ALBERT

Description: The last glacial period is characterized by a number of millennial climate events that have been identified in both Greenland and Antarctic ice cores and that are abrupt in Greenland climate records. The mechanisms governing this climate variability remain a puzzle that requires a precise synchronization of ice cores from the two hemispheres to be resolved. Previously, Greenland and Antarctic ice cores have been synchronized primarily via their common records of gas concentrations or isotopes from the trapped air and via cosmogenic isotopes measured on the ice. In this work, we apply ice core volcanic proxies and annual layer counting to identify large volcanic eruptions that have left a signature in both Greenland and Antarctica. Generally, no tephra is associated with those eruptions in the ice cores, so the source of the eruptions cannot be identified. Instead, we identify and match sequences of volcanic eruptions with bipolar distribution of sulfate, i.e. unique patterns of volcanic events separated by the same number of years at the two poles. Using this approach, we pinpoint 82 large bipolar volcanic eruptions throughout the second half of the last glacial period (12–60 ka). This improved ice core synchronization is applied to determine the bipolar phasing of abrupt climate change events at decadal-scale precision. In response to Greenland abrupt climatic transitions, we find a response in the Antarctic water isotope signals (δ18O and deuterium excess) that is both more immediate and more abrupt than that found with previous gas-based interpolar synchronizations, providing additional support for our volcanic framework. On average, the Antarctic bipolar seesaw climate response lags the midpoint of Greenland abrupt δ18O transitions by 122±24 years. The time difference between Antarctic signals in deuterium excess and δ18O, which likewise informs the time needed to propagate the signal as described by the theory of the bipolar seesaw but is less sensitive to synchronization errors, suggests an Antarctic δ18O lag behind Greenland of 152±37 years. These estimates are shorter than the 200 years suggested by earlier gas-based synchronizations. As before, we find variations in the timing and duration between the response at different sites and for different events suggesting an interaction of oceanic and atmospheric teleconnection patterns as well as internal climate variability.

Description: In the context of the Arctic amplification of climate change affecting the regional atmospheric hydrological cycle, it is crucial to characterize the present-day moisture sources of the Arctic. The isotopic composition is an important tool to enhance our understanding of the drivers of the hydrological cycle due to the different molecular characteristics of water stable isotopes during phase change. This study introduces 2 years of continuous in situ water vapour and precipitation isotopic observations conducted since July 2015 in the eastern Siberian Lena delta at the research station on Samoylov Island. The vapour isotopic signals are dominated by variations at seasonal and synoptic timescales. Diurnal variations of the vapour isotopic signals are masked by synoptic variations, indicating low variations of the amplitude of local sources at the diurnal scale in winter, summer and autumn. Low-amplitude diurnal variations in spring may indicate exchange of moisture between the atmosphere and the snow-covered surface. Moisture source diagnostics based on semi-Lagrangian backward trajectories reveal that different air mass origins have contrasting contributions to the moisture budget of the Lena delta region. At the seasonal scale, the distance from the net moisture sources to the arrival site strongly varies. During the coldest months, no contribution from local secondary evaporation is observed. Variations of the vapour isotopic composition during the cold season on the synoptic timescale are strongly related to moisture source regions and variations in atmospheric transport: warm and isotopically enriched moist air is linked to fast transport from the Atlantic sector, while dry and cold air with isotopically depleted moisture is generally associated with air masses moving slowly over northern Eurasia.

Description: EBSD provides information for the characterization of subgrain boundary types and dislocation activity during deformation. EBSD microstructure in combination with light microscopy measurements from ice core material from Antarctica (EPICA-DML deep ice core) and Greenland (NEEM deep ice core) are presented and interpreted regarding substructure identification and characterization. Electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) analyses suggest that a large portion of edge dislocations with slip systems basal 〈a〉 gliding on the basal plane were involved in forming subgrain boundaries. However, an almost equal number of tilt subgrain boundaries developed, involving dislocations gliding on non basal planes (prism 〈c〉 or prism 〈c+a〉 slip). A few subgrain boundaries involving prism 〈a〉 edge dislocation glide, as well as boundaries involving basal 〈a〉 twist dislocations, were also identified. The finding that subgrain boundaries occur, made up of dislocations gliding on non-basal planes, are as frequent as basal plane slip systems, is surprising. These findings are expected to have an impact on the discussion of rate-controlling processes for the ice flow descriptions of large ice masses with respect to sea-level evolution. For subgrain boundaries not related to the crystallography of the host grain alternative formation processes are discussed.

Description: The effective size of snow grains (reff) affects the reflectivity of snow surfaces and thus the local surface energy budget in particular in polar regions. Therefore, the specific surface area (SSA) was monitored for a two-month period in central Antarctica (Kohnen research station) during austral summer 2013/14. The data were retrieved on the basis of spectral surface albedo measurements collected by the COmpact RAdiation measurement System (CORAS, ground-based) and the Spectral Modular Airborne Radiation measurement sysTem (SMART, airborne). The Snow Grain Size and Pollution amount (SGSP) algorithm, originally developed to analyze spaceborne reflectance measurements by the MODerate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), was modified and applied to the ground-based and airborne observations collected in this study. Furthermore, spectral ratios of surface albedo at 1280 nm and 1100 nm wavelength were used to reduce the retrieval uncertainty. Additionally, the algorithm originally developed for cloudless conditions was adapted to handle overcast conditions. Optical in situ observations of SSA utilizing an IceCube device were used to validate the retrieval results. The SSA retrieved from CORAS observations varied between 27 m2 kg-1 and 86 m2 kg-1. Snowfall events caused distinct SSA maxima which were often followed by a gradual decrease in SSA due to snow metamorphism and wind-induced transport of fresh fallen ice crystals (vice versa for reff). SSA retrieved by data from CORAS and MODIS agree with the in situ observations within the ranges given by the measurement uncertainties. However, SSA retrieved by the airborne SMART observations underestimated the ground-based observations by a factor of 2.1 (overestimation of reff).

Description: High-resolution, well-dated climate archives provide an opportunity to investigate the dynamic interactions of climate patterns relevant for future projections. Here, we present data from a new, annually-dated ice core record from the eastern Ross Sea. Comparison of the Roosevelt Island Climate Evolution (RICE) ice core records with climate reanalysis data for the 1979–2012 calibration period shows that RICE records reliably capture temperature and snow precipitation variability of the region. RICE is compared with data from West Antarctica (West Antarctic Ice Sheet Divide Ice Core) and the western (Talos Dome) and eastern (Siple Dome) Ross Sea. For most of the past 2,700 years, the eastern Ross Sea was warming with perhaps increased snow accumulation and decreased sea ice extent. However, West Antarctica cooled whereas the western Ross Sea showed no significant temperature trend. From the 17th Century onwards, this relationship changes. All three regions now show signs of warming, with snow accumulation declining in West Antarctica and the eastern Ross Sea, but increasing in the western Ross Sea. Analysis of decadal to centennial-scale climate variability superimposed on the longer term trend reveal that periods characterised by opposing temperature trends between the Eastern and Western Ross Sea have occurred since the 3rd Century but are masked by longer-term trends. This pattern here is referred to as the Ross Sea Dipole, caused by a sensitive response of the region to dynamic interactions of the Southern Annual Mode and tropical forcings.

Description: Along a traverse through North Greenland in May 2015 we collected snow cores up to 2 m depth and analyzed their density and water isotopic composition. A new sampling technique and an adapted algorithm for comparing data sets from different sites and aligning stratigraphic features are presented. We find good agreement of the density layering in the snowpack over hundreds of kilometers, which allows the construction of a representative density profile. The results are supported by an empirical statistical density model, which is used to generate sets of random profiles and validate the applied methods. Furthermore we are able to calculate annual accumulation rates, align melt layers and observe isotopic temperatures in the area back to 2010. Distinct relations of δ18O with both accumulation rate and density are deduced. Inter alia the depths of the 2012 melt layers and high-resolution densities are provided for applications in remote sensing.

Description: Quantifying the magnitude of post-depositional processes affecting the isotopic composition of surface snow is essential for a more accurate interpretation of ice core data. To achieve this, high temporal resolution measurements of both lower atmospheric water vapor and surface snow isotopic composition are required. This study presents continuous measurements of water vapor isotopes performed in East Antarctica (Kohnen station) from December 2013 to January 2014 using a laser spectrometer. Observations have been compared with the outputs of two atmospheric general circulation models (AGCMs) equipped with water vapor isotopes: ECHAM5-wiso and LMDZ5Aiso. During our monitoring period, the signals in the 2 m air temperature T, humidity mixing ratio q and both water vapor isotopes δD and δ18O are dominated by the presence of diurnal cycles. Both AGCMs simulate similar diurnal cycles with a mean amplitude 30 to 70 % lower than observed, possibly due to an incorrect simulation of the surface energy balance and the boundary layer dynamics. In parallel, snow surface samples were collected each hour over 35 h, with a sampling depth of 2–5 mm. A diurnal cycle in the isotopic composition of the snow surface is observed in phase with the water vapor, reaching a peak-to-peak amplitude of 3 ‰ for δD over 24 h (compared to 36 ‰ for δD in the water vapor). A simple box model treated as a closed system has been developed to study the exchange of water molecules between an air and a snow reservoir. In the vapor, the box model simulations show too much isotopic depletion compared to the observations. Mixing with other sources (advection, free troposphere) has to be included in order to fit the observations. At the snow surface, the simulated isotopic values are close to the observations with a snow reservoir of  ∼ 5 mm depth (range of the snow sample depth). Our analysis suggests that fractionation occurs during sublimation and that vapor–snow exchanges can no longer be considered insignificant for the isotopic composition of near-surface snow in polar regions.

Description: In low-accumulation regions, the reliability of δ18O-derived temperature signals from ice cores within the Holocene is unclear, primarily due to the small climate changes relative to the intrinsic noise of the isotopic signal. In order to learn about the representativity of single ice cores and to optimise future ice-core-based climate reconstructions, we studied the stable-water isotope composition of firn at Kohnen Station, Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica. Analysing δ18O in two 50 m long snow trenches allowed us to create an unprecedented, two-dimensional image characterising the isotopic variations from the centimetre to the 100-metre scale. Our results show seasonal layering of the isotopic composition but also high horizontal isotopic variability caused by local stratigraphic noise. Based on the horizontal and vertical structure of the isotopic variations, we derive a statistical noise model which successfully explains the trench data. The model further allows one to determine an upper bound for the reliability of climate reconstructions conducted in our study region at seasonal to annual resolution, depending on the number and the spacing of the cores taken.

Description: Stable water isotopes in firn and ice cores are extensively used to infer past climate changes. In low-accumulation regions their interpretation is however challenged by poorly constrained effects that may influence the initial isotope signal during and after deposition. This is reflected in snow-pit isotope data from Kohnen Station, Antarctica, which exhibit a clear seasonal cycle but also strong inter-annual variations that contradict local temperature observations. These inconsistencies persist even after averaging many profiles and are thus not explained by local stratigraphic noise. Previous studies have suggested that post-depositional processes may significantly influence the isotopic composition of East Antarctic firn. Here, we reject the hypothesis of post-depositional change within the open-porous firn beyond diffusion and densification. To this end, we analyse 22 stable water isotope profiles obtained from two snow trenches at Kohnen Station and examine the temporal isotope modifications by comparing the new with published trench data extracted 2 years earlier. The initial isotope profiles undergo changes over time due to downward-advection, firn diffusion and densification in magnitudes consistent with independent estimates. Beyond that, we find no evidence for additional modification of the original isotope record. These results show that the discrepancy between local temperatures and isotopes most likely originates from spatially coherent processes prior to or during deposition, such as precipitation intermittency or systematic isotope modifications acting on drifting or loose surface snow.

Description: Stable water isotopes in polar ice provide a wealth of information about past climate evolution. Snow pit studies allow us to relate observed weather and climate conditions to the measured isotope variations in the snow. They therefore offer the possibility to test our understanding of how isotope signals are formed and stored in firn and ice. As stable water isotopes in the snowfall are strongly correlated to air temperature, isotopes in the near surface snow are supposed to depict the seasonal cycle at a given site. Accordingly, variation between sites in accumulation rate is expected to be matched by variation in the number of seasonal cycles. However, snowpit studies from different accumulation conditions in East Antarctica reported similar isotopic variability and comparable apparent cycles in the δ18O and δD profiles with typical wavelengths of ∼ 20 cm. These observations are unexpected as the accumulation rates strongly differ between the sites, ranging from 20 to 80 mm w.e. yr−1 (∼ 5–25 cm of snow per year). Various mechanism have been proposed to explain the isotopic variations individually at each site; however, none of these is consistent with the similarity of the different profiles independent of the local accumulation conditions. Here, we systematically analyze the properties and origins of isotopic variations in high-resolution firn profiles from eight East Antarctic sites. First, we confirm the suggested cycle length (mean distance between peaks) of ∼ 20 cm by counting the isotopic maxima. Spectral analysis further shows a strong similarity between the sites but indicates no dominant periodic features. Finally, the apparent cycle length increases with depth for most East Antarctic sites, which is inconsistent with burial and compression of a regular seasonal cycle. We show that these results can be explained by isotopic diffusion acting on a noise dominated isotope signal. The firn diffusion length is rather stable across the East Antarctic and thus leads to similar power spectral densities of the isotopic variations. This in turn implies a similar distance between isotopic maxima in the firn profiles. Our results explain a large set of observations discussed in the literature, providing a simple explanation for the interpretation of apparent cycles in shallow isotope records, without invoking complex mechanisms. Finally, the results underline previous suggestions that isotopic signals in single ice cores from low-accumulation regions have a small signal-to-noise ratio and thus likely do not allow the reconstruction of interannual to decadal climate variations.