HR: 0830h
AN: C11B-0809    [PDF]
TI: Climate Variability in West Antarctica Derived from Marine Aerosol Species from ITASE Firn/Ice Cores
AU: * Kaspari, S D
EM: susan.kaspari@maine.edu
AF: Climate Change Institute, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469 United States
AU: * Kaspari, S D
EM: susan.kaspari@maine.edu
AF: Department of Earth Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469 United States
AU: Mayewski, P A
EM: paul.mayewski@maine.edu
AF: Climate Change Institute, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469 United States
AU: Mayewski, P A
EM: paul.mayewski@maine.edu
AF: Department of Earth Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469 United States
AU: Dixon, D A
EM: daniel.dixon@maine.edu
AF: Climate Change Institute, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469 United States
AU: Dixon, D A
EM: daniel.dixon@maine.edu
AF: Department of Earth Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469 United States
AU: Sneed, S B
EM: sharon.sneed@maine.edu
AF: Climate Change Institute, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469 United States
AU: Sneed, S B
EM: sharon.sneed@maine.edu
AF: School of Marine Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469 United States
AB: Marine aerosol species (sodium, chloride, magnesium, sulfate) from 13 high-resolution ice cores covering the last approximately 200 years from the Pine Island-Thwaites and Ross drainage systems and the South Pole are used to examine climate variability in West Antarctica. The large-scale spatial distribution of the ice cores improves characterization of the source regions and pathways of marine aerosols into West Antarctica. The Ross Sea is the dominant source region for marine aerosols in the study area, and the dominant pathway is across the Ross Ice Shelf. Factors contributing to the amount of marine aerosols transported inland are strength and positioning of low pressure systems, sea-ice extent, and wind strength. Associations of the sodium time-series with sea level pressure are investigated using the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) data reanalysis, the Southern Oscillation Index (SOI), and Trans-Polar Index (TPI). Sea-ice associations are explored by correlating sea-ice extent with the marine aerosol time-series, and wind strength is investigated using a circumpolar vortex index and the NCEP meridional and zonal wind fields. The associations demonstrate that West Antarctic climate is extremely dynamic, with regional differences in the mechanisms driving marine aerosol variability.
DE: 0305 Aerosols and particles (0345, 4801)
DE: 1050 Marine geochemistry (4835, 4850)
DE: 1863 Snow and ice (1827)
DE: 3309 Climatology (1620)
DE: 3344 Paleoclimatology
SC: Cryosphere [C]
MN: 2003 Fall Meeting