island provides a unique opportunity to address many questions about the Antarctic paleoenvironment, including the relation between seasonality and different climate states, the influence of climate on biogeographic distribution of specific taxa, the effect of ice-volume changes on the stable isotope record from the late Cretaceous through the Eocene, and the plausibility of high-latitude bottom water formation during this time interval. In particular, information that will be collected concerning patterns of seasonality and the presence (or absence) of short-lived thermal excursions will be extremely valuable to an understanding of the response of high latitude sites during climate transitions from globally cool to globally warm conditions.", "east": -56.0, "geometry": "POINT(-56 -64)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": false, "keywords": "Not provided; Bivalves; Geochemical Composition; Carbon Isotopes; Climate", "locations": null, "north": -64.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Earth Sciences", "paleo_time": "PHANEROZOIC \u003e CENOZOIC \u003e PALEOGENE \u003e EOCENE", "persons": "Lohmann, Kyger; Barrera, Enriqueta", "platforms": "Not provided", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -64.0, "title": "Evolution of Sea Surface Temperatures in the Coastal Antarctic Paleoenvironment During the Late Cretaceous and Paleogene", "uid": "p0000613", "west": -56.0}]
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Project Title/Abstract/Map | NSF Award(s) | Date Created | PIs / Scientists | Dataset Links and Repositories | Abstract | Bounds Geometry | Geometry | Selected | Visible | |||||
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Atmospheric Mineral Nanoparticles in Antarctic Ice during the last Climatic Cycle
|
1744961 |
2025-01-06 | Olesik, John |
|
The main goal of this project is to identify and geochemically characterize atmospheric mineral nanoparticles and fine microparticles in pre-industrial Antarctic ice during the last climatic cycle. Recent technological and industrial development is introducing a large number of natural and engineered nanoparticles and fine microparticles into Earth's atmosphere. These constitute a concern for human health, mainly due to their high chemical reactivity. While many atmospheric nanoparticle studies have been performed in modern urban environments, there is essentially no information about their occurrence in a pristine pre-industrial atmosphere. This information is critical, as it constitutes an important benchmark for comparison to the modern atmosphere. Information on nanoparticles from the pre-industrial atmosphere can be obtained from atmospheric mineral nanoparticles that are entrapped in remote pre-industrial Antarctic ice covering the last climatic cycles. Mineral nanoparticles and fine microparticles can also affect several climatic processes. First, they directly influence the global energy balance by reflecting solar radiation and indirectly influence through changes in cloud formation (and clouds also reflect solar radiation). Second, atmospheric mineral nanoparticles such as iron oxides could have fertilized the oceans, causing blooms of marine phytoplankton that may have drawn part of the atmospheric carbon dioxide into the oceans during glacial ages (the "biological pump"). Third, a significant amount of extraterrestrial material entering the Earth atmosphere is thought to be transported to the poles as nanoparticles called "meteoric smoke" that form polar stratospheric clouds implicated in changes of the ozone hole.<br/><br/>This project aims to establish the natural background of unknown classes of glacial particles whose size is below the detection limit of the conventional dust analyzers. The team will take advantage of ice samples from the "horizontal ice core", already extracted from the remote Taylor Glacier (coastal East Antarctica) covering the last ~44,000 years. These ancient samples are particularly suited to project scope because i) a large ice volume is available ii) the team expects to find a markedly different geochemistry between nanoparticles deposited during the last glacial age and during the current interglacial. A set of advanced techniques including Transmission Electron Microscopy, Single Particle Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (spICP-MS), and spICP-Time of Flight MS will be employed to determine mineral nanoparticle and fine microparticle sizes, number/volume, and chemical composition. So far, the elemental composition of dust entrapped in polar ice has been mainly determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma Sector Field Mass Spectrometry and it is generally assumed to be descriptive of the coarse aeolian dust fraction. However, project will test whether or not the determined elemental composition is instead mainly linked to the previously unobserved smaller mineral nanoparticle content. Results on nanoparticles will be compared with a set of new experiments of total dust composition measured by Inductively Coupled Plasma Sector Field Mass Spectrometry, using the same ice samples from Taylor Glacier.<br/><br/>This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. | POLYGON((161.711586 -77.75758,161.71322740000002 -77.75758,161.7148688 -77.75758,161.71651020000002 -77.75758,161.7181516 -77.75758,161.719793 -77.75758,161.72143440000002 -77.75758,161.7230758 -77.75758,161.72471720000001 -77.75758,161.7263586 -77.75758,161.728 -77.75758,161.728 -77.75784200000001,161.728 -77.758104,161.728 -77.758366,161.728 -77.758628,161.728 -77.75889000000001,161.728 -77.759152,161.728 -77.75941399999999,161.728 -77.759676,161.728 -77.759938,161.728 -77.7602,161.7263586 -77.7602,161.72471720000001 -77.7602,161.7230758 -77.7602,161.72143440000002 -77.7602,161.719793 -77.7602,161.7181516 -77.7602,161.71651020000002 -77.7602,161.7148688 -77.7602,161.71322740000002 -77.7602,161.711586 -77.7602,161.711586 -77.759938,161.711586 -77.759676,161.711586 -77.75941399999999,161.711586 -77.759152,161.711586 -77.75889000000001,161.711586 -77.758628,161.711586 -77.758366,161.711586 -77.758104,161.711586 -77.75784200000001,161.711586 -77.75758)) | POINT(161.719793 -77.75889000000001) | false | false | |||||
NSFGEO-NERC: Collaborative Research: Accelerating Thwaites Ecosystem Impacts for the Southern Ocean (ARTEMIS)
|
1941483 1941327 1941292 1941304 1941308 |
2021-08-20 | Yager, Patricia; Medeiros, Patricia; Sherrell, Robert; St-Laurent, Pierre; Fitzsimmons, Jessica; Stammerjohn, Sharon | The Amundsen Sea hosts the most productive polynya in all of Antarctica, with its vibrant green waters visible from space, and an atmospheric CO2 uptake density 10x higher than the Southern Ocean average. The region is vulnerable to climate change, experiencing rapid losses in sea ice, a changing icescape, and some of the fastest melting glaciers flowing from the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS). ARTEMIS aims to characterize the climate-sensitive nature of glacial meltwater-driven micronutrient (iron, Fe) contributions driving ecosystem productivity and CO2 uptake in the coastal Antarctic. We propose to integrate observations and ocean modeling of these processes to enhance predictive capabilities. Currently, basal melt resulting from warm deep waters penetrating ice shelf cavities dominates mass losses of WAIS, contributing to sea level rise. These physical melting processes are being studied by the International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration (ITGC). The impact of melting on the marine ecosystem has also been explored, and we know that productivity is due in part to Fe-rich, glacial meltwater-driven outflow. The biogeochemical composition of the outflow from the glaciers surrounding the Amundsen Sea is largely unstudied, however. Improved knowledge would provide keys to understanding meltwater's future impact on the ecosystem. An ongoing field program (TARSAN, part of the ITGC) offers the ideal physical oceanographic framework for our biogeochemical effort. We propose here to collaborate with TARSAN-supported UK scientists, providing value added to both team efforts. ARTEMIS will add shipboard measurements (trace metals, carbonate system, nutrients, organic matter, microorganisms) and biogeochemical sensors on autonomous vehicles to gather critical knowledge needed to understand the impact of the melting WAIS on both the coastal ecosystem and the regional carbon (C) cycle. Driving questions include: 1) what are the fluxes and chemical forms of Fe, C, and microorganisms in the ice shelf outflow? 2) what are the relative contributions to the ouflow from deep water, benthic, and glacial melt sources, and how do these inputs combine to affect the bioavailability of Fe? 3) How are Fe and C compounds modified as the outflow advects along the coastal current and mixes into the bloom region? and 4) what will be the effect of increased glacial melting, changes in the coastal icescape, and declining sea ice on theecosystem of the Amundsen Sea? Such questions fall outside the focus of the ITGC, but are of keen interest to Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems and Antarctic Integrated System Science programs. | POLYGON((-120 -71,-118 -71,-116 -71,-114 -71,-112 -71,-110 -71,-108 -71,-106 -71,-104 -71,-102 -71,-100 -71,-100 -71.4,-100 -71.8,-100 -72.2,-100 -72.6,-100 -73,-100 -73.4,-100 -73.8,-100 -74.2,-100 -74.6,-100 -75,-102 -75,-104 -75,-106 -75,-108 -75,-110 -75,-112 -75,-114 -75,-116 -75,-118 -75,-120 -75,-120 -74.6,-120 -74.2,-120 -73.8,-120 -73.4,-120 -73,-120 -72.6,-120 -72.2,-120 -71.8,-120 -71.4,-120 -71)) | POINT(-110 -73) | false | false | ||||||
The nitrogen isotopic composition of diatom resting spores in Southern Ocean sediments: A source of bias and/or paleoenvironmental information?
|
1744871 |
2021-07-28 | Robinson, Rebecca | The chemical composition of diatom fossils in the Southern Ocean provides information about the environmental history of Antarctica, including sea ice extent, biological production, and ocean nutrient distribution. The sea ice zone is an important habitat for a group of diatoms, largely from the genus Chaetoceros, that have a unique life cycle stage under environmental stress, when they produce a structure called a resting spore. Resting spores are meant to reseed the surface ocean when conditions are more favorable. The production of these heavy resting spores tends to remove significant amounts of carbon and silicon, essential nutrients, out of the surface ocean. As a result, this group has the potential to remove carbon from the surface ocean and can impact the sedimentary record scientists use to reconstruct environmental change. This project explores the role of resting spores and nutrients in the sedimentary record using the nitrogen isotopic signature of these fossils and how those measurements are used to estimate carbon cycle changes. Measurements of nitrogen stable isotopes of nitrate, biomass, and diatom-bound nitrogen and silicon-to-nitrogen ratios of individual species grown in the laboratory are used to quantify how resting spores record nutrient drawdown in the water column and to what degree their signature is biased toward low nutrient conditions. Laboratory incubations were conducted with surface sediment containing Chaetoceros spp.. The emergence of vegetative cells and subsequent formation of resting spores is manipulated with the addition of nutrients, primarily nitrate. The resulting samples, both of vegetative cells and resting spores were measured for diatom-bound d15N. Resting spore d15N values are consistently lower than the vegetative d15N from the same incubations. The incubation results will be used to quantify nutrient drawdown in sea ice environments during two contrasting intervals in earth history, the last ice age and the warm Pliocene. The project provided training and research opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students. Research efforts in Antarctic earth sciences are disseminated through an interactive display at the home institution and during university sponsored events. This work addresses uncertainties in how Chaetoceros resting spores record surface nutrient conditions in their nitrogen stable isotopic composition, the relative impact of their specific signal with respect to the full sedimentary assemblage, and their potential to bias or enhance environmental reconstructions in the sea ice zone. | POLYGON((-180 -60,-144 -60,-108 -60,-72 -60,-36 -60,0 -60,36 -60,72 -60,108 -60,144 -60,180 -60,180 -63,180 -66,180 -69,180 -72,180 -75,180 -78,180 -81,180 -84,180 -87,180 -90,144 -90,108 -90,72 -90,36 -90,0 -90,-36 -90,-72 -90,-108 -90,-144 -90,-180 -90,-180 -87,-180 -84,-180 -81,-180 -78,-180 -75,-180 -72,-180 -69,-180 -66,-180 -63,-180 -60)) | POINT(0 -89.999) | false | false | ||||||
Magmatic Volatiles, Unraveling the Reservoirs and Processes of the Volcanism in the Antarctic Peninsula
|
1643494 |
2021-06-22 | Saal, Alberto |
|
The focus of our research is to examine the regional geochemical variations of well-characterized Pliocene-recent basalt samples along a transect from the Phoenix-Antarctic ridge to James Ross Island (through the South Shetland Islands, Bransfield Strait and the Antarctic Peninsula). The goal is to understand 1) the processes responsible for the generation of chemically diverse basalts in close spatial and temporal proximity within the Antarctic Peninsula and 2) the nature (lithology, composition and temperature) of the heterogeneous mantle source beneath the region. | POLYGON((-68.074 -57.345,-66.6033 -57.345,-65.1326 -57.345,-63.6619 -57.345,-62.1912 -57.345,-60.7205 -57.345,-59.2498 -57.345,-57.7791 -57.345,-56.3084 -57.345,-54.8377 -57.345,-53.367 -57.345,-53.367 -58.12517,-53.367 -58.90534,-53.367 -59.68551,-53.367 -60.46568,-53.367 -61.24585,-53.367 -62.02602,-53.367 -62.80619,-53.367 -63.58636,-53.367 -64.36653,-53.367 -65.1467,-54.8377 -65.1467,-56.3084 -65.1467,-57.7791 -65.1467,-59.2498 -65.1467,-60.7205 -65.1467,-62.1912 -65.1467,-63.6619 -65.1467,-65.1326 -65.1467,-66.6033 -65.1467,-68.074 -65.1467,-68.074 -64.36653,-68.074 -63.58636,-68.074 -62.80619,-68.074 -62.02602,-68.074 -61.24585,-68.074 -60.46568,-68.074 -59.68551,-68.074 -58.90534,-68.074 -58.12517,-68.074 -57.345)) | POINT(-60.7205 -61.24585) | false | false | |||||
Collaborative Research: Sea ice as a driver of Antarctic benthic macroalgal community composition and nearshore trophic connectivity
|
1744584 1744602 1744550 1744570 |
2020-06-04 | Amsler, Charles; McClintock, James; Iken, Katrin; Galloway, Aaron; Klein, Andrew | The western Antarctic Peninsula has become a model for understanding cold water communities and how they may be changing in Antarctica and elsewhere. Brown macroalgae (seaweeds) form extensive undersea forests in the northern portion of this region where they play a key role in providing both physical structure and a food (carbon) source for shallow water communities. Yet between Anvers Island (64 degrees S latitude) and Adelaide Island (67 S latitude) these macroalgae become markedly less abundant and diverse. This is probably because the habitat to the south is covered by more sea ice for a longer period, and the sea ice reduces the amount of light that reaches the algae. The reduced macroalgal cover undoubtedly impacts other organisms in the food web, but the ways in which it alters sea-floor community processes and organization is unknown. This project will quantitatively document the macroalgal communities at multiple sites between Anvers and Adelaide Islands using a combination of SCUBA diving, video surveys, and algal collections. Sea ice cover, light levels, and other environmental parameters on community structure will be modelled to determine which factors have the largest influence. Impacts on community structure, food webs, and carbon flow will be assessed through a mixture of SCUBA diving and video surveys. Broader impacts include the training of graduate students and a postdoctoral researcher, as well as numerous informal public education activities including lectures, presentations to K-12 groups, and a variety of social media-based outreach.<br/><br/>Macroalgal communities are more abundance and diverse to the north along the Western Antarctic Peninsula, perhaps due to the greater light availability that is associated with shorter period of sea-ice cover. This project will determine the causes and community level consequence of this variation in algal community structure. First, satellite data on sea ice extent and water turbidity will be used to select study sites between 64 S and 69 S where the extent of annual sea ice cover is the primary factor influencing subsurface light levels. Then, variations in macroalgal cover across these study sites will be determined by video line-transect surveys conducted by SCUBA divers. The health, growth, and physiological status of species found at the different sites will be determined by quadrat sampling. The relative importance of macroalgal-derived carbon to the common invertebrate consumers in the foodweb will be assessed with stable isotope and fatty acid biomarker techniques. This will reveal how variation in macroalgal abundance and species composition across the sea ice cover gradient impacts sea floor community composition and carbon flow throughout the food web. In combination, this work will facilitate predictions of how the ongoing reductions in extent and duration of sea ice cover that is occurring in the region as a result of global climate change will impact the structure of nearshore benthic communities.<br/><br/>This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. | POLYGON((-70 -61,-69 -61,-68 -61,-67 -61,-66 -61,-65 -61,-64 -61,-63 -61,-62 -61,-61 -61,-60 -61,-60 -61.772,-60 -62.544,-60 -63.316,-60 -64.088,-60 -64.86,-60 -65.632,-60 -66.404,-60 -67.176,-60 -67.948,-60 -68.72,-61 -68.72,-62 -68.72,-63 -68.72,-64 -68.72,-65 -68.72,-66 -68.72,-67 -68.72,-68 -68.72,-69 -68.72,-70 -68.72,-70 -67.948,-70 -67.176,-70 -66.404,-70 -65.632,-70 -64.86,-70 -64.088,-70 -63.316,-70 -62.544,-70 -61.772,-70 -61)) | POINT(-65 -64.86) | false | false | ||||||
Collaborative Research: Testing the Hypothesis that Bigger Magma Chambers Crystallize Faster
|
1543313 |
2018-10-29 | VanTongeren, Jill |
|
The solidified remnants of large magma bodies within the continental crust hold the key to understanding the chemical and physical evolution of volcanic provinces through time. These deposits also commonly contain some of the world's most important ore deposits. Exposed deposits in South Africa, Greenland, USA, Canada, and Antarctica have led researchers to propose that the bigger the magma body, the faster it will crystallize. While this might seem counter-intuitive (typically it is thought that more magma = hotter = harder to cool), the comparison of these exposures show that bigger magma chambers maintain a molten top that is always in contact with the colder crust; whereas smaller magma chambers insulate themselves by crystallizing at the margins. The process is similar to the difference between a large cup of coffee with no lid, and a smaller cup of coffee held in a thermos. The large unprotected cup of coffee will cool down much faster than that held in the thermos. This research project of VanTongeren and Schoene will use previously collected rocks from the large (~8-9 km thick) Dufek Intrusion in Antarctica to precisely quantify how fast the magma chamber crystallized, and compare that rate to the much smaller magma chamber exposed in the Skaergaard Intrusion of E. Greenland. The work is an important step towards improving our understanding of time-scales associated with the thermal and chemical evolution of nearly all magma chambers on Earth, which will ultimately lead to better predictions of volcanic hazards globally. The work will also yield important insights into the timescales and conditions necessary for developing vast magmatic ore deposits, which is essential to the platinum and steel industries in the USA and abroad.<br/><br/>Based on observations of solidification fronts in six of the world's most completely exposed layered mafic intrusions, it was recently proposed that bigger magma chambers must crystallize faster than small magma chambers. While this is initially counter-intuitive, the hypothesis falls out of simple heat balance equations and the observation that the thickness of cumulates at the roofs of such intrusions is negatively proportional to the size of the intrusion. In this study, VanTongeren and Schoene will directly test the hypothesis that bigger magma chambers crystallize faster by applying high precision U-Pb zircon geochronology on 5-10 samples throughout the large Dufek Intrusion of Antarctica. Due to uncertainties in even the highest-precision ID-TIMS analyses, the Dufek Intrusion of Antarctica is the only large layered mafic intrusion on Earth where this research can be accomplished. VanTongeren and Schoene will place the geochronological measurements of the Dufek Intrusion into a comprehensive petrologic framework by linking zircon crystallization to other liquidus phases using mineral geochemistry, zircon saturation models, and petrologic models for intrusion crystallization. The research has the potential to radically change the way that we understand the formation and differentiation of large magma bodies within the shallow crust. Layered intrusions are typically thought to cool and crystallize over very long timescales allowing for significant differentiation of the magmas and reorganization of the cumulate rocks. If the 'bigger magma chambers crystallize faster hypothesis' holds this could reduce the calculated solidification time scales of the early earth and lunar magma oceans and have important implications for magma chamber dynamics of active intraplate volcanism and long-lived continental arcs. Furthermore, while the Dufek Intrusion is one of only two large layered intrusions exposed on Earth, very little is known about its petrologic evolution. The detailed geochemical and petrologic work of VanTongeren and Schoene based on analyses of previously collected samples will provide important observations with which to compare the Dufek and other large magma chambers. | None | None | false | false | |||||
Collaborative Research: Window into the World with 40,000-year Glacial Cycles from Climate Records in Million Year-old Ice from the Allan Hills Blue Ice Area
|
1443306 1443263 |
2018-10-18 | Mayewski, Paul A.; Kurbatov, Andrei V.; Higgins, John; Bender, Michael | Bubbles of ancient air trapped in ice cores permit the direct reconstruction of atmospheric composition and allow us to link greenhouse gases and global climate over the last 800,000 years. Previous field expeditions to the Allan Hills blue ice area, Antarctica, have recovered ice cores that date to one million years, the oldest ice cores yet recovered from Antarctica. These records have revealed that interglacial CO2 concentrations decreased by 800,000 years ago and that, in the warmer world 1 million years ago, CO2 and Antarctic temperature were linked as during the last 800,000 years. This project will return to the Allan Hills blue ice area to recover additional ice cores that date to 1 million years or older. The climate records developed from the drilled ice cores will provide new insights into the chemical composition of the atmosphere and Antarctic climate during times of comparable or even greater warmth than the present day. Our results will help answer questions about issues associated with anthropogenic change. These include the relationship between temperature change and the mass balance of Antarctic ice; precipitation and aridity variations associated with radiatively forced climate change; and the climate significance of sea ice extent. The project will entrain two graduate students and a postdoctoral scholar, and will conduct outreach including workshops to engage teachers in carbon science and ice cores.<br/><br/>Between about 2.8-0.9 million years ago, Earth's climate was characterized by 40,000-year cycles, driven or paced by changes in the tilt of Earth's spin axis. Much is known about the "40,000-year" world from studies of deep-sea sediments, but our understanding of climate change during this period is incomplete because we lack records of Antarctic climate and direct records of atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations. We propose to address these issues by building on our recent studies of ancient ice from the Main Ice Field, Allan Hills, Antarctica. During previous field seasons we recovered ice extending, discontinuously, from 0.1-1.0 million years old. Ice was dated by measuring the 40Ar/38Ar (Argon) ratio of the trapped gases. Our discovery of million year-old ice demonstrates that there is gas-record-quality ice from the 40,000-year world in the Allan Hills Main Ice Field. We have identified two different sites, each overlying bedrock at ~ 200 m depth, that are attractive targets for coring ice dating to 1 million years and older. This project aims to core the ice at these two sites, re-occupy a previous site with million year-old ice and drill it down to the bedrock, and generate 10-20 short (~10-meter) cores in areas where our previous work and terrestrial meteorite ages suggest ancient surface ice. We plan to date the ice using the 40Ar/38Ar ages of trapped Argon. We also plan to characterize the continuity of our cores by measuring the deuterium and oxygen isotope ratios in the ice, methane, ratios of Oxygen and Argon to Nitrogen in trapped gas, the Nitrogen-15 isotope (d15N) of Nitrogen, and the Oxygen-18 isotope (d18O) of Oxygen. As the ice may be stratigraphically disturbed, these measurements will provide diagnostic properties for assessing the continuity of the ice-core records. Successful retrieval of ice older than one million years will provide the opportunity for follow-up work to measure the CO2 concentration and other properties within the ice to inform on the temperature history of the Allan Hills region, dust sources and source-area aridity, moisture sources, densification conditions, global average ocean temperature, and greenhouse gas concentrations. We will analyze the data in the context of leading hypotheses of the 40,000-year world and the Mid-Pleistocene Transition to the 100,000-year world. We expect to advance understanding of climate dynamics during these periods. | None | None | false | false | ||||||
Collaborative Research: The Biogeochemical Evolution of Dissolved Organic Matter in a Fluvial System on the Cotton Glacier, Antarctica
|
0838970 |
2014-10-10 | Foreman, Christine |
|
Dissolved organic matter (DOM) comprises a significant pool of Earth's organic carbon that dwarfs the amount present in living aquatic organisms. The properties and reactivity of DOM are not well defined, and the evolution of autochthonous DOM from its precursor materials in freshwater has not been observed. Recent sampling of a supraglacial stream formed on the Cotton Glacier in the Transantarctic Mountains revealed DOM that more closely resembles an assemblage of recognizable precursor organic compounds, based upon its UV-VIS and fluorescence spectra. It is suggested that the DOM from this water evolved over time to resemble materials present in marine and many inland surface waters. The transient nature of the system i.e., it reforms seasonally, also prevents any accumulation of the refractory DOM present in most surface waters. Thus, the Cotton Glacier provides us with a unique environment to study the formation of DOM from precursor materials. An interdisciplinary team will study the biogeochemistry of this progenitor DOM and how microbes modify it. By focusing on the chemical composition of the DOM as it shifts from precursor material to the more humified fractions, the investigators will relate this transition to bioavailability, enzymatic activity, community composition and microbial growth efficiency. This project will support education at all levels, K-12, high school, undergraduate, graduate and post-doc and will increase participation by under-represented groups in science. Towards these goals, the investigators have established relationships with girls' schools and Native American programs. Additional outreach will be carried out in coordination with PolarTREC, PolarPalooza, and if possible, an Antarctic Artist and Writer. | POINT(161.667 -77.117) | POINT(161.667 -77.117) | false | false | |||||
Firn Metamorphism: Microstructure and Physical Properties
|
0944078 |
2014-08-15 | Baker, Ian; Albert, Mary R. |
|
This award supports a project to investigate the transformations from snow to firn to ice and the underlying physics controlling firn's ability to store atmospheric samples from the past. Senior researchers, a graduate student, and several undergraduates will make high-resolution measurements of both the diffusivity and permeability profiles of firn cores from several sites in Antarctica and correlate the results with their microstructures quantified using advanced materials characterization techniques (scanning electron microscopy and x-ray computed tomography). The use of cores from different sites will enable us to examine the influence of different local climate conditions on the firn structure. We will use the results to help interpret existing measurements of firn air chemical composition at several sites where firn air measurements exist. There are three closely-linked goals of this project: to quantify the dependence of interstitial transport properties on firn microstructure from the surface down to the pore close-off depth, to determine at what depths bubbles form and entrap air, and investigate the extent to which these features exhibit site-to-site differences, and to use the measurements of firn air composition and firn structure to better quantify the differences between atmospheric composition (present and past), and the air trapped in both the firn and in air bubbles within ice by comparing the results of the proposed work with firn air measurements that have been made at the WAIS Divide and Megadunes sites. The broader impacts of this project are that the study will this study will enable us to elucidate the fundamental controls on the metamorphism of firn microstructure and its impact on processes of gas entrapment that are important to understanding ice core evidence of past atmospheric composition and climate change. The project will form the basis for the graduate research of a PhD student at Dartmouth, with numerous opportunities for undergraduate involvement in cold room measurements and outreach. The investigators have a track record of successfully mentoring women students, and will build on this experience. In conjunction with local earth science teachers, and graduate and undergraduate students will design a teacher-training module on the role of the Polar Regions in climate change. Once developed and tested, this module will be made available to the broader polar research community for their use with teachers in their communities. | POINT(112.05 79.28) | POINT(-112.05 -79.28) | false | false | |||||
LGM and Deglacial Radiocarbon from U-series Dated Drake Passage Deep-sea Corals
|
0902957 |
2011-06-28 | Robinson, Laura |
|
This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). The proposal seeks funds to continue a follow-up analytical work of deep-sea corals collected in the Drake Passage during a research cruise. The project's goal is paleo-climate research looking to constrain the depth structure and time evolution of the radiocarbon content of the Southern Ocean during the glacial and deglaciation. Radiocarbon is a versatile tracer of past climate; its radioactive decay provides an internal clock with which to assess the rates of processes, and it can be used to trace the movement of carbon through the Earth's system. It enters the ocean through air-sea gas exchange, so processes that limits this will, therefore, reduce the radiocarbon content of both surface and deep waters. The Southern Ocean is a critical location for exchange of heat and carbon between the deep-ocean and atmospheric reservoirs, and the deep waters formed there fill large volumes of the global deep and intermediate oceans. As strong currents tend to scour away sediments, carbonate preservation is limited, and radiocarbon reservoir ages are poorly constrained, many traditional paleoceanographic techniques become impractical. It is proposed to alleviate these difficulties analyzing the chemical composition of deep-sea coral skeletons. Their aragonitic skeletons can be precisely dated using U-series decay, and when coupled with radiocarbon analyses will allow to calculate the C14/C12 ratio of the past water column. | POLYGON((-70.5 -54.5,-66.95 -54.5,-63.4 -54.5,-59.85 -54.5,-56.3 -54.5,-52.75 -54.5,-49.2 -54.5,-45.65 -54.5,-42.1 -54.5,-38.55 -54.5,-35 -54.5,-35 -55.2,-35 -55.9,-35 -56.6,-35 -57.3,-35 -58,-35 -58.7,-35 -59.4,-35 -60.1,-35 -60.8,-35 -61.5,-38.55 -61.5,-42.1 -61.5,-45.65 -61.5,-49.2 -61.5,-52.75 -61.5,-56.3 -61.5,-59.85 -61.5,-63.4 -61.5,-66.95 -61.5,-70.5 -61.5,-70.5 -60.8,-70.5 -60.1,-70.5 -59.4,-70.5 -58.7,-70.5 -58,-70.5 -57.3,-70.5 -56.6,-70.5 -55.9,-70.5 -55.2,-70.5 -54.5)) | POINT(-52.75 -58) | false | false | |||||
Collaborative Research: Norwegian-United States IPY Scientific Traverse: Climate Variability and Glaciology in East Antarctica
|
0538495 0537532 0963924 0538416 0538103 0538422 |
2011-02-23 | Courville, Zoe; Bell, Eric; Liston, Glen; Scambos, Ted; Hamilton, Gordon S.; McConnell, Joseph; Albert, Mary R.; Steig, Eric J. | This award supports a project of scientific investigations along two overland traverses in East Antarctica: one going from the Norwegian Troll Station (72deg. S, 2deg. E) to the United States South Pole Station (90deg. S, 0deg. E) in 2007-2008; and a return traverse starting at South Pole Station and ending at Troll Station by a different route in 2008-2009. The project will investigate climate change in East Antarctica, with the goals of understanding climate variability in Dronning Maud Land of East Antarctica on time scales of years to centuries and determining the surface and net mass balance of the ice sheet in this sector to understand its impact on sea level. The project will also investigate the impact of atmospheric and oceanic variability and human activities on the chemical composition of firn and ice in the region, and will revisit areas and sites first explored by traverses in the 1960's, for detection of possible changes and to establish benchmark datasets for future research efforts. In terms of broader impacts, the results of this study will add to understanding of climate variability in East Antarctica and its contribution to global sea level change. The project includes international exchange of graduate students between the institutions involved and international education of undergraduate students through classes taught by the PI's at UNIS in Svalbard. It involves extensive outreach to the general public both in Scandinavia and North America through the press, television, science museums, children's literature, and web sites. Active knowledge sharing and collaboration between pioneers in Antarctic glaciology from Norway and the US, with the international group of scientists and students involved in this project, provide a unique opportunity to explore the changes that half a century have made in climate proxies from East Antarctica, scientific tools, and the culture and people of science. The project is relevant to the International Polar Year (IPY) since it is a genuine collaboration between nations: the scientists involved have complementary expertise, and the logistics involved relies on assets unique to each nation. It is truly an endeavor that neither nation could accomplish alone. This project is a part of the Trans- Antarctic Scientific Traverse Expeditions Ice Divide of East Antarctica (TASTE-IDEA) which is also part of IPY. | POLYGON((-180 -72.01667,-161.74667 -72.01667,-143.49334 -72.01667,-125.24001 -72.01667,-106.98668 -72.01667,-88.73335 -72.01667,-70.48002 -72.01667,-52.22669 -72.01667,-33.97336 -72.01667,-15.72003 -72.01667,2.5333 -72.01667,2.5333 -73.815003,2.5333 -75.613336,2.5333 -77.411669,2.5333 -79.210002,2.5333 -81.008335,2.5333 -82.806668,2.5333 -84.605001,2.5333 -86.403334,2.5333 -88.201667,2.5333 -90,-15.72003 -90,-33.97336 -90,-52.22669 -90,-70.48002 -90,-88.73335 -90,-106.98668 -90,-125.24001 -90,-143.49334 -90,-161.74667 -90,180 -90,162.25333 -90,144.50666 -90,126.75999 -90,109.01332 -90,91.26665 -90,73.51998 -90,55.77331 -90,38.02664 -90,20.27997 -90,2.5333 -90,2.5333 -88.201667,2.5333 -86.403334,2.5333 -84.605001,2.5333 -82.806668,2.5333 -81.008335,2.5333 -79.210002,2.5333 -77.411669,2.5333 -75.613336,2.5333 -73.815003,2.5333 -72.01667,20.27997 -72.01667,38.02664 -72.01667,55.77331 -72.01667,73.51998 -72.01667,91.26665 -72.01667,109.01332 -72.01667,126.75999 -72.01667,144.50666 -72.01667,162.25333 -72.01667,-180 -72.01667)) | POINT(0 -89.999) | false | false | ||||||
Environmental and Ecological Regulation of Differences and Interactions between Solitary and Colonial forms of Phaeocystis antarctica
|
0440478 |
2009-05-04 | Tang, Kam; Smith, Walker |
|
Phaeocystis Antarctica is a widely distributed phytoplankton that forms dense blooms and aggregates in the Southern Ocean. This phytoplankton and plays important roles in polar ecology and biogeochemistry, in part because it is a dominant primary producer, a main component of organic matter vertical fluxes, and the principal producer of volatile organic sulfur in the region. Yet P. Antarctica is also one of the lesser known species in terms of its physiology, life history and trophic relationships with other organisms; furthermore, information collected on other Phaeocystis species and from different locations may not be applicable to P. Antarctica in the Ross Sea. P. Antarctica occurs mainly as two morphotypes: solitary cells and mucilaginous colonies, which differ significantly in size, architecture and chemical composition. Relative dominance between solitary cells and colonies determines not only the size spectrum of the population, but also its carbon dynamics, nutrient uptake and utilization. Conventional thinking of the planktonic trophic processes is also challenged by the fact that colony formation could effectively alter the predator-prey interactions and interspecific competition. However, the factors that regulate the differences between solitary and colonial forms of P. Antarctica are not well-understood. The research objective of this proposal is therefore to address these over-arching questions:<br/>o Do P. Antarctica solitary cells and colonies differ in growth, composition and<br/>photosynthetic rates?<br/>o How do nutrients and grazers affect colony development and size distribution of P. <br/>Antarctica?<br/>o How do nutrients and grazers act synergistically to affect the long-term population<br/>dynamics of P. Antarctica? Experiments will be conducted in the McMurdo station with natural P. Antarctica assemblages and co-occurring grazers. Laboratory experiments will be conducted to study size-specific growth and photosynthetic rates of P. Antarctica, size-specific grazing mortality due to microzooplankton and mesozooplankton, the effects of macronutrients on the (nitrogen compounds) relative dominance of solitary cells and colonies, and the effects of micronutrient (Fe) and grazing related chemical signals on P. Antarctica colony development. Because this species is of critical importance in the Southern Ocean, and because this research will provide critical information on factors that regulate the role of P.Antarctica in food webs and biogeochemical cycles, a major gap in knowledge will be addressed. This project will train two marine science PhD students. The investigators will also collaborate with the School of Education and a marine science museum to communicate polar science to a broader audience. | POINT(166.66267 -77.85067) | POINT(166.66267 -77.85067) | false | false | |||||
How Thick Is the Convective Zone: A Study of Firn Air in the Megadunes Near Vostok, Antarctica
|
0230452 |
2006-09-27 | Bauer, Rob; Albert, Mary R.; Severinghaus, Jeffrey P. |
|
This award supports a study of the chemical composition of air in the snow layer (firn) in a region of "megadunes" near Vostok station, Antarctica. It will test the hypothesis that a deep "convective zone" of vigorous wind-driven mixing can prevent gas fractionation in the upper one-third of the polar firn layer. In the megadunes, ultralow snow accumulation rates lead to structural changes (large grains, pipes, and cracks) that make the permeability of firn to air movement orders of magnitude higher than normal. The unknown thickness of the convective zone has hampered the interpretation of ice core 15N/14N and 40Ar/36Ar ratios as indicators of past firn thickness, which is a key constraint on the climatically important variables of temperature, accumulation rate, and gas age-ice age difference. Studying this "extreme end-member" example will better define the role of the convective zone in gas reconstructions. This study will pump air from a profile of ~20 depths in the firn, to definitively test for the presence of a convective zone based on the fit of observed 15 N/14N and 40Ar/36Ar to a molecular- and eddy-diffusion model. Permeability measurements on the core and 2-D air flow modeling (in collaboration with M. Albert) will permit a more physically realistic interpretation of the isotope data and will relate mixing vigor to air velocities. A new proxy indicator of convective zone thickness will be tested on firn and ice core bubble air, based on the principle that isotopes of slow-diffusing heavy noble gases (Kr, Xe) should be more affected by convection than isotopes of fast-diffusing N2 . These tools will be applied to a test of the hypothesis that the megadunes and a deep convective zone existed at the Vostok site during glacial periods, which would explain the anomalously low 15N/14N and 40Ar/36Ar in the Vostok ice core glacial periods. The broader impacts of this work include 1) clarification of phase relationships of greenhouse gases and temperature in ice core records, with implications for understanding of past and future climates, 2) education of one graduate student, and 3) building of collaborative relationships with five investigators. | POINT(124.5 -80.78) | POINT(124.5 -80.78) | false | false | |||||
Physical and Structural Properties of the Siple Dome Core
|
9527262 |
2003-05-14 | Gow, Tony; Meese, Deb |
|
This award is for support for a program to investigate the visual stratigraphy, index physical properties, relaxation characteristics and crystalline structure of ice cores from Siple Dome, West Antarctica. This investigation will include measurements of a time-priority nature that must be initiated at the drill site on freshly-drilled cores. This will be especially true of cores from the brittle ice zone, which is expected to comprise a significant fraction of the ice core. The brittle zone includes ice in which relaxation , resulting from the release of confining pressure is maximized and leads to significant changes in the mechanical condition of the core that must be considered in relation to the processing and analysis of ice samples for entrapped gas and chemical studies. This relaxation will be monitored via precision density measurements made initially at the drill site and repeated at intervals back in the U.S. Other studies will include measurement of the annual layering in the core to as great a depth as visual stratigraphy can be deciphered, crystal size measurements as a function of depth and age, c-axis fabric studies, and analysis of the physical properties of any debris-bearing basal ice and its relationship to the underlying bedrock. Only through careful documentation and analysis of these key properties can we hope to accurately assess the dynamic state of the ice and the age-depth relationships essential to deciphering the paleoclimate record at this location. | None | None | false | false | |||||
Digital Imaging for Ice Core Analysis
|
9615554 |
2003-05-14 | Fitzpatrick, Joan; Alley, Richard; Spencer, Matthew |
|
This award is for support for two years to develop the technology and methodology for digitizing the photographs and analyzing the thin sections from ice cores. In addition, the application of digital technology for whole-core stratigraphy, using digital photography, image enhancement and image processing will be investigated. The thin section analysis will be piloted with samples already in hand from the Taylor Dome ice core. If successful, these techniques will be applied to samples from the Siple Dome ice core, in cooperation with Principal Investigators already funded to retrieve and examine these sections. The original digital images with all original data annotation files will be distributed to Siple Dome principal investigators for their use in the interpretation of their own data. All software and hardware acquired for this project will become part of the permanent equipment inventory at the U.S. National Ice Core Laboratory and will be available for use by clients at the facility. | None | None | false | false | |||||
Evolution of Sea Surface Temperatures in the Coastal Antarctic Paleoenvironment During the Late Cretaceous and Paleogene
|
9980538 |
2001-06-11 | Lohmann, Kyger; Barrera, Enriqueta |
|
This award, provided by the Antarctic Geology and Geophysics Program of the Office of Polar Programs, supports research for construction of a long-term record of climate during the late Cretaceous and early Paleogene to assess the annual seasonality in temperature on the coastal margin of Antarctica. Stable isotope and element compositions of well-preserved bivalve shells collected on Seymour Island will be the primary source of data used to reconstruct paleoenvironmental conditions. Seasonal temperature records collected through high-resolution sampling along growth structures in bivalve shells will allow seasonality to be assessed during different climate states and during periods of rapid climate change. In addition, high stratigraphic resolution will enable this project to detect the presence and frequency of short-lived thermal excursions that may have extended to such high latitudes.<br/><br/>To compile a reliable temporal record of paleoclimate, two major avenues of investigation will be undertaken: 1) precise stratigraphic (and therefore, temporal) placement of fossils over a large geographic area will be employed through the use of a graphical technique employing geometric projections; 2) stable isotope and elemental analyses will be performed to derive paleotemperatures and to evaluate diagenetic alteration of shell materials. To provide realistic comparisons of paleotemperatures across stratigraphic horizons, this study will focus on a single taxon, thus avoiding complications due to the mixing of faunal assemblages that have been encountered in previous studies of this region.<br/><br/>The near-shore marine fossil record on Seymour Island provides a unique opportunity to address many questions about the Antarctic paleoenvironment, including the relation between seasonality and different climate states, the influence of climate on biogeographic distribution of specific taxa, the effect of ice-volume changes on the stable isotope record from the late Cretaceous through the Eocene, and the plausibility of high-latitude bottom water formation during this time interval. In particular, information that will be collected concerning patterns of seasonality and the presence (or absence) of short-lived thermal excursions will be extremely valuable to an understanding of the response of high latitude sites during climate transitions from globally cool to globally warm conditions. | POINT(-56 -64) | POINT(-56 -64) | false | false |