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Antarctic sea ice is one of the largest biomes on Earth providing a critical habitat for ice algae. Measurements of primary production in Antarctic sea ice remain scarce and an observation-based estimate of primary production has not been revisited in over 30 years.
Primary productivity by phytoplankton in the Southern Ocean can be limited by low iron concentrations. Iron limitation in the surface ocean around Antarctica may be alleviated by particle dissolution of dust from exposed rock, glacial flour, resuspended marine sediment, and sea ice. Ligands…
Sea ice can be interspersed vertically with both permeable and impermeable layers. These features can be smaller than a few centimetres but are important for understanding biogeochemical cycles in sea ice. Traditionally…
Surveillance monitoring is important for detecting variations in species populations in response to natural and anthropogenic environmental changes. For seabirds this typically involves species-specific monitoring at breeding colonies.
The future response of the Antarctic Slope Current (ASC) to projected transient changes in winds, radiative forcing, and meltwater input is examined in a high-resolution ocean-sea ice model. Meltwater changes are found to dominate the almost -circumpolar strengthening of the ASC.
Interleaving layers are commonly observed in the subsurface ocean near thermohaline fronts. They imply a lateral exchange of water mass properties and have been shown to influence both lateral and vertical mixing rates. We examine a set of in situ observations…
Global chemistry–climate models (CCMs) play an important role in assessing the climate and air pollution implications of aerosols and chemically reactive gases.
Global, regional and local sea?level projections rely on complex process?based models of the climate?ocean?cryosphere system. While extrapolation of observational data has been examined on global and regional scales, this approach has not yet been used for the additional complexities of coastal sea?
Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba Dana) is a key species of the Southern Ocean ecosystem, immensely abundant and targeted by the krill fishery. For their sustainable management, krill distribution and biomass estimates are required, typically achieved through acoustic-trawl surveys.
Antarctic ice shelves typically comprise continental meteoric ice, in situ-accumulated meteoric ice, and marine ice accumulated at the shelf base. Using borehole optical televiewer logs from across Larsen C Ice Shelf, Antarctic Peninsula, we identify and report an intermediate ice unit…
Levoglucosan (LEV) and two of its isomers, mannosan (MAN) and galactosan (GAL), are commonly used as biomass burning tracers, however 1,6-anhydro-?-D-glucofuranose (AGF), another isomer derived from biomass burning, is rarely identified or quantified in existing literature.
During the transition from the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) to the Holocene, the atmospheric N2O mole fraction increased by 80 nmol mol?1. Using ice core measurements of N2O isotopomer ratios, we show that this increase was driven by increases in both nitrification and denitrification…
Satellite tagging provides vital information about the ecology of whales, not currently obtainable in any other way, but it can elicit short- and long-term impacts on individuals.
Allocation of energy is as important as energy uptake for maintaining healthy life cycles and sustainable populations of krill. Environmental factors such as temperature and food availability play important roles in the physiological performance of krill.
Antarctica is increasingly vulnerable to invasive species, some of which have already established on the Antarctic Peninsula. The East Antarctic environment is currently recorded to be free from established non-native invertebrates.
The Mount Brown South ice core (MBS 69.111S 86.312E) is a new, high resolution ice core drilled in coastal East Antarctica. With mean annual accumulation estimated to be ~30 cm ice equivalent throughout the length of the core (~290 m)…
Antarctic ice-free coastal environments, like the Vestfold Hills (East Antarctica), are shaped by a complex interplay of physical processes. This study synthesizes new data and existing research from the Vestfold Hills across marine, terrestrial and cryosphere science, meteorology, geomorphology…
Societal adaptation to rising sea levels requires robust projections of the Antarctic Ice Sheet's retreat, particularly due to ocean-driven basal melting of its fringing ice shelves.
The grounding zone—where glaciers transition to floating ice shelves—critically influences ice sheet mass loss yet remains poorly observed. While tides and subglacial freshwater enhance basal melt, the role of sediment-laden subglacial water outflow on ice shelf–ocean dynamics is unexplored.
Ocean-driven basal melt can thin and weaken ice shelves, reducing buttressing and causing sea level rise. However, the processes driving melt in ice shelf cavities are challenging to observe. Here we report float observations spanning the ocean cavity beneath Shackleton Ice Shelf.
Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) is derived from dense water that sinks from the Antarctic continental shelf to the deep ocean. The sinking of AABW is balanced by a return flow of lighter water, and the resulting overturning circulation determines the density stratification of the deep ocean…
Mass loss of the Antarctic ice sheet is largest in the Amundsen Sea Embayment, West Antarctica, due to basal melting by warm modified Circumpolar Deep Water (mCDW).
Understanding how air-breathing diving animals moderate their dive behaviour when foraging successfully is foundational in the study of their foraging ecology. Yet, this fundamental relationship remains unresolved with previous research pointing to inconsistent relationships…
The Mount Brown South (MBS) ice core in East Antarctica (69° S, 86° E) has produced records of sea salt concentration and snow accumulation for examining past climate. In a previous study, the sea salt concentration, but not snow accumulation, showed a significant…
The presence and nature of marine ice in ice shelves is important, yet difficult to determine. We present transient electromagnetic results spanning 10 km across a suture zone of Larsen C Ice Shelf (LCIS), Antarctica, supported by central borehole measurements.