Accumulation and temperature changes in Princess Elizabeth Land, Antarctica in the past 250 years

A 50 m firn core drilled in Princess Elizabeth Land, Antarctica, during the 1996/1997 Chinese First Antarctic Inland Expedition, has been measured for б18O and major ions. Based on these data, the features of the climate change in the investigated region in the past 250 years have first been studied. In the past 250 years, the change trend of climate in this region can be divided into two periods by the year 1860. Both the temperature and accumulation rate display increasing trend before 1860, while after 1860, the decreasing trend of the temperature is obvious but the change of the accumulation rate is not clear. Although both the temperature and the accumulation rate are increasing in the past 50 years, they are not the highest values in the past 250 years. So it is clear that the climate change in this region during this period does not reflect recent global wanning.     

Signals of Antarctic Circum-polar Wave over the Southern Indian Ocean as recorded in an Antarctica ice core

Oxygen stable isotopic and ionic records, covering a period of 1745--1996, are recovered in DT001 ice core drilled in Princess Elizabeth Land, East Antarctica.Using empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis of the annually resolved glaciochemical time series, we find the first EOF (EOFI) represents sea-salt aerosols and is the proxy of sea level pressure (SLP) over a quasi-stationary low in the Southern Indian Ocean (SIO). δ^18O represents the sea surface temperature (SST) of the same ocean area. In the past two decades, four climatic waves as represented by SLP and SST proxies are found in the DT001 ice core, which in coincident with four Antarctic Circum-polar Waves (ACW) as revealed by NCEP/NCAR reanalysis. The phase difference between SST and SLP in the ice core is also coincident with that in ACW. Both ice-core record and reanalysis suggestthat there were no signals of ACW during 1958--1980, none during the overall recording period between 1745--1996, as there is no regular phase difference between SST and SLP.The ACW signal after early 1980s is probably attributable to the climate shift occurring over Antarctic Peninsula-Drake Passage region.     

Preliminary evidence indicating Dome A （Antarctica） satisfying preconditions for drilling the oldest ice core

Lowest temperature and snow accumulation rate are preconditions for retrieving the oldest ice core from the polar ice sheets. The 10-m depth firn temperature at Dome A, the summit of the Antarctic Ice Sheet, recorded by an automatic weather station （AWS） was -58.3℃ in 2005 and -58.2℃ in 2006, respectively. The 10-m firn temperature is an approximation of the annual mean air temperature （AMAT）, and this is the lowest AMAT that has been recorded on the surface of the Earth. The stable isotopic ratios （δ^18O and δD） of surface snow at Dome A are also lower than at other ice sheet domes along the East Antarctic Ice Divide such as Dome C, Dome F, Dome B and Vostok. These facts indicate that Dome A is the ＂pole of cold＂ on the Earth. The total amount of snow accumulation rate in 2005 and 2006 was only 0.16 cm, equaling 0.016 m water equivalent per year, the lowest precipitation ever recorded from Antarctica. Preliminary evidences indicate that Dome A is a candidate site for recovering the oldest ice core.     

The seasonal variations of δ~(18)O , Cl~- , Na~+ , NO_3~- and Ca~(2+) in the snow and firn recovered from Princess Elizabeth Land, Antarctica

Snow and firn samples recovered from two snow pits (2.5 and 4.5m deep) and one 50-m firn core along the route of the 1996/1997 Chinese First Antarctic Inland Traverse Expedition in Princess Elizabeth Land, East Antarctica, have been measured for chemical composition and oxygen isotope ratio. In the two snow pits, the variations of NO3- are partly in phase with that of δ18O, while the variations of Cl~ and Na+ are in inverse phase with that of δ18O. The variations of CI- , Na+ , NO3- and δ18O show obvious seasonal variations and annual stratag-raphy. However, with the depth increasing, the seasonal variations of δ18O are gradually smoothed below 3 m (corresponding to about 10-year mass accumulation) in depth while the seasonal variations of Cl- , Na+ and NO3- are kept fairly well in the whole profile of the 50-m firn core (corresponding to about 250-year mass accumulation). The results provide a useful tool for dating the snow stratum in this region. On the contrary, no obvious seasonal variations of Ca2 + are found in the profiles.     

南极洲伊利莎白公主地区主要离子来源传输过程的沉积方式研究

通过对南极洲伊利莎白公主地区冰雪中几种主要离子资料的分析,结合前人的工作对本地区主要离子的来源、传输过程和沉积方式做了初步探讨。结果表明;南极洲伊利莎白公主地区冰盖中的海盐离子主要来源于周边亚南极地区的海洋,nssSO4^2-主要来源于中低纬度海洋生物的释放和火山喷发,而NO3^-主要来源于中低纬度地区的闪电和极地高空中的各种大气过程;海盐离子（主要Cl^-,Na^ ,Mg^2 ,ssSO4^2-）通过近距离低空传输到南极冰盖,而nssSO4^2-和NO3^-很可能是通过远距离高空传输到极冰雪中,具体过程为：nssSO4^2-和NO3^-在对流层顶部平流层底层呈带状输送到极地上空,然后辐射下沉,再辐射到其他地区;本地区大气中各主要离子浓度足够大,足以使本地区冰雪中主要离子浓度不随积累率的变化而变化,即离子浓度并不受积累率的影响。各主要离子、湿沉积所占比重的计算结果表明,本地区离子沉积方式以湿沉积为主。     

Holocene Southern Ocean surface temperature variability west of the Antarctic Peninsula

The disintegration of ice shelves, reduced sea-ice and glacier extent, and shifting ecological zones observed around Antarctica highlight the impact of recent atmospheric and oceanic warming on the cryosphere. Observations and models suggest that oceanic and atmospheric temperature variations at Antarctica's margins affect global cryosphere stability, ocean circulation, sea levels and carbon cycling. In particular, recent climate changes on the Antarctic Peninsula have been dramatic, yet the Holocene climate variability of this region is largely unknown, limiting our ability to evaluate ongoing changes within the context of historical variability and underlying forcing mechanisms. Here we show that surface ocean temperatures at the continental margin of the western Antarctic Peninsula cooled by 3-4 °C over the past 12,000 years, tracking the Holocene decline of local (65° S) spring insolation. Our results, based on TEX(86) sea surface temperature (SST) proxy evidence from a marine sediment core, indicate the importance of regional summer duration as a driver of Antarctic seasonal sea-ice fluctuations. On millennial timescales, abrupt SST fluctuations of 2-4 °C coincide with globally recognized climate variability. Similarities between our SSTs, Southern Hemisphere westerly wind reconstructions and El Ni?o/Southern Oscillation variability indicate that present climate teleconnections between the tropical Pacific Ocean and the western Antarctic Peninsula strengthened late in the Holocene epoch. We conclude that during the Holocene, Southern Ocean temperatures at the western Antarctic Peninsula margin were tied to changes in the position of the westerlies, which have a critical role in global carbon cycling.     

One-to-one coupling of glacial climate variability in Greenland and Antarctica

Precise knowledge of the phase relationship between climate changes in the two hemispheres is a key for understanding the Earth's climate dynamics. For the last glacial period, ice core studies have revealed strong coupling of the largest millennial-scale warm events in Antarctica with the longest Dansgaard-Oeschger events in Greenland through the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation. It has been unclear, however, whether the shorter Dansgaard-Oeschger events have counterparts in the shorter and less prominent Antarctic temperature variations, and whether these events are linked by the same mechanism. Here we present a glacial climate record derived from an ice core from Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica, which represents South Atlantic climate at a resolution comparable with the Greenland ice core records. After methane synchronization with an ice core from North Greenland, the oxygen isotope record from the Dronning Maud Land ice core shows a one-to-one coupling between all Antarctic warm events and Greenland Dansgaard-Oeschger events by the bipolar seesaw6. The amplitude of the Antarctic warm events is found to be linearly dependent on the duration of the concurrent stadial in the North, suggesting that they all result from a similar reduction in the meridional overturning circulation.     

Sea surface temperature record from the north of the East China Sea since late Holocene

Using the alkenone paleotemperature index U37^k, a high-resolution sea surface temperature （SST） record since 3600 a BP was reconstructed from the mud area in the north of the East China Sea. Combining with the grain size distribution curve of sensitive grain size group, which may reflect the East Asia Winter Monsoon activity, the palaeoenvironmental evolution cycle throughout the late Holocene in the area was obtained. The marine environment evolution during the last 3600 years displays a five-stage trend. （1） Temperature descending period from 0.85 cal. ka BP to present. The maximum temperature decrease amplitude is 2℃. The winter monsoon intensified and ＇Little Ice Age＇ were recorded in this period. （2） Warming period from 1.90 to 0.85 cal. ka BP. The mean temperature increase amplitude is 0.8℃. The Sui-Tang warming period was recorded at about 0.85--1.35 cal. ka BP and a prominent cooling event was recorded at 1.4 cal. ka BP in this period. （3） Temperature descending period from 2.55 to 1.90 cal. ka BP. Temperature cooling amplitude is 0.9℃. This period is coincident with an integrated temperature circle recorded in the Antarctic ice core, with the temperature changes from a slow cooling stage to a rapid warming stage. （4） Temperature comparatively stable with a little ascending period from 3.2 to 2.55 cal. ka BP. Temperature warming amplitude is 0.3℃. This period is coincident with the temperature fluctuant ascending period recorded in Antarctic ice core. （5） Temperature comparatively stable with little descending period from 3.6 to 3.2 cal. ka BP. This period corresponds with the temperature fluctuant cooling period recorded in Antarctic ice core. Basically, those five periods were coincident with the Antarctic ice core record. During the global cooling stage, the SST change in the continental shelf sea can be adjusted simultaneously.     

Analyses on the air and snow temperatures near ground with observations of an AWS at Dome A, the summit of Antarctic Plateau

As the summit of the Antarctic Plateau, Dome A has been received international attentions.In this paper, observational data of an automatic weather station (AWS) at Dome A in 2005–2007 were used to analyze the seasonal variations of air temperatures near the ground and snow temperatures within a depth of 10 m. Analyses on the air temperatures show a typical feature of the coreless winter, and strong inversion maintains during the long winter. Accordingly the stratification near the ground is dominated by th...     

Changes in sea surface temperature in western South China Sea over the past 450 ka

Sea surface temperature over the past 450 ka was obtained by the unsaturation of molecular fossil-long chain alkenone with a resolution of about 1 ka from the western South China Sea. This is the longest temperature profile in the South China Sea at such high resolution. The U37^κ-SST results revealed similar glacial-interglacial cycles as the δ^18O profile of planktonic foraminifera, with SST variability of 23-25.5℃ for glacial and 25-28℃ for interglacial periods. The highest SST （28.4℃） was recorded at MIS5.5 and lowest SST （22.6℃） during MIS2. The SST record preceded the planktonic foraminiferal δ^18O on five glacial-interglacial transitions. Comparison of temperature records from the Southern and Northern Hemispheres indicated a more Southern Hemisphere-like pattern for the temperature variation in the SCS. Strong precession and semiprecession signals in the spectra of our SST record manifest the tropical phenomena.     

Evidence of the 1991 Pinatubo volcanic eruption in South Polar snow

Traces of tephra and increased sulfate (SO ₄ ²⁻ ) concentrations were identified in the 1992–1994 snow layers in 2 firn cores from South Pole. The deposition of the Pinatubo SO ₄ ²⁻ aerosol was delayed due to the long transport to the high south latitudes and its initial existence at high altitudes in the Antarctic atmosphere. Electron microscopic analyses show that the element composition of the tephra is identical to that of volcanic ash found near the Pinatubo volcano in Philippines. Detailed stratigraphic snow sampling resolved the Pinatubo signal from that of Cerro Hudson eruption during August 1991 in Chile. The South Pole sulfate flux from Pinatubo is calculated to be (10.9±1.1) kg·km⁻², while the Hudson sulfate flux is (3.2±1.1) kg·km⁻². This information will be useful to estimating the magnitudes of the past volcanic eruptions recorded in Antarctic ice core.     

东南极洲Lambert冰川流域半个多世纪以来气候变化特征

通过对1996／1997年中国首次南极内陆冰盖考察获得的东南极洲Lambert冰川流域东侧50m雪芯,顶部13m的δ^18O资料的分析和积累率的恢复,首次揭示了Lambert冰川流域东侧半个多世纪以来的气候变化特征,即半个多世纪以来气候变化的总趋势为气温升高、降水增加。而Lambert冰川流域西侧雪芯资料表明,本地区半个多世纪以来气温变化趋势不明显,降水明显减少,说明整个Lambert冰川流域20世纪40年代以来气候变化有明显的区域差异性。同时研究了Lambert冰川流域东西两侧稳定同位素比率和温度的关系。     

Recent temperature increase recorded in an ice core in the source region of Yangtze River

Interests on climate change in the source region of Yangtze River have been raised since it is a region with the greatest warming over the Tibetan Plateau (TP). A 70-year history of precipitation δ~(18)O has been recovered using an ice core record retrieved in a plat portion of the firn area in the Guoqu Glacier (33°34′37.8″N, 91°10′35.3″E, 5720 m a.s.l.), Mt. Geladaindong (the source region of Yangtze River), in November, 2005. By using a significant positive relationship between ice core δ~(18)O record and summer air temperature (July to September) from the nearby meteorological stations, a history of summer air temperature has been reconstructed for the last 70 years. Summer temperature was relatively low in 1940s and high in 1950s to the middle of 1960s. The lowest temperature occurred in the middle of 1970s. Temperature was low in 1980s and dramatically increased since 1990s, keeping the trend to the begin-ning of the 21st century. The warming rate recorded in the ice core with 0.5℃/10 a since 1970s is much higher that that in the central TP and the Northern Hemisphere (NH), and it becomes 1.1℃/10 a since 1990s which is also higher than these from the central TP and the NH, reflecting an accelerated warm-ing and a more sensitive response to global warming in the high elevation region.     

Paleotemperature changes over the past 3000 years in eastern Beijing,China:A reconstraction based on Mg/Sr records in a stalagmite

The Mg/Sr ratio in a stalagmite,whic is directly proportinonal to DMg/Ca,the solid-liquid distribution coefficient of Mg,is proposed as a geochemical thermometer to estimate paleotemperature changes,The paleotemperature change in eastern Beijing over the past 3000 years has been reconstructed by using this thermometer in the stalagmite ZFFS-1 from Jingdong Cave,The records can be divided into two periods:3000-2000 aBP,cool and wet ,the air temperature averaging 9.8℃;and 2000aBP-present, hot and dry,the air temperature being 1℃ higher than the mean value (11.7℃) of the past 3000 years ,During 500-200 aBP,the air temperature was about 1.2℃ lower than that of the present,corresponding to the Little Ice Age Europe Like δ^18O and δ^C ,Mg/Sr (or DMg/Ca) reflects and obviously warming trend of the past 200 years,These results are supported by historic recods.     

Recent Antarctic Peninsula warming relative to Holocene climate and ice-shelf history

Rapid warming over the past 50?years on the Antarctic Peninsula is associated with the collapse of a number of ice shelves and accelerating glacier mass loss. In contrast, warming has been comparatively modest over West Antarctica and significant changes have not been observed over most of East Antarctica, suggesting that the ice-core palaeoclimate records available from these areas may not be representative of the climate history of the Antarctic Peninsula. Here we show that the Antarctic Peninsula experienced an early-Holocene warm period followed by stable temperatures, from about 9,200 to 2,500?years ago, that were similar to modern-day levels. Our temperature estimates are based on an ice-core record of deuterium variations from James Ross Island, off the northeastern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. We find that the late-Holocene development of ice shelves near James Ross Island was coincident with pronounced cooling from 2,500 to 600?years ago. This cooling was part of a millennial-scale climate excursion with opposing anomalies on the eastern and western sides of the Antarctic Peninsula. Although warming of the northeastern Antarctic Peninsula began around 600 years ago, the high rate of warming over the past century is unusual (but not unprecedented) in the context of natural climate variability over the past two millennia. The connection shown here between past temperature and ice-shelf stability suggests that warming for several centuries rendered ice shelves on the northeastern Antarctic Peninsula vulnerable to collapse. Continued warming to temperatures that now exceed the stable conditions of most of the Holocene epoch is likely to cause ice-shelf instability to encroach farther southward along the Antarctic Peninsula.     

Persistent near-tropical warmth on the Antarctic continent during the early Eocene epoch

The warmest global climates of the past 65 million years occurred during the early Eocene epoch (about 55 to 48 million years ago), when the Equator-to-pole temperature gradients were much smaller than today and atmospheric carbon dioxide levels were in excess of one thousand parts per million by volume. Recently the early Eocene has received considerable interest because it may provide insight into the response of Earth's climate and biosphere to the high atmospheric carbon dioxide levels that are expected in the near future as a consequence of unabated anthropogenic carbon emissions. Climatic conditions of the early Eocene 'greenhouse world', however, are poorly constrained in critical regions, particularly Antarctica. Here we present a well-dated record of early Eocene climate on Antarctica from an ocean sediment core recovered off the Wilkes Land coast of East Antarctica. The information from biotic climate proxies (pollen and spores) and independent organic geochemical climate proxies (indices based on branched tetraether lipids) yields quantitative, seasonal temperature reconstructions for the early Eocene greenhouse world on Antarctica. We show that the climate in lowland settings along the Wilkes Land coast (at a palaeolatitude of about 70° south) supported the growth of highly diverse, near-tropical forests characterized by mesothermal to megathermal floral elements including palms and Bombacoideae. Notably, winters were extremely mild (warmer than 10?°C) and essentially frost-free despite polar darkness, which provides a critical new constraint for the validation of climate models and for understanding the response of high-latitude terrestrial ecosystems to increased carbon dioxide forcing.     

High-resolution carbon dioxide concentration record 650,000-800,000 years before present

Changes in past atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations can be determined by measuring the composition of air trapped in ice cores from Antarctica. So far, the Antarctic Vostok and EPICA Dome C ice cores have provided a composite record of atmospheric carbon dioxide levels over the past 650,000 years. Here we present results of the lowest 200 m of the Dome C ice core, extending the record of atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration by two complete glacial cycles to 800,000 yr before present. From previously published data and the present work, we find that atmospheric carbon dioxide is strongly correlated with Antarctic temperature throughout eight glacial cycles but with significantly lower concentrations between 650,000 and 750,000 yr before present. Carbon dioxide levels are below 180 parts per million by volume (p.p.m.v.) for a period of 3,000 yr during Marine Isotope Stage 16, possibly reflecting more pronounced oceanic carbon storage. We report the lowest carbon dioxide concentration measured in an ice core, which extends the pre-industrial range of carbon dioxide concentrations during the late Quaternary by about 10 p.p.m.v. to 172-300 p.p.m.v.     

Amplitude of climatic changes in Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

On the basis of ice core and meteorological data from the Qinghai-Tibetan (Q-T) Plateau, this article focuses on the discussion of the problems related to the sensitivity of temporal and spatial changes of the climate in high-altitude regions, particularly in the Q-T Plateau. The features of abrupt climatic changes of the past 100 ka, 2 000 a and recent years indicate that the amplitude of these changes in the Q-T Plateau was obviously larger than that in low-altitude regions. The scope of temperature change above 6 000 m in the Q-T Plateau between glacial and interglacial stages could reach over 10°C, but only about 4°C in low-elevation regions close to sea level. During the last 2 000 a, the amplitude of temperature changes at Guliya (over 6 000 m a.s.l.) in the Q-T Plateau reached 7°C, in comparison with 2°C in eastern China at low altitude. In the present age, apparent differences of climatic warming have been observed in the Q-T Plateau, indicating that the warming in high-elevation regions is much higher than that in low-elevation regions. The temperature in over 3 500 m regions of the Q-T Plateau have been increasing at a rate of 0.25×10¹/a in recent 30 years, but almost no change has taken place in the regions below 500 m. Thus, we concluded that high-altitude regions are more sensitive to climatic changes than the low-altitude regions.     

Branched glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers and paleoenvironmental reconstruction in Zoigê peat sediments during the last 150 years

Branched glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs) were analyzed in peat samples taken from the Zoigê grassland, located on the eastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. The mean annual air temperature (MAAT) and pH in the 210 Pb-dating peat core were reconstructed based on the cyclization of branched tetraethers (CBT) and methylation of branched tetraethers (MBT) indices for the last 150 years. The results showed that the MAAT and pH values involved three stages of variation over the last 150 year...     

Modeling the impact of Australian Plate drift on Southern Hemisphere climate and environment

Using a global atmosphere-ocean coupled model with the present-day and 14 MaB.P. oceanic topography respectively, two experiments are implemented to investigate the effect of different locations of Australian Plate on the atmospheric circulation in middle-high latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere. The results show that when Australian Plate lay south at 14 MaB.P., both anticyclone circulations in the subtropical oceans and cyclone circulation around 60°-70°S are strengthened. Subtropical highs and circumpolar low pressure appear stronger, which results in much stronger Antarctic Oscillation and shorter period of Antarctic Oscillation Index （AOI） at 14 MaB.P. The rainfall and the surface air temperature also change correspondingly.The precipitation decreases around 40°S and increases around 60°- 70°S, and the surface air temperature rises in high latitudes of the South Pacific and descends over the Weddell Sea and its north side. Besides, due to the changes of the temperatures and winds, Antarctic sea ice coverage also changes with its increasing in the Ross Sea and its west regions and decreasing in the Weddell Sea.