Stationary Waves of the Ice Age Climate.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cook, Kerry H.; Held, Isaac M.

1988-08-01

A linearized, steady state, primitive equation model is used to simulate the climatological zonal asymmetries (stationary eddies) in the wind and temperature fields of the 18 000 YBP climate during winter. We compare these results with the eddies simulated in the ice age experiments of Broccoli and Manabe, who used CLIMAP boundary conditions and reduced atmospheric CO2 in an atmospheric general circulation model (GCM) coupled with a static mixed layer ocean model. The agreement between the models is good, indicating that the linear model can be used to evaluate the relative influences of orography, diabatic heating, and transient eddy heat and momentum transports in generating stationary waves. We find that orographic forcing dominates in the ice age climate. The mechanical influence of the continental ice sheets on the atmosphere is responsible for most of the changes between the present day and ice age stationary eddies. This concept of the ice age climate is complicated by the sensitivity of the stationary eddies to the large increase in the magnitude of the zonal mean meridional temperature gradient simulated in the ice age GCM.

Improved method for sea ice age computation based on combination of sea ice drift and concentration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Korosov, Anton; Rampal, Pierre; Lavergne, Thomas; Aaboe, Signe

2017-04-01

Sea Ice Age is one of the components of the Sea Ice ECV as defined by the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) [WMO, 2015]. It is an important climate indicator describing the sea ice state in addition to sea ice concentration (SIC) and thickness (SIT). The amount of old/thick ice in the Arctic Ocean has been decreasing dramatically [Perovich et al. 2015]. Kwok et al. [2009] reported significant decline in the MYI share and consequent loss of thickness and therefore volume. Today, there is only one acknowledged sea ice age climate data record [Tschudi, et al. 2015], based on Maslanik et al. [2011] provided by National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) [http://nsidc.org/data/docs/daac/nsidc0611-sea-ice-age/]. The sea ice age algorithm [Fowler et al., 2004] is using satellite-derived ice drift for Lagrangian tracking of individual ice parcels (12-km grid cells) defined by areas of sea ice concentration > 15% [Maslanik et al., 2011], i.e. sea ice extent, according to the NASA Team algorithm [Cavalieri et al., 1984]. This approach has several drawbacks. (1) Using sea ice extent instead of sea ice concentration leads to overestimation of the amount of older ice. (2) The individual ice parcels are not advected uniformly over (long) time. This leads to undersampling in areas of consistent ice divergence. (3) The end product grid cells are assigned the age of the oldest ice parcel within that cell, and the frequency distribution of the ice age is not taken into account. In addition, the base sea ice drift product (https://nsidc.org/data/docs/daac/nsidc0116_icemotion.gd.html) is known to exhibit greatly reduced accuracy during the summer season [Sumata et al 2014, Szanyi, 2016] as it only relies on a combination of sea ice drifter trajectories and wind-driven "free-drift" motion during summer. This results in a significant overestimate of old-ice content, incorrect shape of the old-ice pack, and lack of information about the ice age distribution within the grid cells. We

The Asian monsoon over the past 640,000 years and ice age terminations.

PubMed

Cheng, Hai; Edwards, R Lawrence; Sinha, Ashish; Spötl, Christoph; Yi, Liang; Chen, Shitao; Kelly, Megan; Kathayat, Gayatri; Wang, Xianfeng; Li, Xianglei; Kong, Xinggong; Wang, Yongjin; Ning, Youfeng; Zhang, Haiwei

2016-06-30

Oxygen isotope records from Chinese caves characterize changes in both the Asian monsoon and global climate. Here, using our new speleothem data, we extend the Chinese record to cover the full uranium/thorium dating range, that is, the past 640,000 years. The record's length and temporal precision allow us to test the idea that insolation changes caused by the Earth's precession drove the terminations of each of the last seven ice ages as well as the millennia-long intervals of reduced monsoon rainfall associated with each of the terminations. On the basis of our record's timing, the terminations are separated by four or five precession cycles, supporting the idea that the '100,000-year' ice age cycle is an average of discrete numbers of precession cycles. Furthermore, the suborbital component of monsoon rainfall variability exhibits power in both the precession and obliquity bands, and is nearly in anti-phase with summer boreal insolation. These observations indicate that insolation, in part, sets the pace of the occurrence of millennial-scale events, including those associated with terminations and 'unfinished terminations'.

Geological Evidence for Recent Ice Ages on Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Head, J. W.; Mustard, J. F.; Kreslavsky, M. A.; Milliken, R. E.; Marchant, D. R.

2003-12-01

A primary cause of ice ages on Earth is orbital forcing from variations in orbital parameters of the planet. On Mars such variations are known to be much more extreme. Recent exploration of Mars has revealed abundant water ice in the near-surface at high latitudes in both hemispheres. We outline evidence that these near-surface, water-ice rich mantling deposits represent a mixture of ice and dust that is layered, meters thick, and latitude dependent. These units were formed during a geologically recent major martian ice age, and were emplaced in response to the changing stability of water ice and dust on the surface during variations in orbital parameters. Evidence for these units include a smoothing of topography at subkilometer baselines from about 30o north and south latitudes to the poles, a distinctive dissected texture in MOC images in the +/-30o-60o latitude band, latitude-dependent sets of topographic characteristics and morphologic features (e.g., polygons, 'basketball' terrain texture, gullies, viscous flow features), and hydrogen concentrations consistent with the presence of abundant ice at shallow depths above 60o latitude. The most equatorward extent of these ice-rich deposits was emplaced down to latitudes equivalent to Saudi Arabia and the southern United States on Earth during the last major martian ice age, probably about 0.4-2.1 million years ago. Mars is currently in an inter-ice age period and the ice-rich deposits are presently undergoing reworking, degradation and retreat in response to the current stability relations of near-surface ice. Unlike Earth, martian ice ages are characterized by warmer climates in the polar regions and the enhanced role of atmospheric water ice and dust transport and deposition to produce widespread and relatively evenly distributed smooth deposits at mid-latitudes during obliquity maxima.

Ice stream behaviour in the western sector of the North Sea during the end of the last glacial cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roberts, David; Evans, David; Clark, Chris; Bateman, Mark; Livingstone, Stephen; Medialdea, Alicia; Cofaigh, Colm O.; Grimoldi, Elena; Callard, Louise; Dove, Dayton; Stewart, Heather; Davies, Bethan; Chiverell, Richard

2016-04-01

During the last glacial cycle the East coast of the UK was overrun by the British-Irish Ice Sheet (BIIS) flowing eastwards and southwards. In recent years it has become evident that several ice streams including the Tweed, Tyne, and Stainmore Gap ice streams, as well as the late stage North Sea Lobe (NSL), all played a role in shaping the glacial landscape during this period, but understanding the flow phasing of these ice streams during advance and collapse has proved challenging. Here we present new data from the seafloor collected during recent work undertaken by the Britice Chrono and Glanam project teams during cruise JC123 in the North Sea. Sub-bottom seafloor data together with new swath data clearly show that the final phases of the collapse of the NSL were controlled by ice sourced from the Firth of Forth ice stream which deglaciated in a NNW trajectory. Other ice streams being fed from the west (e.g. Stainmore, Tyne, Tweed) were not influential in final phase ice retreat from the southern North Sea. The Forth ice imprint is characterised by several grounding zone/till wedges marking dynamic, oscillatory retreat of the ice as it retreated along an offshore corridor between North Yorkshire and Northumberland. Repeated packages of tills, ice marginal and glaciomarine sediments, which drape glacially scoured bedrock terrain and drumlins along this corridor, point to marine inundation accompanying ice retreat. New TCN ages suggest decoupling of the Tyne Gap ice stream and NSL between 17.8 and 16.5 ka and this coincides with rapid, regional collapse of the NSL between 17.2 and 16.0 ka along the Yorkshire and Durham coasts (new OSL ages; Britice Chrono). Hence, both the central and northern sectors of the BIIS were being strongly influenced by marine margin instability during the latter phases of the last glacial cycle.

Coherent Sea Ice Variations in the Nordic Seas and Abrupt Greenland Climate Changes over Dansgaard-Oeschger Cycles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sadatzki, H.; Berben, S.; Dokken, T.; Stein, R.; Fahl, K.; Jansen, E.

2016-12-01

Rapid changes in sea ice extent in the Nordic Seas may have played a crucial role in controlling the abruptness of ocean circulation and climate changes associated with Dansgaard-Oeschger (D-O) cycles during the last glacial (Li et al., 2010; Dokken et al., 2013). To investigate the role of sea ice for abrupt climate changes, we produced a sea ice record from the Norwegian Sea Core MD99-2284 at a temporal resolution approaching that of ice core records, covering four D-O cycles at ca. 32-41 ka. This record is based on the sea ice diatom biomarker IP25, open-water phytoplankton biomarker dinosterol and semi-quantitative phytoplankton-IP25 (PIP25) estimates. A detailed tephrochronology of MD99-2284 corroborates the tuning-based age model and independently constrains the GS9/GIS8 transition, allowing for direct comparison between our sediment and ice core records. For cold stadials we find extremely low fluxes of total organic carbon, dinosterol and IP25, which points to a general absence of open-water phytoplankton and ice algae production under a near-permanent sea ice cover. For the interstadials, in turn, all biomarker fluxes are strongly enhanced, reflecting a highly productive sea ice edge situation and implying largely open ocean conditions for the eastern Nordic Seas. As constrained by three tephra layers, we observe that the stadial-interstadial sea ice decline was rapid and may have induced a coeval abrupt northward shift in the Greenland precipitation moisture source as recorded in ice cores. The sea ice retreat also facilitated a massive heat release through deep convection in the previously stratified Nordic Seas, generating atmospheric warming of the D-O events. We thus conclude that rapid changes in sea ice extent in the Nordic Seas amplified oceanic reorganizations and were a key factor in controlling abrupt Greenland climate changes over D-O cycles. Dokken, T.M. et al., 2013. Paleoceanography 28, 491-502 Li, C. et al., 2010. Journ. Clim. 23, 5457-5475

Numerical simulations of the Cordilleran ice sheet through the last glacial cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seguinot, Julien; Rogozhina, Irina; Stroeven, Arjen P.; Margold, Martin; Kleman, Johan

2016-03-01

After more than a century of geological research, the Cordilleran ice sheet of North America remains among the least understood in terms of its former extent, volume, and dynamics. Because of the mountainous topography on which the ice sheet formed, geological studies have often had only local or regional relevance and shown such a complexity that ice-sheet-wide spatial reconstructions of advance and retreat patterns are lacking. Here we use a numerical ice sheet model calibrated against field-based evidence to attempt a quantitative reconstruction of the Cordilleran ice sheet history through the last glacial cycle. A series of simulations is driven by time-dependent temperature offsets from six proxy records located around the globe. Although this approach reveals large variations in model response to evolving climate forcing, all simulations produce two major glaciations during marine oxygen isotope stages 4 (62.2-56.9 ka) and 2 (23.2-16.9 ka). The timing of glaciation is better reproduced using temperature reconstructions from Greenland and Antarctic ice cores than from regional oceanic sediment cores. During most of the last glacial cycle, the modelled ice cover is discontinuous and restricted to high mountain areas. However, widespread precipitation over the Skeena Mountains favours the persistence of a central ice dome throughout the glacial cycle. It acts as a nucleation centre before the Last Glacial Maximum and hosts the last remains of Cordilleran ice until the middle Holocene (6.7 ka).

Explosive ice age diversification of kiwi.

PubMed

Weir, Jason T; Haddrath, Oliver; Robertson, Hugh A; Colbourne, Rogan M; Baker, Allan J

2016-09-20

Molecular dating largely overturned the paradigm that global cooling during recent Pleistocene glacial cycles resulted in a burst of species diversification although some evidence exists that speciation was commonly promoted in habitats near the expanding and retracting ice sheets. Here, we used a genome-wide dataset of more than half a million base pairs of DNA to test for a glacially induced burst of diversification in kiwi, an avian family distributed within several hundred kilometers of the expanding and retracting glaciers of the Southern Alps of New Zealand. By sampling across the geographic range of the five kiwi species, we discovered many cryptic lineages, bringing the total number of kiwi taxa that currently exist to 11 and the number that existed just before human arrival to 16 or 17. We found that 80% of kiwi diversification events date to the major glacial advances of the Middle and Late Pleistocene. During this period, New Zealand was repeatedly fragmented by glaciers into a series of refugia, with the tiny geographic ranges of many kiwi lineages currently distributed in areas adjacent to these refugia. Estimates of effective population size through time show a dramatic bottleneck during the last glacial cycle in all but one kiwi lineage, as expected if kiwi were isolated in glacially induced refugia. Our results support a fivefold increase in diversification rates during key glacial periods, comparable with levels observed in classic adaptive radiations, and confirm that at least some lineages distributed near glaciated regions underwent rapid ice age diversification.

The Annual Glaciohydrology Cycle in the Ablation Zone of the Greenland Ice Sheet: Part 2. Observed and Modeled Ice Flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Colgan, William Terence; Rajaram, Harihar; Anderson, Robert S.; Steffen, Konrad; Zwally, H. Jay; Phillips, Thomas; Abdalati, Waleed

2012-01-01

Ice velocities observed in 2005/06 at three GPS stations along the Sermeq Avannarleq flowline, West Greenland, are used to characterize an observed annual velocity cycle. We attempt to reproduce this annual ice velocity cycle using a 1-D ice-flow model with longitudinal stresses coupled to a 1-D hydrology model that governs an empirical basal sliding rule. Seasonal basal sliding velocity is parameterized as a perturbation of prescribed winter sliding velocity that is proportional to the rate of change of glacier water storage. The coupled model reproduces the broad features of the annual basal sliding cycle observed along this flowline, namely a summer speed-up event followed by a fall slowdown event. We also evaluate the hypothesis that the observed annual velocity cycle is due to the annual calving cycle at the terminus. We demonstrate that the ice acceleration due to a catastrophic calving event takes an order of magnitude longer to reach CU/ETH ('Swiss') Camp (46km upstream of the terminus) than is observed. The seasonal acceleration observed at Swiss Camp is therefore unlikely to be the result of velocity perturbations propagated upstream via longitudinal coupling. Instead we interpret this velocity cycle to reflect the local history of glacier water balance.

Correlating Ice Cores from Quelccaya Ice Cap with Chronology from Little Ice Age Glacial Extents

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stroup, J. S.; Kelly, M. A.; Lowell, T. V.

2010-12-01

Proxy records indicate Southern Hemisphere climatic changes during the Little Ice Age (LIA; ~1300-1850 AD). In particular, records of change in and around the tropical latitudes require attention because these areas are sensitive to climatic change and record the dynamic interplay between hemispheres (Oerlemans, 2005). Despite this significance, relatively few records exist for the southern tropics. Here we present a reconstruction of glacial fluctuations of Quelccaya Ice Cap (QIC), Peruvian Andes, from pre-LIA up to the present day. In the Qori Kalis valley, extensive sets of moraines exist beginning with the 1963 AD ice margin (Thompson et al., 2006) and getting progressively older down valley. Several of these older moraines can be traced and are continuous with moraines in the Challpa Cocha valley. These moraines have been dated at <1050-1350-AD (Mercer and Palacios, 1977) and interpreted to have been deposited during the Little Ice Age. We present a new suite of surface exposure and radiocarbon dates collected in 2008 and 2009 that constrain the ages of these moraines. Preliminary 10Be ages of boulder surfaces atop the moraines range from ~350-1370 AD. Maximum and minimum-limiting radiocarbon ages bracketing the moraines are ~0-1800 AD. The chronology of past ice cap extents are correlated with ice core records from QIC which show an accumulation increase during ~1500-1700 AD and an accumulation decrease during ~1720-1860 AD (Thompson et al., 1985; 1986; 2006). In addition, other proxy records from Peru and the tropics are correlated with the records at QIC as a means to understand climate conditions during the LIA. This work forms the basis for future modeling of the glacial system during the LIA at QIC and for modeling of past temperature and precipitation regimes at high altitude in the tropics.

IceAge: Chemical Evolution of Ices during Star Formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McClure, Melissa; Bailey, J.; Beck, T.; Boogert, A.; Brown, W.; Caselli, P.; Chiar, J.; Egami, E.; Fraser, H.; Garrod, R.; Gordon, K.; Ioppolo, S.; Jimenez-Serra, I.; Jorgensen, J.; Kristensen, L.; Linnartz, H.; McCoustra, M.; Murillo, N.; Noble, J.; Oberg, K.; Palumbo, M.; Pendleton, Y.; Pontoppidan, K.; Van Dishoeck, E.; Viti, S.

2017-11-01

Icy grain mantles are the main reservoir for volatile elements in star-forming regions across the Universe, as well as the formation site of pre-biotic complex organic molecules (COMs) seen in our Solar System. We propose to trace the evolution of pristine and complex ice chemistry in a representative low-mass star-forming region through observations of a: pre-stellar core, Class 0 protostar, Class I protostar, and protoplanetary disk. Comparing high spectral resolution (R 1500-3000) and sensitivity (S/N 100-300) observations from 3 to 15 um to template spectra, we will map the spatial distribution of ices down to 20-50 AU in these targets to identify when, and at what visual extinction, the formation of each ice species begins. Such high-resolution spectra will allow us to search for new COMs, as well as distinguish between different ice morphologies,thermal histories, and mixing environments. The analysis of these data will result in science products beneficial to Cycle 2 proposers. A newly updated public laboratory ice database will provide feature identifications for all of the expected ices, while a chemical model fit to the observed ice abundances will be released publically as a grid, with varied metallicity and UV fields to simulate other environments. We will create improved algorithms to extract NIRCAM WFSS spectra in crowded fields with extended sources as well as optimize the defringing of MIRI LRS spectra in order to recover broad spectral features. We anticipate that these resources will be particularly useful for astrochemistry and spectroscopy of fainter, extended targets like star forming regions of the SMC/LMC or more distant galaxies.

The development and reliability of a repeated anaerobic cycling test in female ice hockey players.

PubMed

Wilson, Kier; Snydmiller, Gary; Game, Alex; Quinney, Art; Bell, Gordon

2010-02-01

The purpose of this study was to develop and assess the reliability of a repeated anaerobic power cycling test designed to mimic the repeated sprinting nature of the sport of ice hockey. Nineteen female varsity ice hockey players (mean X +/- SD age, height and body mass = 21 +/- 2 yr, 166.6 +/- 6.3 cm and 62.3 +/- 7.3) completed 3 trials of a repeated anaerobic power test on a Monark cycle ergometer on different days. The test consisted of "all-out" cycling for 5 seconds separated by 10 seconds of low-intensity cycling, repeated 4 times. The relative load factor used for the resistance setting was equal to 0.095 kg per kilogram body mass. There was no significant difference between the peak 5-second power output (PO), mean PO, or the fatigue index (%) among the 3 different trials. The peak 5-second PO was 702.6 +/- 114.8 w and 11.3 +/- 1.1 w x kg, whereas the mean PO across the 4 repeats was 647.1 +/- 96.3 w and 10.4 +/- 1.0 w x kg averaged for the 3 different tests. The fatigue index averaged 17.8 +/- 6.5%. The intraclass correlation coefficient for peak 5-second, mean PO, and fatigue index was 0.82, 0.86, and 0.82, respectively. This study reports the methodology of a repeated anaerobic power cycling test that was reliable for the measurement of PO and calculated fatigue index in varsity women ice hockey players and can be used as a laboratory-based assessment of repeated anaerobic fitness.

Establishing a Reliable Depth-Age Relationship for the Denali Ice Core

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wake, C. P.; Osterberg, E. C.; Winski, D.; Ferris, D.; Kreutz, K. J.; Introne, D.; Dalton, M.

2015-12-01

Reliable climate reconstruction from ice core records requires the development of a reliable depth-age relationship. We have established a sub-annual resolution depth-age relationship for the upper 198 meters of a 208 m ice core recovered in 2013 from Mt. Hunter (3,900 m asl), Denali National Park, central Alaska. The dating of the ice core was accomplished via annual layer counting of glaciochemical time-series combined with identification of reference horizons from volcanic eruptions and atmospheric nuclear weapons testing. Using the continuous ice core melter system at Dartmouth College, sub-seasonal samples have been collected and analyzed for major ions, liquid conductivity, particle size and concentration, and stable isotope ratios. Annual signals are apparent in several of the chemical species measured in the ice core samples. Calcium and magnesium peak in the spring, ammonium peaks in the summer, methanesulfonic acid (MSA) peaks in the autumn, and stable isotopes display a strong seasonal cycle with the most depleted values occurring during the winter. Thin ice layers representing infrequent summertime melt were also used to identify summer layers in the core. Analysis of approximately one meter sections of the core via nondestructive gamma spectrometry over depths from 84 to 124 m identified a strong radioactive cesium-137 peak at 89 m which corresponds to the 1963 layer deposited during extensive atmospheric nuclear weapons testing. Peaks in the sulfate and chloride record have been used for the preliminary identification of volcanic signals preserved in the ice core, including ten events since 1883. We are confident that the combination of robust annual layers combined with reference horizons provides a timescale for the 20th century that has an error of less than 0.5 years, making calibrations between ice core records and the instrumental climate data particularly robust. Initial annual layer counting through the entire 198 m suggests the Denali Ice

Volcano-ice age link discounted

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kerr, R.A.

1996-05-10

Speculation that huge volcanic eruptions may have caused an immediate `volcanic winter` that devastated early humans and accelerated a slide into the Ice Age. However, further information from the Greenland ice sheet about the Toba errumption on the island of Sumatra 70,000 years ago, seems to indicate that such volcanic actions wasn`t a major climatic catalyst. This article discusses the evidence and further possibilities.

Global Sea Ice Coverage from Satellite Data: Annual Cycle and 35-Year Trends

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parkinson, Claire L.

2014-01-01

Well-established satellite-derived Arctic and Antarctic sea ice extents are combined to create the global picture of sea ice extents and their changes over the 35-yr period 1979-2013. Results yield a global annual sea ice cycle more in line with the high-amplitude Antarctic annual cycle than the lower-amplitude Arctic annual cycle but trends more in line with the high-magnitude negative Arctic trends than the lower-magnitude positive Antarctic trends. Globally, monthly sea ice extent reaches a minimum in February and a maximum generally in October or November. All 12 months show negative trends over the 35-yr period, with the largest magnitude monthly trend being the September trend, at -68,200 +/- 10,500 sq km/yr (-2.62% 6 +/- 0.40%/decade), and the yearly average trend being -35,000 +/- 5900 sq km/yr (-1.47% +/- 0.25%/decade).

Global Sea Ice Coverage from Satellite Data: Annual Cycle and 35-Yr Trends

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parkinson, Claire L.

2014-01-01

Well-established satellite-derived Arctic and Antarctic sea ice extents are combined to create the global picture of sea ice extents and their changes over the 35-yr period 1979-2013. Results yield a global annual sea ice cycle more in line with the high-amplitude Antarctic annual cycle than the lower-amplitude Arctic annual cycle but trends more in line with the high-magnitude negative Arctic trends than the lower-magnitude positive Antarctic trends. Globally, monthly sea ice extent reaches a minimum in February and a maximum generally in October or November. All 12 months show negative trends over the 35-yr period, with the largest magnitude monthly trend being the September trend, at -68200 +/- 10500 km sq yr(exp -1) (-2.62% +/- 0.40%decade(exp -1)), and the yearly average trend being -35000 +/-5900 km sq yr(exp -1) (-1.47% +/- 0.25%decade(exp -1)).

The ocean mixed layer under Southern Ocean sea-ice: seasonal cycle and forcing.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Violaine, P.; Sallee, J. B.; Schmidtko, S.; Roquet, F.; Charrassin, J. B.

2016-02-01

The mixed-layer at the surface of the ocean is the gateway for all exchanges between air and sea. A vast area of the Southern Ocean is however seasonally capped by sea-ice, which alters this gateway and the characteristic the ocean mixed-layer. The interaction between the ocean mixed-layer and sea-ice plays a key role for water-mass formation and circulation, carbon cycle, sea-ice dynamics, and ultimately for the climate as a whole. However, the structure and characteristics of the mixed layer, as well as the processes responsible for its evolution, are poorly understood due to the lack of in-situ observations and measurements. We urgently need to better understand the forcing and the characteristics of the ocean mixed-layer under sea-ice if we are to understand and predict the world's climate. In this study, we combine a range of distinct sources of observation to overcome this lack in our understanding of the Polar Regions. Working on Elephant Seal-derived data as well as ship-based observations and Argo float data, we describe the seasonal cycle of the characteristics and stability of the ocean mixed layer over the entire Southern Ocean (South of 40°S), and specifically under sea-ice. Mixed-layer budgets of heat and freshwater are used to investigate the main forcings of the mixed-layer seasonal cycle. The seasonal variability of sea surface salinity and temperature are primarily driven by surface processes, dominated by sea-ice freshwater flux for the salt budget, and by air-sea flux for the heat budget. Ekman advection, vertical diffusivity and vertical entrainment play only secondary role.Our results suggest that changes in regional sea-ice distribution or sea-ice seasonal cycle duration, as currently observed, would widely affect the buoyancy budget of the underlying mixed-layer, and impacts large-scale water-mass formation and transformation.

Strong Gradients in Forest Sensitivity to Climate Change Revealed by Dynamics of Forest Fire Cycles in the Post Little Ice Age Era

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Drobyshev, Igor; Bergeron, Yves; Girardin, Martin P.; Gauthier, Sylvie; Ols, Clémentine; Ojal, John

2017-10-01

The length of the fire cycle is a critical factor affecting the vegetation cover in boreal and temperate regions. However, its responses to climate change remain poorly understood. We reanalyzed data from earlier studies of forest age structures at the landscape level, in order to map the evolution of regional fire cycles across Eastern North American boreal and temperate forests, following the termination of the Little Ice Age (LIA). We demonstrated a well-defined spatial pattern of post-LIA changes in the length of fire cycles toward lower fire activity during the 1800s and 1900s. The western section of Eastern North America (west of 77°W) experienced a decline in fire activity as early as the first half of the 1800s. By contrast, the eastern section showed these declines as late as the early 1900s. During a regionally fire-prone period of the 1910s-1920s, forests in the western section of Eastern boreal North America burned more than forests in the eastern section. The climate appeared to dominate over vegetation composition and human impacts in shaping the geographical pattern of the post-LIA change in fire activity. Changes in the atmospheric circulation patterns following the termination of the LIA, specifically changes in Arctic Oscillation and the strengthening of the Continental Polar Trough, were likely drivers of the regional fire dynamics.

Coupled Northern Hemisphere permafrost-ice-sheet evolution over the last glacial cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Willeit, M.; Ganopolski, A.

2015-09-01

Permafrost influences a number of processes which are relevant for local and global climate. For example, it is well known that permafrost plays an important role in global carbon and methane cycles. Less is known about the interaction between permafrost and ice sheets. In this study a permafrost module is included in the Earth system model CLIMBER-2, and the coupled Northern Hemisphere (NH) permafrost-ice-sheet evolution over the last glacial cycle is explored. The model performs generally well at reproducing present-day permafrost extent and thickness. Modeled permafrost thickness is sensitive to the values of ground porosity, thermal conductivity and geothermal heat flux. Permafrost extent at the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) agrees well with reconstructions and previous modeling estimates. Present-day permafrost thickness is far from equilibrium over deep permafrost regions. Over central Siberia and the Arctic Archipelago permafrost is presently up to 200-500 m thicker than it would be at equilibrium. In these areas, present-day permafrost depth strongly depends on the past climate history and simulations indicate that deep permafrost has a memory of surface temperature variations going back to at least 800 ka. Over the last glacial cycle permafrost has a relatively modest impact on simulated NH ice sheet volume except at LGM, when including permafrost increases ice volume by about 15 m sea level equivalent in our model. This is explained by a delayed melting of the ice base from below by the geothermal heat flux when the ice sheet sits on a porous sediment layer and permafrost has to be melted first. Permafrost affects ice sheet dynamics only when ice extends over areas covered by thick sediments, which is the case at LGM.

Solar cycle and long term variations of mesospheric ice layers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lübken, Franz-Josef; Berger, Uwe; Kiliani, Johannes; Baumgarten, Gerd; Fiedler, Jens; Gerding, Michael

2010-05-01

Ice layers in the summer mesosphere at middle and polar latitudes, frequently called `noctilucent clouds' (NLC) or `polar mesosphere clouds'(PMC), are considered to be sensitive indicators of long term changes in the middle atmosphere. We present a summary of long term observations from the ground and from satellites and compare with results from the LIMA model (Leibniz Institute Middle Atmosphere Model). LIMA nicely reproduces mean conditions of the summer mesopause region and also mean characteristics of ice layers. LIMA nudges to ECMWF data in the troposphere and lower stratosphere which influences the background conditions in the mesosphere and thereby the morphology of ice clouds. A strong correlation between temperatures and PMC altitudes is observed. Applied to historical measurements this give s negligible temperature trends at PMC altitudes (approximately 0.01-0.02 K/y). Trace gas concentrations are kept constant in LIMA except for water vapor which is modified by variable solar radiation. Still, long term trends in temperatures and ice layer parameters are observed, consistent with observations. As will be shown, these trends originate in the stratosphere. Solar cycle effects are expected in ice layers due to variations in background temperatures and water paper. We will present results from LIMA regarding solar cycle variations and compare with NLC observations at our lidar stations in Kühlungsborn (54°N) and ALOMAR (69°N), and also with satellite measurements.

Glaciological constraints on current ice mass changes from modelling the ice sheets over the glacial cycles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huybrechts, P.

2003-04-01

The evolution of continental ice sheets introduces a long time scale in the climate system. Large ice sheets have a memory of millenia, hence the present-day ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica are still adjusting to climatic variations extending back to the last glacial period. This trend is separate from the direct response to mass-balance changes on decadal time scales and needs to be correctly accounted for when assessing current and future contributions to sea level. One way to obtain estimates of current ice mass changes is to model the past history of the ice sheets and their underlying beds over the glacial cycles. Such calculations assist to distinguish between the longer-term ice-dynamic evolution and short-term mass-balance changes when interpreting altimetry data, and are helpful to isolate the effects of postglacial rebound from gravity and altimetry trends. The presentation will discuss results obtained from 3-D thermomechanical ice-sheet/lithosphere/bedrock models applied to the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets. The simulations are forced by time-dependent boundary conditions derived from sediment and ice core records and are constrained by geomorphological and glacial-geological data of past ice sheet and sea-level stands. Current simulations suggest that the Greenland ice sheet is close to balance, while the Antarctic ice sheet is still losing mass, mainly due to incomplete grounding-line retreat of the West Antarctic ice sheet since the LGM. The results indicate that altimetry trends are likely dominated by ice thickness changes but that the gravitational signal mainly reflects postglacial rebound.

Exposure age and ice-sheet model constraints on Pliocene East Antarctic ice sheet dynamics.

PubMed

Yamane, Masako; Yokoyama, Yusuke; Abe-Ouchi, Ayako; Obrochta, Stephen; Saito, Fuyuki; Moriwaki, Kiichi; Matsuzaki, Hiroyuki

2015-04-24

The Late Pliocene epoch is a potential analogue for future climate in a warming world. Here we reconstruct Plio-Pleistocene East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS) variability using cosmogenic nuclide exposure ages and model simulations to better understand ice sheet behaviour under such warm conditions. New and previously published exposure ages indicate interior-thickening during the Pliocene. An ice sheet model with mid-Pliocene boundary conditions also results in interior thickening and suggests that both the Wilkes Subglacial and Aurora Basins largely melted, offsetting increased ice volume. Considering contributions from West Antarctica and Greenland, this is consistent with the most recent IPCC AR5 estimate, which indicates that the Pliocene sea level likely did not exceed +20 m on Milankovitch timescales. The inception of colder climate since ∼3 Myr has increased the sea ice cover and inhibited active moisture transport to Antarctica, resulting in reduced ice sheet thickness, at least in coastal areas.

The seasonal cycle of snow cover, sea ice and surface albedo

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Robock, A.

1980-01-01

The paper examines satellite data used to construct mean snow cover caps for the Northern Hemisphere. The zonally averaged snow cover from these maps is used to calculate the seasonal cycle of zonally averaged surface albedo. The effects of meltwater on the surface, solar zenith angle, and cloudiness are parameterized and included in the calculations of snow and ice albedo. The data allows a calculation of surface albedo for any land or ocean 10 deg latitude band as a function of surface temperature ice and snow cover; the correct determination of the ice boundary is more important than the snow boundary for accurately simulating the ice and snow albedo feedback.

Radiostratigraphy and age structure of the Greenland Ice Sheet

PubMed Central

MacGregor, Joseph A; Fahnestock, Mark A; Catania, Ginny A; Paden, John D; Prasad Gogineni, S; Young, S Keith; Rybarski, Susan C; Mabrey, Alexandria N; Wagman, Benjamin M; Morlighem, Mathieu

2015-01-01

Several decades of ice-penetrating radar surveys of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets have observed numerous widespread internal reflections. Analysis of this radiostratigraphy has produced valuable insights into ice sheet dynamics and motivates additional mapping of these reflections. Here we present a comprehensive deep radiostratigraphy of the Greenland Ice Sheet from airborne deep ice-penetrating radar data collected over Greenland by The University of Kansas between 1993 and 2013. To map this radiostratigraphy efficiently, we developed new techniques for predicting reflection slope from the phase recorded by coherent radars. When integrated along track, these slope fields predict the radiostratigraphy and simplify semiautomatic reflection tracing. Core-intersecting reflections were dated using synchronized depth-age relationships for six deep ice cores. Additional reflections were dated by matching reflections between transects and by extending reflection-inferred depth-age relationships using the local effective vertical strain rate. The oldest reflections, dating to the Eemian period, are found mostly in the northern part of the ice sheet. Within the onset regions of several fast-flowing outlet glaciers and ice streams, reflections typically do not conform to the bed topography. Disrupted radiostratigraphy is also observed in a region north of the Northeast Greenland Ice Stream that is not presently flowing rapidly. Dated reflections are used to generate a gridded age volume for most of the ice sheet and also to determine the depths of key climate transitions that were not observed directly. This radiostratigraphy provides a new constraint on the dynamics and history of the Greenland Ice Sheet. Key Points Phase information predicts reflection slope and simplifies reflection tracing Reflections can be dated away from ice cores using a simple ice flow model Radiostratigraphy is often disrupted near the onset of fast ice flow PMID:26213664

Modeling the imprint of Milankovitch cycles on early Pleistocene ice volume

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roychowdhury, R.; DeConto, R.; Pollard, D.

2017-12-01

Global climate during Quaternary and Late Pliocene (present-3.1 Ma) is characterized by alternating glacial and interglacial conditions. Several proposed theories associate these cycles with variations in the Earth's orbital configuration. In this study, we attempt to address the anomalously strong obliquity forcing in the Late Pliocene/Early Pleistocene ice volume records (41 kyr world), which stands in sharp contrast to the primary cyclicity of insolation, which is at precessional periods (23 kyr). Model results from GCM simulations show that at low eccentricities (e<0.015), the effect of precession is minimal, and the integrated insolation metrics (such as summer metric, PDD, etc.) vary in-phase between the two hemispheres. At higher eccentricities (e>0.015), precessional response is important, and the insolation metrics vary out-of-phase between the two hemispheres. Using simulations from a GCM-driven ice sheet model, we simulate time continuous ice volume changes from Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Under eccentricities lower than 0.015, ice sheets in both hemispheres respond only to obliquity cycle, and grow and melt together (in-phase). If the ice sheet is simulated with eccentricity higher than 0.015, both hemispheres become more sensitive to precessional variation, and vary out-of-phase with each other, which is consistent with proxy observations from the late Pleistocene glaciations. We use the simulated ice volumes from 2.0 to 1.0 ma to empirically calculate global benthic δ18O variations based on the assumption that relationships between collapse and growth of ice-sheets and sea level is linear and symmetric and that the isotopic signature of the individual ice-sheets has not changed with time. Our modeled global benthic δ18O values are broadly consistent with the paleoclimate proxy records such as the LR04 stack.

The ocean mixed layer under Southern Ocean sea-ice: Seasonal cycle and forcing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pellichero, Violaine; Sallée, Jean-Baptiste; Schmidtko, Sunke; Roquet, Fabien; Charrassin, Jean-Benoît

2017-02-01

The oceanic mixed layer is the gateway for the exchanges between the atmosphere and the ocean; in this layer, all hydrographic ocean properties are set for months to millennia. A vast area of the Southern Ocean is seasonally capped by sea-ice, which alters the characteristics of the ocean mixed layer. The interaction between the ocean mixed layer and sea-ice plays a key role for water mass transformation, the carbon cycle, sea-ice dynamics, and ultimately for the climate as a whole. However, the structure and characteristics of the under-ice mixed layer are poorly understood due to the sparseness of in situ observations and measurements. In this study, we combine distinct sources of observations to overcome this lack in our understanding of the polar regions. Working with elephant seal-derived, ship-based, and Argo float observations, we describe the seasonal cycle of the ocean mixed-layer characteristics and stability of the ocean mixed layer over the Southern Ocean and specifically under sea-ice. Mixed-layer heat and freshwater budgets are used to investigate the main forcing mechanisms of the mixed-layer seasonal cycle. The seasonal variability of sea surface salinity and temperature are primarily driven by surface processes, dominated by sea-ice freshwater flux for the salt budget and by air-sea flux for the heat budget. Ekman advection, vertical diffusivity, and vertical entrainment play only secondary roles. Our results suggest that changes in regional sea-ice distribution and annual duration, as currently observed, widely affect the buoyancy budget of the underlying mixed layer, and impact large-scale water mass formation and transformation with far reaching consequences for ocean ventilation.

Iron fertilization of the Subantarctic Ocean during the last ice age

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martinez-Garcia, A.

2015-12-01

Dust has the potential to modify global climate by influencing the radiative balance of the atmosphere and by supplying iron and other essential limiting micronutrients to the ocean. The scarcity of iron limits marine productivity and carbon uptake in one-quarter of the world ocean where the concentration of major nutrients (phosphorus and nitrogen) is perennially high. The Southern Ocean is the region where variations in iron availability can have the largest effect on Earth's carbon cycle through its fertilizing effect on marine ecosystems. Paleoceanographic records from the Subantarctic Atlantic have revealed a remarkable correlation between phytoplankton productivity and aeolian iron flux during glacial periods supporting the iron fertilization hypothesis. In addition, a recent study has shown that peak glacial times and millennial cold events were nearly universally associated not only with increases in dust flux and export production, but also with an increase in nutrient consumption (the last indicated by higher foraminifera-bound δ15N) (Martinez-Garcia et al. 2014). This combination of changes is uniquely consistent with ice age iron fertilization of the Subantarctic Atlantic. The strengthening of the biological pump associated with the observed increase in Subantarctic nutrient consumption during the high-dust intervals of the last two ice ages can explain up to ~40 ppm of the CO2 decrease that characterizes the transitions from mid-climate states to full ice age conditions. However, the impact of iron fertilization in other sectors of the Southern Ocean characterized by lower ice age dust fluxes than the Atlantic remains unclear. A series of recently published records from the Subantarctic Pacific indicate that dust deposition and marine export production were three times higher during glacial periods than during interglacials (Lamy et al. 2014). Here we present new measurements of foraminifera-bound nitrogen isotopes in a sediment core located in the

Coupling landscapes to solid-Earth deformation over the ice-age

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pico, T.; Mitrovica, J. X.; Ferrier, K.; Braun, J.

2016-12-01

We present initial results of a coupled ice-age sea level - landscape evolution code. Deformation of the solid Earth in response to the growth and ablation of continental ice sheets produces spatially-variable patterns of sea-level change. Recent modeling has considered the impact of sedimentation and erosion on sea level predictions across the last glacial cycle, but these studies have imposed, a-priori, a record of sediment flux and erosion, rather than computing them from a physics-based model of landscape evolution in the presence of sea-level (topography) changes. These topography changes range from 1-10 m/kyr in the near and intermediate field of the Late Pleistocene ice cover, and are thus comparable to (or exceed) tectonic rates in such regions. Our simulations aim to address the following question: how does solid-Earth deformation influence the evolution of landscapes over glacial periods? To address this issue, we couple a highly-efficient landscape evolution code, Fastscape (Braun & Willett, 2013), to a global, gravitationally-self consistent sea-level theory. Fastscape adopts standard geomorphic laws governing incision and marine deposition, and the sea-level model is based on the canonical work of Farrell & Clark (1976), with extensions to include the effects of rotation and time varying shoreline geometries (Kendall et al., 2005), and sediment erosion and deposition (Dalca et al, 2013). We will present global results and focus on a few regional case studies where deposition rates from a dataset of sedimentary cores can be used as a check on the simulations. These predictions quantify the influence of sea-level change (including that associated with sedimentation and erosion) on geomorphic drivers of landscape evolution, and in turn, the solid Earth deformation caused by these surface processes over an ice age.

Diurnal Thermal Cycling Effects on Backscatter of Thin Sea Ice

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nghiem, S. V.; Kwok, R.; Yueh, S. H.; Gow, A. J.; Perovich, D. K.; Hsu, C. C.; Ding, K. H.; Kong, J. A.; Grenfell, T. C.

1996-01-01

To invesigate effects on polarimetric backscatter of sea ice grown under diurnal cycling conditions, we carried out an experiment inJanuary 1994 at the outdoor Geophysical Research Facility in the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory.

Role of Atmospheric CO2 in the Ice Ages (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toggweiler, J. R.

2010-12-01

Ice cores from Antarctica provide our most highly resolved records of glacial-interglacial climate change. They feature big transitions every 100,000 years or so in which Antarctica warms by up to 10 deg. C while the level of atmospheric CO2 rises by up to 100 ppm. We have no other records like these from any other location, so the assumption is often made that the Earth's mean temperature varies like the temperatures in Antarctica. The striking co-variation between the two records is taken to mean 1) that there is a causal relationship between the global temperature and atmospheric CO2 and 2) that atmospheric CO2 is a powerful agent of climate change during the ice ages. The problem is that the mechanism most often invoked to explain the CO2 variations operates right next to Antarctica and, as such, provides a fairly direct way to explain the temperature variations in Antarctica as well. If so, Antarctic temperatures go up and down for the same reason that atmospheric CO2 goes up and down, in which case no causation can be inferred. Climate models suggest that the 100-ppm CO2 increases during the big transitions did not increase surface temperatures by more than 2 deg. C. This is not nearly enough to explain the observed variability. A better reason for thinking that atmospheric CO2 is important is that its temporal variations are concentrated in the 100,000-yr band. In my presentation I will argue that atmospheric CO2 is important because it has the longest time scale in the system. We observe empirically that atmospheric CO2 remains low for 50,000 years during the second half of each 100,000-yr cycle. The northern ice sheets become especially large toward the ends of these intervals, and it is large ice sheets that make the Earth especially cold. This leads me to conclude that atmospheric CO2 is important because of its slow and persistent influence on the northern ice sheets over the second half of each 100,000-yr cycle.

Carbon cycle instability as a cause of the late Pleistocene ice age oscillations - Modeling the asymmetric response

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Saltzman, B.; Maasch, K.A.

1988-06-01

A dynamical model of the Pleistocene ice ages is presented, which incorporates many of the qualitative ideas advanced recently regarding the possible role of ocean circulation, chemistry, temperature, and productivity in regulating long-term atmospheric carbon dioxide variations. This model involves one additional term (and free parameter) beyond that included in a previous model (Saltzman and Sutera, 1987), providing the capacity for an asymmetric response. It is shown that many of the main features exhibited by the delta(O-18)-derived ice record and the Vostok core/delta(C-13)-derived carbon dioxide record in the late Pleistocene can be deduced as a free oscillatory solution of themore » model. 35 refs.« less

Onset and ending of the late Palaeozoic ice age triggered by tectonically paced rock weathering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goddéris, Yves; Donnadieu, Yannick; Carretier, Sébastien; Aretz, Markus; Dera, Guillaume; Macouin, Mélina; Regard, Vincent

2017-04-01

The onset of the late Palaeozoic ice age about 340 million years ago has been attributed to a decrease in atmospheric CO2 concentrations associated with expansion of land plants, as plants both enhance silicate rock weathering--which consumes CO2--and increase the storage of organic carbon on land. However, plant expansion and carbon uptake substantially predate glaciation. Here we use climate and carbon cycle simulations to investigate the potential effects of the uplift of the equatorial Hercynian mountains and the assembly of Pangaea on the late Palaeozoic carbon cycle. In our simulations, mountain uplift during the Late Carboniferous caused an increase in physical weathering that removed the thick soil cover that had inhibited silicate weathering. The resulting increase in chemical weathering was sufficient to cause atmospheric CO2 concentrations to fall below the levels required to initiate glaciation. During the Permian, the lowering of the mountains led to a re-establishment of thick soils, whilst the assembly of Pangaea promoted arid conditions in continental interiors that were unfavourable for silicate weathering. These changes allowed CO2 concentrations to rise to levels sufficient to terminate the glacial event. Based on our simulations, we suggest that tectonically influenced carbon cycle changes during the late Palaeozoic were sufficient to initiate and terminate the late Palaeozoic ice age.

Abrupt drainage cycles of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet

PubMed Central

Soulet, Guillaume; Ménot, Guillemette; Bayon, Germain; Rostek, Frauke; Ponzevera, Emmanuel; Toucanne, Samuel; Lericolais, Gilles; Bard, Edouard

2013-01-01

Continental ice sheets are a key component of the Earth’s climate system, but their internal dynamics need to be further studied. Since the last deglaciation, the northern Eurasian Fennoscandian Ice Sheet (FIS) has been connected to the Black Sea (BS) watershed, making this basin a suitable location to investigate former ice-sheet dynamics. Here, from a core retrieved in the BS, we combine the use of neodymium isotopes, high-resolution elemental analysis, and biomarkers to trace changes in sediment provenance and river runoff. We reveal cyclic releases of meltwater originating from Lake Disna, a proglacial lake linked to the FIS during Heinrich Stadial 1. Regional interactions within the climate–lake–FIS system, linked to changes in the availability of subglacial water, led to abrupt drainage cycles of the FIS into the BS watershed. This phenomenon raised the BS water level by ∼100 m until the sill of the Bosphorus Strait was reached, flooding the vast northwestern BS shelf and deeply affecting the hydrology and circulation of the BS and, probably, of the Marmara and Aegean Seas. PMID:23569264

Abrupt drainage cycles of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet.

PubMed

Soulet, Guillaume; Ménot, Guillemette; Bayon, Germain; Rostek, Frauke; Ponzevera, Emmanuel; Toucanne, Samuel; Lericolais, Gilles; Bard, Edouard

2013-04-23

Continental ice sheets are a key component of the Earth's climate system, but their internal dynamics need to be further studied. Since the last deglaciation, the northern Eurasian Fennoscandian Ice Sheet (FIS) has been connected to the Black Sea (BS) watershed, making this basin a suitable location to investigate former ice-sheet dynamics. Here, from a core retrieved in the BS, we combine the use of neodymium isotopes, high-resolution elemental analysis, and biomarkers to trace changes in sediment provenance and river runoff. We reveal cyclic releases of meltwater originating from Lake Disna, a proglacial lake linked to the FIS during Heinrich Stadial 1. Regional interactions within the climate-lake-FIS system, linked to changes in the availability of subglacial water, led to abrupt drainage cycles of the FIS into the BS watershed. This phenomenon raised the BS water level by ∼100 m until the sill of the Bosphorus Strait was reached, flooding the vast northwestern BS shelf and deeply affecting the hydrology and circulation of the BS and, probably, of the Marmara and Aegean Seas.

(abstract) Variations in Polarimetric Backscatter of Saline Ice Grown Under Diurnal Thermal Cycling Condition

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nghiem, S. V.; Kwok, R.; Yueh, S. H.; Kong, J. A.; Hsu, C. C.; Ding, K. H.

1995-01-01

An experiment was carried out in January 1994 at the Geophysical Research Facility in the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory. To investigate effects on polarimetric scattering signatures of sea ice growth under diurnal temperature variations, an ice sheet was grown for 2.5 days for the thickness of 10 cm and a polarimetric radar operating at C-band was used to obtain backscattering data in conjunction with ice-characterization measurements. The ice sheet was grown in the late morning of January 19, 1994. The initial growth rate was slow due to high insolation and temperature. As the air temperature dropped during the night, the growth rate increased significantly. The air temperature changed drastically from about -10(deg)C to -35(deg)C between day and night. The temperature cycle was repeated during the next day and the growth rate varied in the same manner. The surface of the ice was partially covered by frost flowers and the areal coverage increased as the ice became thicker. Throughout the ice growth duration of 2.5 days, polarimetric backscatter data were collected at roughly every centimeter of ice growth. For each set of radar measurements of saline ice, a set of calibration measurements was carried out with trihedrial corner reflectors and a metallic sphere. Measured polarimetric backscattering coefficients of the ice sheet reveal a strong correlation between radar data and temperature variations. As the temperature increased (decreased), the backscatter increased (decreased) correspondingly. From the ice-characterization data, temperatures of the air, at the ice-air interface, and in the ice layer had the same variation trend. Another interesting experimental observation is that the salinity measured as a function of ice depth from a sample of 10-cm thich ice indicated that the salinity variations had a similar cycle as the temperature; i.e., the salinity profile recorded the history of the temperature variations. Characterization data of the

The Little Ice Age and Solar Activity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Velasco Herrera, Victor Manuel; Leal Silva, C. M. Carmen; Velasco Herrera, Graciela

We analyze the ice winter severity index on the Baltic region since 1501-1995. We found that the variability of this index is modulated among other factors by the secular solar activity. The little ice ages that have appeared in the North Hemisphere occurred during periods of low solar activity. Seemingly our star is experiencing a new quiet stage compared with Maunder or Dalton minimum, this is important because it is estimated that even small changes in weather can represent a great impact in ice index. These results are relevant since ice is a very important element in the climate system of the Baltic region and it can affect directly or indirectly many of the oceanographic, climatic, eco-logical, economical and cultural patterns.

Possible contribution of ice-sheet/lithosphere interactions to past glaciological changes in Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alley, R. B.; Parizek, B. R.; Anandakrishnan, S.; Pollard, D.; Stevens, N. T.; Pourpoint, M.

2017-12-01

Ice-lithosphere interactions may have influenced the history of ice-sheet sensitivity to climate change. The Greenland ice sheet (GIS) is sensitive to warming, and is likely to be largely removed if subjected to relatively small additional temperature increases. The recent report (Schaefer et al., 2016, Nature) of near-complete GIS removal under modest Pleistocene forcing suggests that GIS sensitivity may be even greater than generally modeled, but lack of major Holocene retreat is more consistent with existing models. As shown by Stevens et al. (2016, JGR), peak lithospheric flexural stresses associated with ice-age GIS cycling are of the same order as dike-driving stresses in plutonic systems, and migrate over ice-age cycles. The full analysis by Stevens et al. suggests the possibility that the onset of cyclic ice-sheet loading allowed deep melt associated with the passage of the Icelandic hot spot beneath Greenland to work up though the crust to or near the base of the ice sheet, helping explain the anomalous geothermal heat fluxes observed at the head of the Northeast Greenland Ice Stream and elsewhere in the northern part of GIS. If ice-age cycling aided extraction of an existing reservoir of melted rock, then geothermal heat flux would have risen with the onset of extraction and migration, but with a subsequent fall associated with reservoir depletion. Simple parameterized flow-model simulations confirm intuition that a higher geothermal flux makes deglaciation easier, with the northern part of the ice sheet especially important. Large uncertainties remain in quantification, but we suggest the hypothesis that, following the onset of ice-age cycling, deglaciation of the GIS first became easier and then more difficult in response to feedbacks involving the ice sheet and the geological system beneath. In turn, this suggests that evidence of past deglaciation under moderate forcing is consistent with existing ice-sheet models.

Mars Ice Age, Simulated

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2003-01-01

December 17, 2003

This simulated view shows Mars as it might have appeared during the height of a possible ice age in geologically recent time.

Of all Solar System planets, Mars has the climate most like that of Earth. Both are sensitive to small changes in orbit and tilt. During a period about 2.1 million to 400,000 years ago, increased tilt of Mars' rotational axis caused increased solar heating at the poles. A new study using observations from NASA's Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey orbiters concludes that this polar warming caused mobilization of water vapor and dust into the atmosphere, and buildup of a surface deposit of ice and dust down to about 30 degrees latitude in both hemispheres. That is the equivalent of the southern Unites States or Saudi Arabia on Earth. Mars has been in an interglacial period characterized by less axial tilt for about the last 300,000 years. The ice-rich surface deposit has been degrading in the latitude zone of 30 degrees to 60 degrees as water-ice returns to the poles.

In this illustration prepared for the December 18, 2003, cover of the journal Nature, the simulated surface deposit is superposed on a topography map based on altitude measurements by Global Surveyor and images from NASA's Viking orbiters of the 1970s.

Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey are managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, for the NASA Office of Space Science, Washington.

Annual Cycles of Multiyear Sea Ice Coverage of the Arctic Ocean: 1999-2003

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kwok, R.

2004-01-01

For the years 1999-2003, we estimate the time-varying perennial ice zone (PIZ) coverage and construct the annual cycles of multiyear (MY, including second year) ice coverage of the Arctic Ocean using QuikSCAT backscatter, MY fractions from RADARSAT, and the record of ice export from satellite passive microwave observations. An area balance approach extends the winter MY coverage from QuikSCAT to the remainder of the year. From these estimates, the coverage of MY ice at the beginning of each year is 3774 x 10(exp 3) sq km (2000), 3896 x 10(exp 3) sq km (2001), 4475 x 10(exp 3) sq km (2002), and 4122 x 10(exp 3) sq km (2003). Uncertainties in coverage are approx.150 x 10(exp 3) sq km. In the mean, on 1 January, MY ice covers approx.60% of the Arctic Ocean. Ice export reduces this coverage to approx.55% by 1 May. From the multiple annual cycles, the area of first-year (FY) ice that survives the intervening summers are 1192 x 10(exp 3) sq km (2000), 1509 x 10(exp 3) sq km (2001), and 582 x 10(exp 3) sq km (2002). In order for the MY coverage to remain constant from year to year, these replenishment areas must balance the overall area export and melt during the summer. The effect of the record minimum in Arctic sea ice area during the summer of 2002 is seen in the lowest area of surviving FY ice of the three summers. In addition to the spatial coverage, the location of the PIZ is important. One consequence of the unusual location of the PIZ at the end of the summer of 2002 is the preconditioning for enhanced export of MY ice into the Barents and Kara seas. Differences between the minimums in summer sea ice coverage from our estimates and passive microwave observations are discussed.

Precise interpolar phasing of abrupt climate change during the last ice age.

PubMed

2015-04-30

The last glacial period exhibited abrupt Dansgaard-Oeschger climatic oscillations, evidence of which is preserved in a variety of Northern Hemisphere palaeoclimate archives. Ice cores show that Antarctica cooled during the warm phases of the Greenland Dansgaard-Oeschger cycle and vice versa, suggesting an interhemispheric redistribution of heat through a mechanism called the bipolar seesaw. Variations in the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) strength are thought to have been important, but much uncertainty remains regarding the dynamics and trigger of these abrupt events. Key information is contained in the relative phasing of hemispheric climate variations, yet the large, poorly constrained difference between gas age and ice age and the relatively low resolution of methane records from Antarctic ice cores have so far precluded methane-based synchronization at the required sub-centennial precision. Here we use a recently drilled high-accumulation Antarctic ice core to show that, on average, abrupt Greenland warming leads the corresponding Antarctic cooling onset by 218 ± 92 years (2σ) for Dansgaard-Oeschger events, including the Bølling event; Greenland cooling leads the corresponding onset of Antarctic warming by 208 ± 96 years. Our results demonstrate a north-to-south directionality of the abrupt climatic signal, which is propagated to the Southern Hemisphere high latitudes by oceanic rather than atmospheric processes. The similar interpolar phasing of warming and cooling transitions suggests that the transfer time of the climatic signal is independent of the AMOC background state. Our findings confirm a central role for ocean circulation in the bipolar seesaw and provide clear criteria for assessing hypotheses and model simulations of Dansgaard-Oeschger dynamics.

500,000-year temperature record challenges ice age theory

USGS Publications Warehouse

Snow, K. Mitchell

1994-01-01

Just outside the searing heat of Death Valley lies Devils Hole (fig. 1), a fault-created cave that harbors two remnants of the Earth's great ice ages. The endangered desert pupfish (Cyprinodon diabolis) has long made its home in the cave. A 500,000-year record of the planet's climate that challenges a widely accepted theory explaining the ice ages also has been preserved in Devils Hole.

Stick-slip Cycles and Tidal Modulation of Ice Stream Flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lipovsky, B.; Dunham, E. M.

2016-12-01

The reactivation of a single dormant Antarctic ice stream would double the continent's mass imbalance. Despite importance of understanding the likelihood of such an event, direct observation of the basal processes that lead to the activation and stagnation of streaming ice are minimal. As the only ice stream undergoing stagnation, the Whillans Ice Plain (WIP) occupies a central role in our understanding of these subglacial processes. Complicating matters is the observation, from GPS records, that the WIP experiences most of its motion during episodes of rapid sliding. These sliding events are tidally modulated and separated by 12 hour periods of quiescence. We conduct numerical simulations of ice stream stick-slip cycles. Our simulations include rate- and state-dependent frictional sliding, tidal forcing, inertia, upstream loading in a cross-stream, thickness-averaged formulation. Our principal finding is that ice stream motion may respond to ocean tidal forcing with one of two end member behaviors. In one limit, tidally modulated slip events have rupture velocities that approach the shear wave speed and slip events have a duration that scales with the ice stream width divided by the shear wave speed. In the other limit, tidal modulation results in ice stream sliding velocities with lower amplitude variation but at much longer timescales, i.e. semi-diurnal and longer. This latter behavior more closely mimics the behavior of several active ice streams (Bindschadler, Rutford). We find that WIP slip events exist between these two end member behaviors: rupture velocities are far below the inertial limit yet sliding occurs only episodically. The continuum of sliding behaviors is governed by a critical ice stream width over which slip event nucleate. When the critical width is much longer than the ice stream width, slip events are unable to nucleate. The critical width depends on the subglacial effective pressure, ice thickness, and frictional and elastic constitutive

The last forests in Greenland, and the age of the ice sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Funder, Svend; Schmidt, Astrid M. Z.; Dahl-Jensen, Dorthe; Steffensen, Jørgen Peder; Willerslev, Eske

2014-05-01

Recently ancient DNA (aDNA) studies of the basal ice in the Camp Century ice core, northern Greenland, have shown that mixed coniferous-deciduous forest grew here before the area was invaded and permanently covered by the ice sheet. The coring site is situated only 100 km from the present ice margin and more than 500 km from the ice divide, indicating that since this last inception the northern part of the ice sheet never receded more than 100 km from its present margin. Dating of the basal ice and obtaining an age for the forest and for the beginning of the ice sheet's permanency has been attempted by analyzing for optically stimulated luminescence (OSL), meteoric 10Be/36Cl cosmogenic nuclides, 234U/238U recoil. These methods all provide only minimum ages and show that the forest at Cap Century is older than 500 ka. Comparison with other Pleistocene "forest sites" in Greenland - the Kap København Formation in northernmost Greenland, the DYE-3 ice core in the south, the ODP boring 646 south of Greenland, as well as results from basal ice in the GRIP ice core - extends the minimum age to c. 1 ma. The maximum age is provided by the Kap København Formation, which must be older - or contemporaneous. The formation has recently been confirmed to date within the interval 2-2.5 ma, with a preferred age of 2.3-2.4 ma. Surprisingly, application of the molecular clock of insect COI sequences on the Camp Century aDNA now seem to push the minimum age just as far back - to 2.4 ma, suggesting that the timberline boreal forest at Kap København is contemporaneous with the mixed forest at Camp Century, 600 km to the south. From this we conclude that the northern ice sheet dome, which today contains 85% of the total ice sheet volume, has remained within 100 km of its present margin for at least 1 ma, and possibly may go back as far as 2.4 ma. The ice sheet has therefore survived both interglacials and "super interglacials" that were both warmer and longer than the present. This

Modelled Growth and Decay of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet Through the Last Glacial Cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marshall, S. J.; Banwell, A.

2015-12-01

The Cordilleran Ice Sheet in western North America had an enigmatic evolution during the last glacial cycle, developing out of sync with the larger Laurentide and global glaciation. The geological record suggests that the ice sheet emerged late, ca. 45 ka, growing to be a fully-established ice sheet in isotope stages 3 and 2 and deglaciating late in the glacial cycle. This has been a challenge to model, and is a paleoclimatic curiosity, because the western Cordillera of North America is heavily glacierized today, and one would intuitively expect it to act as an inception centre for the Pleistocene ice sheets. The region receives heavy precipitation, and modest cooling should induce large-scale glacier expansion. Indeed, a Cordilleran Ice Sheet quickly nucleates in isotope substage 5d in most ice sheet modeling studies to date, and is a resilient feature throughout the glaciation. The fact that a full-scale Cordilleran Ice Sheet did not develop until relatively late argues for either: (a) ice sheet models that have been inadequate in resolving the process of alpine-style glaciation, i.e., the coalescence of alpine icefields, or (b) a climatic history in western North America that deviated strongly from the hemispheric-scale cooling which drove the growth of the Laurentide and Scandinavian Ice Sheets, as recorded in Greenland. We argue that reasonable reconstructions of Cordilleran Ice Sheet growth and decay implicate a combination of these two considerations. Sufficient model resolution is required to capture the valley-bottom melt that suppresses icefield coalescence, while early-glacial cooling must have been modest in the Pacific sector of North America. We argue for a persistent warm, dry climate relative to that in eastern North America and the Atlantic sector, likely associated with positive feedbacks between atmospheric circulation and the nascent Laurentide Ice Sheet (i.e., peristent circulation patterns similar to those of 2014-2015). This must have been

Cavitation and water fluxes driven by ice water potential in Juglans regia during freeze-thaw cycles.

PubMed

Charra-Vaskou, Katline; Badel, Eric; Charrier, Guillaume; Ponomarenko, Alexandre; Bonhomme, Marc; Foucat, Loïc; Mayr, Stefan; Améglio, Thierry

2016-02-01

Freeze-thaw cycles induce major hydraulic changes due to liquid-to-ice transition within tree stems. The very low water potential at the ice-liquid interface is crucial as it may cause lysis of living cells as well as water fluxes and embolism in sap conduits, which impacts whole tree-water relations. We investigated water fluxes induced by ice formation during freeze-thaw cycles in Juglans regia L. stems using four non-invasive and complementary approaches: a microdendrometer, magnetic resonance imaging, X-ray microtomography, and ultrasonic acoustic emissions analysis. When the temperature dropped, ice nucleation occurred, probably in the cambium or pith areas, inducing high water potential gradients within the stem. The water was therefore redistributed within the stem toward the ice front. We could thus observe dehydration of the bark's living cells leading to drastic shrinkage of this tissue, as well as high tension within wood conduits reaching the cavitation threshold in sap vessels. Ultrasonic emissions, which were strictly emitted only during freezing, indicated cavitation events (i.e. bubble formation) following ice formation in the xylem sap. However, embolism formation (i.e. bubble expansion) in stems was observed only on thawing via X-ray microtomography for the first time on the same sample. Ultrasonic emissions were detected during freezing and were not directly related to embolism formation. These results provide new insights into the complex process and dynamics of water movements and ice formation during freeze-thaw cycles in tree stems. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology.

Precise interpolar phasing of abrupt climate change during the last ice age

USGS Publications Warehouse

,; Buizert, Christo; Adrian, Betty M.; Ahn, Jinho; Albert, Mary; Alley, Richard B.; Baggenstos, Daniel; Bauska, Thomas K.; Bay, Ryan C.; Bencivengo, Brian B.; Bentley, Charles R.; Brook, Edward J.; Chellman, Nathan J.; Clow, Gary D.; Cole-Dai, Jihong; Conway, Howard; Cravens, Eric; Cuffey, Kurt M.; Dunbar, Nelia W.; Edwards, Jon S.; Fegyveresi, John M.; Ferris, Dave G.; Fitzpatrick, Joan J.; Fudge, T. J.; Gibson, Chris J.; Gkinis, Vasileios; Goetz, Joshua J.; Gregory, Stephanie; Hargreaves, Geoffrey Mill; Iverson, Nels; Johnson, Jay A.; Jones, Tyler R.; Kalk, Michael L.; Kippenhan, Matthew J.; Koffman, Bess G.; Kreutz, Karl; Kuhl, Tanner W.; Lebar, Donald A.; Lee, James E.; Marcott, Shaun A.; Markle, Bradley R.; Maselli, Olivia J.; McConnell, Joseph R.; McGwire, Kenneth C.; Mitchell, Logan E.; Mortensen, Nicolai B.; Neff, Peter D.; Nishiizumi, Kunihiko; Nunn, Richard M.; Orsi, Anais J.; Pasteris, Daniel R.; Pedro, Joel B.; Pettit, Erin C.; Price, P. Buford; Priscu, John C.; Rhodes, Rachael H.; Rosen, Julia L.; Schauer, Andrew J.; Schoenemann, Spruce W.; Sendelbach, Paul J.; Severinghaus, Jeffrey P.; Shturmakov, Alexander J.; Sigl, Michael; Slawny, Kristina R.; Souney, Joseph M.; Sowers, Todd A.; Spencer, Matthew K.; Steig, Eric J.; Taylor, Kendrick C.; Twickler, Mark S.; Vaughn, Bruce H.; Voigt, Donald E.; Waddington, Edwin D.; Welten, Kees C.; Wendricks, Anthony W.; White, James W. C.; Winstrup, Mai; Wong, Gifford J.; Woodruff, Thomas E.

2015-01-01

The last glacial period exhibited abrupt Dansgaard–Oeschger climatic oscillations, evidence of which is preserved in a variety of Northern Hemisphere palaeoclimate archives1. Ice cores show that Antarctica cooled during the warm phases of the Greenland Dansgaard–Oeschger cycle and vice versa2, 3, suggesting an interhemispheric redistribution of heat through a mechanism called the bipolar seesaw4, 5, 6. Variations in the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) strength are thought to have been important, but much uncertainty remains regarding the dynamics and trigger of these abrupt events7, 8, 9. Key information is contained in the relative phasing of hemispheric climate variations, yet the large, poorly constrained difference between gas age and ice age and the relatively low resolution of methane records from Antarctic ice cores have so far precluded methane-based synchronization at the required sub-centennial precision2, 3,10. Here we use a recently drilled high-accumulation Antarctic ice core to show that, on average, abrupt Greenland warming leads the corresponding Antarctic cooling onset by 218 ± 92 years (2σ) for Dansgaard–Oeschger events, including the Bølling event; Greenland cooling leads the corresponding onset of Antarctic warming by 208 ± 96 years. Our results demonstrate a north-to-south directionality of the abrupt climatic signal, which is propagated to the Southern Hemisphere high latitudes by oceanic rather than atmospheric processes. The similar interpolar phasing of warming and cooling transitions suggests that the transfer time of the climatic signal is independent of the AMOC background state. Our findings confirm a central role for ocean circulation in the bipolar seesaw and provide clear criteria for assessing hypotheses and model simulations of Dansgaard–Oeschger dynamics.

Processes driving sea ice variability in the Bering Sea in an eddying ocean/sea ice model: Mean seasonal cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Linghan; McClean, Julie L.; Miller, Arthur J.; Eisenman, Ian; Hendershott, Myrl C.; Papadopoulos, Caroline A.

2014-12-01

The seasonal cycle of sea ice variability in the Bering Sea, together with the thermodynamic and dynamic processes that control it, are examined in a fine resolution (1/10°) global coupled ocean/sea-ice model configured in the Community Earth System Model (CESM) framework. The ocean/sea-ice model consists of the Los Alamos National Laboratory Parallel Ocean Program (POP) and the Los Alamos Sea Ice Model (CICE). The model was forced with time-varying reanalysis atmospheric forcing for the time period 1970-1989. This study focuses on the time period 1980-1989. The simulated seasonal-mean fields of sea ice concentration strongly resemble satellite-derived observations, as quantified by root-mean-square errors and pattern correlation coefficients. The sea ice energy budget reveals that the seasonal thermodynamic ice volume changes are dominated by the surface energy flux between the atmosphere and the ice in the northern region and by heat flux from the ocean to the ice along the southern ice edge, especially on the western side. The sea ice force balance analysis shows that sea ice motion is largely associated with wind stress. The force due to divergence of the internal ice stress tensor is large near the land boundaries in the north, and it is small in the central and southern ice-covered region. During winter, which dominates the annual mean, it is found that the simulated sea ice was mainly formed in the northern Bering Sea, with the maximum ice growth rate occurring along the coast due to cold air from northerly winds and ice motion away from the coast. South of St Lawrence Island, winds drive the model sea ice southwestward from the north to the southwestern part of the ice-covered region. Along the ice edge in the western Bering Sea, model sea ice is melted by warm ocean water, which is carried by the simulated Bering Slope Current flowing to the northwest, resulting in the S-shaped asymmetric ice edge. In spring and fall, similar thermodynamic and dynamic

Overview of Sea-Ice Properties, Distribution and Temporal Variations, for Application to Ice-Atmosphere Chemical Processes.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moritz, R. E.

2005-12-01

The properties, distribution and temporal variation of sea-ice are reviewed for application to problems of ice-atmosphere chemical processes. Typical vertical structure of sea-ice is presented for different ice types, including young ice, first-year ice and multi-year ice, emphasizing factors relevant to surface chemistry and gas exchange. Time average annual cycles of large scale variables are presented, including ice concentration, ice extent, ice thickness and ice age. Spatial and temporal variability of these large scale quantities is considered on time scales of 1-50 years, emphasizing recent and projected changes in the Arctic pack ice. The amount and time evolution of open water and thin ice are important factors that influence ocean-ice-atmosphere chemical processes. Observations and modeling of the sea-ice thickness distribution function are presented to characterize the range of variability in open water and thin ice.

The IceAge ERS Program: Probing Building blocks of Life During the JWST Era

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McClure, Melissa K.; Boogert, Adwin; Linnartz, Harold; Beck, Tracy L.; van Dishoeck, Ewine; Egami, Eiichi; Garrod, Robin; Gordon, Karl D.; Palumbo, Maria Elisabetta; Brown, Wendy; Fraser, Helen; Ioppolo, Sergio; Jimenez-Serra, Izaskun; McCoustra, Martin; Noble, Jennifer; Pendleton, Yvonne J.; Pontoppidan, Klaus; Viti, Serena; Chiar, Jean E.; Caselli, Paola; Bailey, John Ira; Jorgensen, Jes; Kristensen, Lars; Murillo, Nadia; Oberg, Karin I.; IceAge ERS Team Collaborators

2018-06-01

Icy grain mantles are the main reservoir for volatile elements in star-forming regions across the Universe, as well as the formation site of pre-biotic complex organic molecules (COMs) seen in our Solar System. Through the IceAge Early Release Science program, we will trace the evolution of pristine and complex ice chemistry in a representative low-mass star-forming region through observations of a: pre-stellar core, Class 0 protostar, Class I protostar, and protoplanetary disk. Comparing high spectral resolution (R~1500-3000) and sensitivity (S/N~100-300) observations from 3 to 15 micron to template spectra, we will map the spatial distribution of ices down to ~20-50 AU in these targets to identify when, and at what visual extinction, the formation of each ice species begins. Such high-resolution spectra will allow us to search for new COMs, as well as distinguish between different ice morphologies, thermal histories, and mixing environments.The analysis of these data will result in science products beneficial to Cycle 2 proposers. A newly updated public laboratory ice database will provide feature identifications for all of the expected ices, while a chemical model fit to the observed ice abundances will be released publically as a grid, with varied metallicity and UV fields to simulate other environments. We will create improved algorithms to extract NIRCAM WFSS spectra in crowded fields with extended sources as well as optimize the defringing of MIRI LRS spectra in order to recover broad spectral features. We anticipate that these resources will be particularly useful for astrochemistry and spectroscopy of fainter, extended targets like star forming regions of the SMC/LMC or more distant galaxies.

Cavitation and water fluxes driven by ice water potential in Juglans regia during freeze–thaw cycles

PubMed Central

Charra-Vaskou, Katline; Badel, Eric; Charrier, Guillaume; Ponomarenko, Alexandre; Bonhomme, Marc; Foucat, Loïc; Mayr, Stefan; Améglio, Thierry

2016-01-01

Freeze–thaw cycles induce major hydraulic changes due to liquid-to-ice transition within tree stems. The very low water potential at the ice–liquid interface is crucial as it may cause lysis of living cells as well as water fluxes and embolism in sap conduits, which impacts whole tree–water relations. We investigated water fluxes induced by ice formation during freeze–thaw cycles in Juglans regia L. stems using four non-invasive and complementary approaches: a microdendrometer, magnetic resonance imaging, X-ray microtomography, and ultrasonic acoustic emissions analysis. When the temperature dropped, ice nucleation occurred, probably in the cambium or pith areas, inducing high water potential gradients within the stem. The water was therefore redistributed within the stem toward the ice front. We could thus observe dehydration of the bark’s living cells leading to drastic shrinkage of this tissue, as well as high tension within wood conduits reaching the cavitation threshold in sap vessels. Ultrasonic emissions, which were strictly emitted only during freezing, indicated cavitation events (i.e. bubble formation) following ice formation in the xylem sap. However, embolism formation (i.e. bubble expansion) in stems was observed only on thawing via X-ray microtomography for the first time on the same sample. Ultrasonic emissions were detected during freezing and were not directly related to embolism formation. These results provide new insights into the complex process and dynamics of water movements and ice formation during freeze–thaw cycles in tree stems. PMID:26585223

The little ice age as recorded in the stratigraphy of the tropical quelccaya ice cap.

PubMed

Thompson, L G; Mosley-Thompson, E; Dansgaard, W; Grootes, P M

1986-10-17

The analyses of two ice cores from a southern tropical ice cap provide a record of climatic conditions over 1000 years for a region where other proxy records are nearly absent. Annual variations in visible dust layers, oxygen isotopes, microparticle concentrations, conductivity, and identification of the historical (A.D. 1600) Huaynaputina ash permit accurate dating and time-scale verification. The fact that the Little Ice Age (about A.D. 1500 to 1900) stands out as a significant climatic event in the oxygen isotope and electrical conductivity records confirms the worldwide character of this event.

Volcanic Eruptions as the Cause of the Little Ice Age

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zambri, B.; Robock, A.

2017-12-01

Both external forcing (solar radiation, volcanic eruptions) and internal fluctuations have been proposed to explain such multi-centennial perturbations as the Little Ice Age. Confidence in these hypotheses is limited due to the limited number of proxies, as well as only one observed realization of the Last Millennium. Here, we evaluate different hypotheses on the origin of Little Ice Age-like anomalies, focusing in particular on the long-term response of North Atlantic and Arctic climate perturbations to solar and volcanic perturbations. For that, we conduct a range of sensitivity tests carried out with the Community Earth System Model (CESM) at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, focusing in particular on the sensitivity to initial conditions and the strength of solar and volcanic forcing. By comparing the climate response to various combinations of external perturbations, we demonstrate nonlinear interactions that are necessary to explain trends observed in the fully coupled system and discuss physical mechanisms through which these external forcings can trigger multidecadal modes of the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation and subsequently lead to a Little-Ice-Age-like regime. For that, we capture and compare patterns of the coupled atmosphere-sea-ice-ocean response as revealed through a range of data analysis techniques. We show that the large 1257 Samalas, 1452 Kuwae, and 1600 Huaynaputina volcanic eruptions were the main causes of the multi-centennial glaciation associated with the Little Ice Age.

Eight glacial cycles from an Antarctic ice core.

PubMed

Augustin, Laurent; Barbante, Carlo; Barnes, Piers R F; Barnola, Jean Marc; Bigler, Matthias; Castellano, Emiliano; Cattani, Olivier; Chappellaz, Jerome; Dahl-Jensen, Dorthe; Delmonte, Barbara; Dreyfus, Gabrielle; Durand, Gael; Falourd, Sonia; Fischer, Hubertus; Flückiger, Jacqueline; Hansson, Margareta E; Huybrechts, Philippe; Jugie, Gérard; Johnsen, Sigfus J; Jouzel, Jean; Kaufmann, Patrik; Kipfstuhl, Josef; Lambert, Fabrice; Lipenkov, Vladimir Y; Littot, Geneviève C; Longinelli, Antonio; Lorrain, Reginald; Maggi, Valter; Masson-Delmotte, Valerie; Miller, Heinz; Mulvaney, Robert; Oerlemans, Johannes; Oerter, Hans; Orombelli, Giuseppe; Parrenin, Frederic; Peel, David A; Petit, Jean-Robert; Raynaud, Dominique; Ritz, Catherine; Ruth, Urs; Schwander, Jakob; Siegenthaler, Urs; Souchez, Roland; Stauffer, Bernhard; Steffensen, Jorgen Peder; Stenni, Barbara; Stocker, Thomas F; Tabacco, Ignazio E; Udisti, Roberto; Van De Wal, Roderik S W; Van Den Broeke, Michiel; Weiss, Jerome; Wilhelms, Frank; Winther, Jan-Gunnar; Wolff, Eric W; Zucchelli, Mario

2004-06-10

The Antarctic Vostok ice core provided compelling evidence of the nature of climate, and of climate feedbacks, over the past 420,000 years. Marine records suggest that the amplitude of climate variability was smaller before that time, but such records are often poorly resolved. Moreover, it is not possible to infer the abundance of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere from marine records. Here we report the recovery of a deep ice core from Dome C, Antarctica, that provides a climate record for the past 740,000 years. For the four most recent glacial cycles, the data agree well with the record from Vostok. The earlier period, between 740,000 and 430,000 years ago, was characterized by less pronounced warmth in interglacial periods in Antarctica, but a higher proportion of each cycle was spent in the warm mode. The transition from glacial to interglacial conditions about 430,000 years ago (Termination V) resembles the transition into the present interglacial period in terms of the magnitude of change in temperatures and greenhouse gases, but there are significant differences in the patterns of change. The interglacial stage following Termination V was exceptionally long--28,000 years compared to, for example, the 12,000 years recorded so far in the present interglacial period. Given the similarities between this earlier warm period and today, our results may imply that without human intervention, a climate similar to the present one would extend well into the future.

An investigation of the astronomical theory of the ice ages using a simple climate-ice sheet model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pollard, D.

1978-01-01

The astronomical theory of the Quaternary ice ages is incorporated into a simple climate model for global weather; important features of the model include the albedo feedback, topography and dynamics of the ice sheets. For various parameterizations of the orbital elements, the model yields realistic assessments of the northern ice sheet. Lack of a land-sea heat capacity contrast represents one of the chief difficulties of the model.

The influence of the hydrologic cycle on the extent of sea ice with climatic implications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dean, Ken; Gosink, Joan

1991-01-01

The role was analyzed of the hydrologic cycle on the distribution of sea ice, and its influence on forcings and fluxes between the marine environment and the atmosphere. River discharge plays a significant role in degrading the sea ice before any melting occurs elsewhere along the coast. The influence is considered of river discharge on the albedo, thermal balance, and distribution of sea ice. Quantitative atmospheric-hydrologic models are being developed to describe these processes in the coastal zone. Input for the models will come from satellite images, hydrologic data, and field observations. The resulting analysis provides a basis for the study of the significance of the hydrologic cycle throughout the Arctic Basin and its influence on the regional climate as a result of possible climatic scenarios. The area offshore from the Mackenzie River delta was selected as the study area.

A common and optimized age scale for Antarctic ice cores

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parrenin, F.; Veres, D.; Landais, A.; Bazin, L.; Lemieux-Dudon, B.; Toye Mahamadou Kele, H.; Wolff, E.; Martinerie, P.

2012-04-01

Dating ice cores is a complex problem because 1) there is a age shift between the gas bubbles and the surrounding ice 2) there are many different ice cores which can be synchronized with various proxies and 3) there are many methods to date the ice and the gas bubbles, each with advantages and drawbacks. These methods fall into the following categories: 1) Ice flow (for the ice) and firn densification modelling (for the gas bubbles); 2) Comparison of ice core proxies with insolation variations (so-called orbital tuning methods); 3) Comparison of ice core proxies with other well dated archives; 4) Identification of well-dated horizons, such as tephra layers or geomagnetic anomalies. Recently, an new dating tool has been developped (DATICE, Lemieux-Dudon et al., 2010), to take into account all the different dating information into account and produce a common and optimal chronology for ice cores with estimated confidence intervals. In this talk we will review the different dating information for Antarctic ice cores and show how the DATICE tool can be applied.

Countering Ice Ages: Re-directing Public Concern from Global Warming (GW) to Global Cooling (GC)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singer, S. F.

2016-02-01

I present here three arguments in favor of such a drastic shift - which involves also a shift in current policies, such as mitigation of the greenhouse (GH) gas carbon dioxide. 1. Historical evidence shows that cooling, even on a regional or local scale, is much more damaging than warming. The key threat is to agriculture, leading to failure of harvests, followed by famine, starvation, disease, and mass deaths. 2. Also, GC is reasonably sure, while GW is iffy. The evidence from deep-sea sediment cores and ice cores shows some 17 (Milankovitch-style) glaciations in the past 2 million years, each typically lasting 100,000 years, interrupted by warm inter-glacials, typically around 10,000-yr duration. The most recent glaciation ended rather suddenly about 12,000 years ago. We are now in the warm Holocene, which is expected to end soon. Most of humanity may not survive the next, inevitable glaciation. We need to consider also the warming-cooling (Dansgaard-Oeschger-Bond - DOB) cycles, which seem solar-controlled and have a period of approx 1000-1500 years; its most recent cooling phase, the "Little Ice Age" (LIA), ended about 200 years ago. For details, see Unstoppable Global Warming: Every 1500 years by Singer &Avery [2007]. 3. Available technology seems adequate to assure human survival - at least in industrialized nations. The main threat is warfare, driven by competition for food and other essential resources. With nuclear weapons and delivery systems widely dispersed, the outcome of future wars is difficult to predict. Using geo-engineering to overcome a future cooling looks promising for both types of ice ages - with relatively low cost and low risk to the physical and biological environment. I will describe how to neutralize the "trigger" of major glaciations, and propose a particular greenhouse scheme that may counter the cooling phase of DOB cycles.

Simulation of the Greenland Ice Sheet over two glacial-interglacial cycles: investigating a sub-ice-shelf melt parameterization and relative sea level forcing in an ice-sheet-ice-shelf model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bradley, Sarah L.; Reerink, Thomas J.; van de Wal, Roderik S. W.; Helsen, Michiel M.

2018-05-01

Observational evidence, including offshore moraines and sediment cores, confirm that at the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) the Greenland ice sheet (GrIS) expanded to a significantly larger spatial extent than seen at present, grounding into Baffin Bay and out onto the continental shelf break. Given this larger spatial extent and its close proximity to the neighbouring Laurentide Ice Sheet (LIS) and Innuitian Ice Sheet (IIS), it is likely these ice sheets will have had a strong non-local influence on the spatial and temporal behaviour of the GrIS. Most previous paleo ice-sheet modelling simulations recreated an ice sheet that either did not extend out onto the continental shelf or utilized a simplified marine ice parameterization which did not fully include the effect of ice shelves or neglected the sensitivity of the GrIS to this non-local bedrock signal from the surrounding ice sheets. In this paper, we investigated the evolution of the GrIS over the two most recent glacial-interglacial cycles (240 ka BP to the present day) using the ice-sheet-ice-shelf model IMAU-ICE. We investigated the solid earth influence of the LIS and IIS via an offline relative sea level (RSL) forcing generated by a glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) model. The RSL forcing governed the spatial and temporal pattern of sub-ice-shelf melting via changes in the water depth below the ice shelves. In the ensemble of simulations, at the glacial maximums, the GrIS coalesced with the IIS to the north and expanded to the continental shelf break to the southwest but remained too restricted to the northeast. In terms of the global mean sea level contribution, at the Last Interglacial (LIG) and LGM the ice sheet added 1.46 and -2.59 m, respectively. This LGM contribution by the GrIS is considerably higher (˜ 1.26 m) than most previous studies whereas the contribution to the LIG highstand is lower (˜ 0.7 m). The spatial and temporal behaviour of the northern margin was highly variable in all simulations

Effect of photochemical aging on the ice nucleation properties of diesel and wood burning particles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chou, C.; Stetzer, O.; Tritscher, T.; Chirico, R.; Heringa, M. F.; Kanji, Z. A.; Weingartner, E.; Prévôt, A. S. H.; Baltensperger, U.; Lohmann, U.

2012-06-01

A measurement campaign (IMBALANCE) was conducted in 2009 and aimed at characterizing the physical and chemical properties of freshly emitted and photochemically aged combustion particles emitted from a log wood burner and diesel vehicles: a EURO3 Opel Astra with a diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC) but no particle filter and a EURO2 Volkswagen Transporter TDI Syncro with no emission after-treatment. Ice nucleation experiments in the deposition and condensation freezing modes were conducted with the Portable Ice Nucleation Chamber (PINC) at three nominal temperatures, -30 °C, -35 °C and -40 °C. Freshly emitted diesel particles showed ice formation only at -40 °C in the deposition mode at 137% relative humidity with respect to ice (RHi) and 92% relative humidity with respect to water (RHw), and photochemical aging did not play a role in modifying their ice nucleation behavior. Only one diesel experiment where α-pinene was added, showed an ice nucleation enhancement after the aging at -35 °C. Wood burning particles also act as ice nuclei (IN) at -40 °C in the deposition mode at the same conditions as for diesel particles and photochemical aging did also not alter the ice formation properties of the wood burning particles. Unlike diesel particles, wood burning particles form ice via condensation freezing at -35 °C with no ice nucleation observed at -30 °C for wood burning particles. Photochemical aging did not affect the ice nucleation ability of the diesel and wood burning particles at the three different temperatures investigated but a broader range of temperatures below -30 °C need to be investigated in order to draw an overall conclusion on the effect of photochemical aging on deposition/condensation ice nucleation across the entire temperature range relevant to cold clouds.

Effect of photochemical ageing on the ice nucleation properties of diesel and wood burning particles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chou, C.; Kanji, Z. A.; Stetzer, O.; Tritscher, T.; Chirico, R.; Heringa, M. F.; Weingartner, E.; Prévôt, A. S. H.; Baltensperger, U.; Lohmann, U.

2013-01-01

A measurement campaign (IMBALANCE) conducted in 2009 was aimed at characterizing the physical and chemical properties of freshly emitted and photochemically aged combustion particles emitted from a log wood burner and diesel vehicles: a EURO3 Opel Astra with a diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC) but no particle filter and a EURO2 Volkswagen Transporter TDI Syncro without emission aftertreatment. Ice nucleation experiments in the deposition and condensation freezing modes were conducted with the Portable Ice Nucleation Chamber (PINC) at three nominal temperatures, -30 °C, -35 °C and -40 °C. Freshly emitted diesel particles showed ice formation only at -40 °C in the deposition mode at 137% relative humidity with respect to ice (RHi) and 92% relative humidity with respect to water (RHw), and photochemical ageing did not play a role in modifying their ice nucleation behaviour. Only one diesel experiment where α-pinene was added for the ageing process, showed an ice nucleation enhancement at -35 °C. Wood burning particles also act as ice nuclei (IN) at -40 °C in the deposition mode at the same conditions as for diesel particles and photochemical ageing also did not alter the ice formation properties of the wood burning particles. Unlike diesel particles, wood burning particles form ice via condensation freezing at -35 °C whereas no ice nucleation was observed at -30 °C. Photochemical ageing did not affect the ice nucleation ability of the diesel and wood burning particles at the three different temperatures investigated but a broader range of temperatures below -40 °C need to be investigated in order to draw an overall conclusion on the effect of photochemical ageing on deposition/condensation ice nucleation across the entire temperature range relevant to cold clouds.

Ice Age Sea Level Change on a Dynamic Earth

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Austermann, J.; Mitrovica, J. X.; Latychev, K.; Rovere, A.; Moucha, R.

2014-12-01

Changes in global mean sea level (GMSL) are a sensitive indicator of climate variability during the current ice age. Reconstructions are largely based on local sea level records, and the mapping to GMSL is computed from simulations of glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) on 1-D Earth models. We argue, using two case studies, that resolving important, outstanding issues in ice age paleoclimate requires a more sophisticated consideration of mantle structure and dynamics. First, we consider the coral record from Barbados, which is widely used to constrain global ice volume changes since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, ~21 ka). Analyses of the record using 1-D viscoelastic Earth models have estimated a GMSL change since LGM of ~120 m, a value at odds with analyses of other far field records, which range from 130-135 m. We revisit the Barbados case using a GIA model that includes laterally varying Earth structure (Austermann et al., Nature Geo., 2013) and demonstrate that neglecting this structure, in particular the high-viscosity slab in the mantle linked to the subduction of the South American plate, has biased (low) previous estimates of GMSL change since LGM by ~10 m. Our analysis brings the Barbados estimate into accord with studies from other far-field sites. Second, we revisit estimates of GMSL during the mid-Pliocene warm period (MPWP, ~3 Ma), which was characterized by temperatures 2-3°C higher than present. The ice volume deficit during this period is a source of contention, with estimates ranging from 0-40 m GMSL equivalent. We argue that refining estimates of ice volume during MPWP requires a correction for mantle flow induced dynamic topography (DT; Rowley et al., Science, 2013), a signal neglected in previous studies of ice age sea level change. We present estimates of GIA- and DT-corrected elevations of MPWP shorelines from the U.S. east coast, Australia and South Africa in an attempt to reconcile these records with a single GMSL value.

Ice sheet runoff and Dansgaard-Oeschger Cycles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hewitt, Ian; Wolff, Eric; Fowler, Andrew; Clark, Chris; Evatt, Geoff; Johnson, Helen; Munday, David; Rickaby, Ros; Stokes, Chris

2016-04-01

Many northern hemisphere climate records, particularly those from around the North Atlantic, show a series of rapid climate changes that recurred on centennial to millennial timescales throughout most of the last glacial period. These Dansgaard-Oeschger (D-O) sequences are observed most prominently in Greenland ice cores, although they have a global signature, including an out of phase Antarctic signal. They consist of warming jumps of order 10°C, occurring in typically 40 years, followed generally by a slow cooling (Greenland Interstadial, GI) lasting between a few centuries and a few millennia, and then a final rapid temperature drop into a cold Greenland Stadial (GS) that lasts for a similar period. Most explanations for D-O events call on changes in Atlantic meridional overturning circulation strength, and the majority of such explanations use changes in freshwater delivery from ice sheets as a trigger. Many have relied on large inputs of freshwater from singular events (such as lake outbursts or iceberg armadas) to push the AMOC into its cold state. However the evidence for such events at the right time in each cycle is sparse. Here we investigate mechanisms that would arise from a change in the rate of ice sheet runoff, which would be a natural feedback from each rapid warming or cooling event. Recent work has suggested that AMOC is most easily disrupted by freshwater delivered through the Arctic. We investigate whether the proposed AMOC changes could have occurred as part of a natural oscillation, in which runoff from the Laurentide ice sheet into the Arctic is controlled by temperature around the North Atlantic. The Arctic buffers the salinity changes, but under warm conditions, high runoff eventually leads to water entering the North Atlantic with low enough salinity to switch AMOC into its weaker state. Under the colder conditions now prevailing, the Arctic is starved of runoff, and the salinity rises until a further switch occurs. Contrary to many

Simple energy balance model resolving the seasons and the continents - Application to the astronomical theory of the ice ages

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

North, G. R.; Short, D. A.; Mengel, J. G.

1983-01-01

An analysis is undertaken of the properties of a one-level seasonal energy balance climate model having explicit, two-dimensional land-sea geography, where land and sea surfaces are strictly distinguished by the local thermal inertia employed and transport is governed by a smooth, latitude-dependent diffusion mechanism. Solutions of the seasonal cycle for the cases of both ice feedback exclusion and inclusion yield good agreements with real data, using minimal turning of the adjustable parameters. Discontinuous icecap growth is noted for both a solar constant that is lower by a few percent and a change of orbital elements to favor cool Northern Hemisphere summers. This discontinuous sensitivity is discussed in the context of the Milankovitch theory of the ice ages, and the associated branch structure is shown to be analogous to the 'small ice cap' instability of simpler models.

Ice age True Polar Wander: raising debates and new analyses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sabadini, Roberto; Cambiotti, Gabriele; Ricard, Yanick

2010-05-01

Issues related to long time scale instability in the Earth's rotation, named True Polar Wander (TPW), have continuously been debated, after the pioneering works of the sixties. Since Maxwell Earth models with elastic or high viscosity viscoelastic lithospheres predict different ice-age TPW in the lower mantle viscosity range 1021 - 1022 Pa s, it has been recently suggested that the observed fluid Love number should be used to describe the initial equatorial bulge rather than the tidal fluid limit resulting from the viscoelastic modelling itself. We show that different ice-age TPW predictions have to be expected due to the dependence of TPW on the Earth's initial state, characterized by a larger and stress-free equatorial bulge for the viscoelastic lithosphere, compared to the elastic one, and that there is no shortcomings or errors in the traditional approach based on the use of tidal Love number from the model. The use of the observed fluid Love number represents in fact a simplified attempt to couple the effects on TPW from mantle convection and glacial forcing, by including the non-hydrostatic flattening due to mantle convection but not its driving part. This partial coupling freezes in space the non-hydrostatic contribution due to mantle convection, thus damping the present-day ice-age TPW and forcing the axis of instantaneous rotation to come back to its initial position when ice ages started. In this perspective, we discuss the implication of self-consistent convection calculations of the non-hydrostatic contribution and its impact on the long-term Earth's rotation stability during ice-age. We develop a full compressible model, based on the numerical integration in the radial variable of the momentum and Poisson equations and on the contour integration in the Laplace domain, which allows us to deal with the non-modal contribution from continuous radial rheological variations. We quantify the effects of the compressible rheology, compared to the widely used

Stratospheric and solar cycle effects on long-term variability of mesospheric ice clouds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lübken, F.-J.; Berger, U.; Baumgarten, G.

2009-11-01

Model results of mesospheric ice layers and background conditions at 69°N from 1961 to 2008 are analyzed. The model nudges to European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts data below ˜45 km. Greenhouse gas concentrations in the mesosphere are kept constant. At polar mesospheric cloud (PMC) altitudes (83 km) temperatures decrease until the mid 1990s by -0.08 K/yr resulting in trends of PMC brightness, occurrence rates, and, to a lesser extent, in PMC altitudes (-0.0166 km/yr). Ice layer trends are consistent with observations by ground-based and satellite instruments. Water vapor increases at PMC heights and decreases above due to increased freeze-drying caused by the temperature trend. Temperature trends in the mesosphere mainly come from shrinking of the stratosphere and from dynamical effects. A solar cycle modulation of H2O is observed in the model consistent with satellite observations. The effect on ice layers is reduced because of redistribution of H2O by freeze-drying. The accidental coincidence of low temperatures and solar cycle minimum in the mid 1990s leads to an overestimation of solar effects on ice layers. A strong correlation between temperatures and PMC altitudes is observed. Applied to historical measurements this gives negligible temperature trends at PMC altitudes (˜0.01-0.02 K/yr). Strong correlations between PMC parameters and background conditions deduced from the model confirm the standard scenario of PMC formation. The PMC sensitivity on temperatures, water vapor, and Ly-α is investigated. PMC heights show little variation with background parameters whereas brightness and occurrence rates show large variations. None of the background parameters can be ignored regarding its influence on ice layers.

Stratospheric and solar cycle effects on long-term variability of mesospheric ice clouds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lübken, F.-J.; Berger, U.; Baumgarten, G.

2009-01-01

Model results of mesospheric ice layers and background conditions at 69°N from 1961 to 2008 are analyzed. The model nudges to European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts data below ˜45 km. Greenhouse gas concentrations in the mesosphere are kept constant. At polar mesospheric cloud (PMC) altitudes (83 km) temperatures decrease until the mid 1990s by -0.08 K/yr resulting in trends of PMC brightness, occurrence rates, and, to a lesser extent, in PMC altitudes (-0.0166 km/yr). Ice layer trends are consistent with observations by ground-based and satellite instruments. Water vapor increases at PMC heights and decreases above due to increased freeze-drying caused by the temperature trend. Temperature trends in the mesosphere mainly come from shrinking of the stratosphere and from dynamical effects. A solar cycle modulation of H2O is observed in the model consistent with satellite observations. The effect on ice layers is reduced because of redistribution of H2O by freeze-drying. The accidental coincidence of low temperatures and solar cycle minimum in the mid 1990s leads to an overestimation of solar effects on ice layers. A strong correlation between temperatures and PMC altitudes is observed. Applied to historical measurements this gives negligible temperature trends at PMC altitudes (˜0.01-0.02 K/yr). Strong correlations between PMC parameters and background conditions deduced from the model confirm the standard scenario of PMC formation. The PMC sensitivity on temperatures, water vapor, and Ly-α is investigated. PMC heights show little variation with background parameters whereas brightness and occurrence rates show large variations. None of the background parameters can be ignored regarding its influence on ice layers.

Ice-age megafauna in Arctic Alaska: extinction, invasion, survival

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mann, Daniel H.; Groves, Pamela; Kunz, Michael L.; Reanier, Richard E.; Gaglioti, Benjamin V.

2013-01-01

Radical restructuring of the terrestrial, large mammal fauna living in arctic Alaska occurred between 14,000 and 10,000 years ago at the end of the last ice age. Steppe bison, horse, and woolly mammoth became extinct, moose and humans invaded, while muskox and caribou persisted. The ice age megafauna was more diverse in species and possibly contained 6× more individual animals than live in the region today. Megafaunal biomass during the last ice age may have been 30× greater than present. Horse was the dominant species in terms of number of individuals. Lions, short-faced bears, wolves, and possibly grizzly bears comprised the predator/scavenger guild. The youngest mammoth so far discovered lived ca 13,800 years ago, while horses and bison persisted on the North Slope until at least 12,500 years ago during the Younger Dryas cold interval. The first people arrived on the North Slope ca 13,500 years ago. Bone-isotope measurements and foot-loading characteristics suggest megafaunal niches were segregated along a moisture gradient, with the surviving species (muskox and caribou) utilizing the warmer and moister portions of the vegetation mosaic. As the ice age ended, the moisture gradient shifted and eliminated habitats utilized by the dryland, grazing species (bison, horse, mammoth). The proximate cause for this change was regional paludification, the spread of organic soil horizons and peat. End-Pleistocene extinctions in arctic Alaska represent local, not global extinctions since the megafaunal species lost there persisted to later times elsewhere. Hunting seems unlikely as the cause of these extinctions, but it cannot be ruled out as the final blow to megafaunal populations that were already functionally extinct by the time humans arrived in the region.

Ice-age megafauna in Arctic Alaska: extinction, invasion, survival

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mann, Daniel H.; Groves, Pamela; Kunz, Michael L.; Reanier, Richard E.; Gaglioti, Benjamin V.

2013-06-01

Radical restructuring of the terrestrial, large mammal fauna living in arctic Alaska occurred between 14,000 and 10,000 years ago at the end of the last ice age. Steppe bison, horse, and woolly mammoth became extinct, moose and humans invaded, while muskox and caribou persisted. The ice age megafauna was more diverse in species and possibly contained 6× more individual animals than live in the region today. Megafaunal biomass during the last ice age may have been 30× greater than present. Horse was the dominant species in terms of number of individuals. Lions, short-faced bears, wolves, and possibly grizzly bears comprised the predator/scavenger guild. The youngest mammoth so far discovered lived ca 13,800 years ago, while horses and bison persisted on the North Slope until at least 12,500 years ago during the Younger Dryas cold interval. The first people arrived on the North Slope ca 13,500 years ago. Bone-isotope measurements and foot-loading characteristics suggest megafaunal niches were segregated along a moisture gradient, with the surviving species (muskox and caribou) utilizing the warmer and moister portions of the vegetation mosaic. As the ice age ended, the moisture gradient shifted and eliminated habitats utilized by the dryland, grazing species (bison, horse, mammoth). The proximate cause for this change was regional paludification, the spread of organic soil horizons and peat. End-Pleistocene extinctions in arctic Alaska represent local, not global extinctions since the megafaunal species lost there persisted to later times elsewhere. Hunting seems unlikely as the cause of these extinctions, but it cannot be ruled out as the final blow to megafaunal populations that were already functionally extinct by the time humans arrived in the region.

Ice Age Reboot: Thermohaline Circulation Crisis during the Mid-Pleistocene Transition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pena, L.; Goldstein, S. L.

2014-12-01

The mid-Pleistocene transition (MPT) marked a fundamental change in glacial-interglacial periodicity, when it increased from ~41- to 100-kyr cycles and developed higher amplitude climate variability. Because it took place without significant changes in the Milankovitch forcing, this fundamental change must reflect either non-linear responses of the climate system to these external forcings, or internal changes in the ocean-atmosphere-cryosphere system that led to longer periodicities and more intense glacial periods. We document using Nd isotopes a major disruption of the ocean thermohaline circulation (THC) system during the MPT between MIS 25-21 at ~950-860 ka, which effectively marks the first 100-kyr cycle, including an exceptional weakening through critical interglacial MIS 23 at ~900 ka. The data are from ODP Sites 1088 (41°8.163'S, 13°33.77'E, 2082m) and 1090 (42°54.82'S, 8°53.98E', 3702m) in the SE Atlantic Subantarctic Zone, near the upper and lower boundaries of NADW and Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW). Given evidence for nearly stable NADW and North Pacific Water (NPW) ɛNd-values over the last 2 Ma, we interpret the ɛNd variations to reflect changes in the NADW:NPW mixing fractions. During the studied pre-MPT 41-kyr world (MIS 31-25, 1,100-950 ka), at both sites the differences in glacial and interglacial ɛNd-values are small, indicating strong glacial as well as interglacial export of NADW. A major weakening of NADW export occurred during MIS 24-22, including MIS 23, which is unique as the only known interglacial in which the THC did not strengthen, and thus can be considered as a 'trans-glacial' period. The recovery into the post-MPT 100-kyr world is characterized by continued weak glacial THC. We conclude that the MPT ocean circulation crisis 'rebooted' the pacing and intensity of ice ages and facilitated the coeval drawdown of atmospheric CO2 and high latitude ice sheet growth, generating the conditions that stabilized 100-kyr cycles.

Hydrophobic durability characteristics of butterfly wing surface after freezing cycles towards the design of nature inspired anti-icing surfaces

PubMed Central

Choy, Kwang-Leong

2018-01-01

The hydrophobicity and anti-icing performance of the surfaces of some artificial hydrophobic coatings degraded after several icing and de-icing cycles. In this paper, the frost formation on the surfaces of butterfly wings from ten different species was observed, and the contact angles were measured after 0 to 6 frosting/defrosting cycles. The results show that no obvious changes in contact angle for the butterfly wing specimens were not obvious during the frosting/defrosting process. Further, the conclusion was inferred that the topography of the butterfly wing surface forms a special space structure which has a larger space inside that can accommodate more frozen droplets; this behavior prevents destruction of the structure. The findings of this study may provide a basis and new concepts for the design of novel industrially important surfaces to inhibit frost/ice growth, such as durable anti-icing coatings, which may decrease or prevent the socio-economic loss. PMID:29385390

Hydrophobic durability characteristics of butterfly wing surface after freezing cycles towards the design of nature inspired anti-icing surfaces.

PubMed

Chen, Tingkun; Cong, Qian; Qi, Yingchun; Jin, Jingfu; Choy, Kwang-Leong

2018-01-01

The hydrophobicity and anti-icing performance of the surfaces of some artificial hydrophobic coatings degraded after several icing and de-icing cycles. In this paper, the frost formation on the surfaces of butterfly wings from ten different species was observed, and the contact angles were measured after 0 to 6 frosting/defrosting cycles. The results show that no obvious changes in contact angle for the butterfly wing specimens were not obvious during the frosting/defrosting process. Further, the conclusion was inferred that the topography of the butterfly wing surface forms a special space structure which has a larger space inside that can accommodate more frozen droplets; this behavior prevents destruction of the structure. The findings of this study may provide a basis and new concepts for the design of novel industrially important surfaces to inhibit frost/ice growth, such as durable anti-icing coatings, which may decrease or prevent the socio-economic loss.

Biogeochemical Cycling and Sea Ice Dynamics in the Bering Sea across the Mid-Pleistocene Transition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Detlef, H.; Sosdian, S. M.; Belt, S. T.; Smik, L.; Lear, C. H.; Hall, I. R.; Kender, S.; Leng, M. J.; Husum, K.; Cabedo-Sanz, P.

2017-12-01

Today the Bering Sea is characterized by high primary productivity (PP) along the eastern shelf, maintained by CO2 and nutrient rich upwelled deep waters and nutrient release during spring sea ice melting. As such, low oxygen concentrations are pervasive in mid-depth waters. Changes in ventilation and export productivity in the past have been shown to impact this oxygen minimum zone. On glacial/interglacial (G/IG) timescales sea ice formation plays a pivotal role on intermediate water ventilation with evidence pointing to the formation of North Pacific Intermediate Water (NPIW) in the Bering Sea during Pleistocene glacial intervals. In addition, sea ice plays a significant role in both long- and short-term climate change via associated feedback mechanisms. Thus, records of sea ice dynamics and biogeochemical cycling in the Bering Sea are necessary to fully understand the interaction between PP, circulation patterns, and past G/IG climates with potential implications for the North Pacific carbon cycle. Here we use a multi-proxy approach to study sea ice dynamics and bottom water oxygenation, across three intervals prior to, across, and after the Mid-Pleistocene Transition (MPT, 1.2-0.7 Ma) from International Ocean Discovery Program Site U1343. The MPT, most likely driven by internal climate mechanisms, is ideal to study changes in sea ice dynamics and sedimentary redox conditions on orbital timescales and to investigate the implications for associated feedback mechanisms. The sea ice record, based on various biomarkers, including IP25, shows substantial increase in sea ice extent across the MPT and the occurrence of a late-glacial/deglacial sea ice spike, with consequences for glacial NPIW formation and land glacier retreat via the temperature-precipitation feedback. U/Mn of foraminiferal authigenic coatings, a novel proxy for bottom water oxygenation, also shows distinct variability on G/IG timescales across the MPT, most likely a result of PP and water mass

New insights into West Greenland ice sheet/stream dynamics during the last glacial cycle.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roberts, David; Lane, Tim; Rea, Brice; Cofaigh, Colm O.; Jamieson, Stewart; Vieli, Andreas; Rodes, Angel

2015-04-01

Onshore and offshore geomorphological mapping and deglacial chronologies from West Greenland constrain the nature and magnitude of ice advance and decay of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) during the last glacial cycle. Several ice stream troughs are known to have fed ice to the shelf edge during the last glacial cycle. Their offshore expression suggests that many were coalescent systems fed by smaller outlet glaciers and ice streams onshore but their central flow pathways were also controlled by geology and preglacial topography. The bed morphology of these large ice streams shows they operated over soft, deforming beds with drumlins, mega-scale glacial lineations and grounding zone wedges marking an offshore transition from predominant areal scour onshore. Records of offshore deglacial chronology remain sparse but the Uummannaq and Disko Bugt ice stream corridors are now well constrained. The Uummannaq ice stream (UIS) completely deglaciated from the continental shelf between 14.8 ka and 11.0 ka in response to rising air temperatures, increasing JJA solar radiation and sea-level rise, but temporary standstills and the asynchronous retreat history of its feeder zones suggest that topography/bathymetry strongly modulated retreat rates as ice became 'locked' back into the coastal fjord system. Initial reconstructions of behaviour UIS discounted an oceanic role in early deglaciation and favoured retreat from the mid-shelf and inner-shelf prior to the Younger Dryas but both these concepts remain under investigation. In Disko Bugt, Jakobshavn Isbrae deglaciated later than the UIS and remained on the outer shelf during the Younger Dyras stadial (12.8 - 11.7 cal. kyrs BP) only reaching in the inner coast fjords at approximately 10.0 ka. The later deglaciation of the Disko system (despite similar external forcing mechanisms) was controlled by regional topographic/bathymetric contrasts in their respective trough morphologies. This hypothesis is supported by recent model

Differences Between Surface Ice Deposits at the Poles of Mercury and the Moon: Insights into Ages of the Ice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deutsch, A. N.; Head, J. W.; Neumann, G. A.

2018-05-01

The poles of Mercury and the Moon both show evidence for water ice, but the deposits on Mercury have a greater areal distribution and a more pure concentration. We explore how these differences may be related to the ages of the ice.

Response of a comprehensive climate model to a broad range of external forcings: relevance for deep ocean ventilation and the development of late Cenozoic ice ages

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Galbraith, Eric; de Lavergne, Casimir

2018-03-01

Over the past few million years, the Earth descended from the relatively warm and stable climate of the Pliocene into the increasingly dramatic ice age cycles of the Pleistocene. The influences of orbital forcing and atmospheric CO2 on land-based ice sheets have long been considered as the key drivers of the ice ages, but less attention has been paid to their direct influences on the circulation of the deep ocean. Here we provide a broad view on the influences of CO2, orbital forcing and ice sheet size according to a comprehensive Earth system model, by integrating the model to equilibrium under 40 different combinations of the three external forcings. We find that the volume contribution of Antarctic (AABW) vs. North Atlantic (NADW) waters to the deep ocean varies widely among the simulations, and can be predicted from the difference between the surface densities at AABW and NADW deep water formation sites. Minima of both the AABW-NADW density difference and the AABW volume occur near interglacial CO2 (270-400 ppm). At low CO2, abundant formation and northward export of sea ice in the Southern Ocean contributes to very salty and dense Antarctic waters that dominate the global deep ocean. Furthermore, when the Earth is cold, low obliquity (i.e. a reduced tilt of Earth's rotational axis) enhances the Antarctic water volume by expanding sea ice further. At high CO2, AABW dominance is favoured due to relatively warm subpolar North Atlantic waters, with more dependence on precession. Meanwhile, a large Laurentide ice sheet steers atmospheric circulation as to strengthen the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, but cools the Southern Ocean remotely, enhancing Antarctic sea ice export and leading to very salty and expanded AABW. Together, these results suggest that a `sweet spot' of low CO2, low obliquity and relatively small ice sheets would have poised the AMOC for interruption, promoting Dansgaard-Oeschger-type abrupt change. The deep ocean temperature and

Life and extinction of megafauna in the ice-age Arctic

PubMed Central

Mann, Daniel H.; Groves, Pamela; Reanier, Richard E.; Gaglioti, Benjamin V.; Kunz, Michael L.; Shapiro, Beth

2015-01-01

Understanding the population dynamics of megafauna that inhabited the mammoth steppe provides insights into the causes of extinctions during both the terminal Pleistocene and today. Our study area is Alaska's North Slope, a place where humans were rare when these extinctions occurred. After developing a statistical approach to remove the age artifacts caused by radiocarbon calibration from a large series of dated megafaunal bones, we compare the temporal patterns of bone abundance with climate records. Megafaunal abundance tracked ice age climate, peaking during transitions from cold to warm periods. These results suggest that a defining characteristic of the mammoth steppe was its temporal instability and imply that regional extinctions followed by population reestablishment from distant refugia were characteristic features of ice-age biogeography at high latitudes. It follows that long-distance dispersal was crucial for the long-term persistence of megafaunal species living in the Arctic. Such dispersal was only possible when their rapidly shifting range lands were geographically interconnected. The end of the last ice age was fatally unique because the geographic ranges of arctic megafauna became permanently fragmented after stable, interglacial climate engendered the spread of peatlands at the same time that rising sea level severed former dispersal routes. PMID:26578776

Out of Tibet: Pliocene woolly rhino suggests high-plateau origin of Ice Age megaherbivores.

PubMed

Deng, Tao; Wang, Xiaoming; Fortelius, Mikael; Li, Qiang; Wang, Yang; Tseng, Zhijie J; Takeuchi, Gary T; Saylor, Joel E; Säilä, Laura K; Xie, Guangpu

2011-09-02

Ice Age megafauna have long been known to be associated with global cooling during the Pleistocene, and their adaptations to cold environments, such as large body size, long hair, and snow-sweeping structures, are best exemplified by the woolly mammoths and woolly rhinos. These traits were assumed to have evolved as a response to the ice sheet expansion. We report a new Pliocene mammal assemblage from a high-altitude basin in the western Himalayas, including a primitive woolly rhino. These new Tibetan fossils suggest that some megaherbivores first evolved in Tibet before the beginning of the Ice Age. The cold winters in high Tibet served as a habituation ground for the megaherbivores, which became preadapted for the Ice Age, successfully expanding to the Eurasian mammoth steppe.

77 FR 14567 - Draft General Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement for the Ice Age Complex at Cross...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-03-12

... Impact Statement for the Ice Age Complex at Cross Plains, Cross Plains, Wisconsin AGENCY: National Park... General Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement for the Ice Age Complex at Cross Plains, Wisconsin... also send comments to Superintendent, Ice Age National Scenic Trail, 700 Rayovac Drive, Suite 100...

Rapid onset of Little Ice Age summer cold in the northern North Atlantic derived from precisely dated ice cap records (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miller, G. H.; Larsen, D.; Geirsdottir, A.; Refsnider, K. A.; Anderson, C.

2009-12-01

Precise radiocarbon dates on dead vegetation emerging beneath retreating non-erosive ice caps in NE Arctic Canada define the onset of ice cap growth, and provide a Holocene context for 20th Century warming. Although most plateau ice caps melted during the Medieval Warm Period, a few that are now disappearing remained intact since at least 350 AD. Little Ice Age ice cap inception occurred in two pulses, centered on 1250-1300 AD and around 1450 AD, with ice caps remaining in an expanded state until the warming of the past few decades. Ice cap inception occurred simultaneously (±10 years) over a 200 m elevational range, suggesting an abrupt onset of Little Ice Age cold, rather than a slow cooling over many decades. Similarly, a 3000 year annually resolved lacustrine record of glacier power and a complementary independent proxy for landscape instability in the highlands of central Iceland show an initial jump in both glacier power and landscape instability between 1250 and 1300 AD, with a second step-increase around 1450 AD, and dramatic increases in both proxies around 1800 AD, retracting in the 20th Century. A sub-decadal record of hillslope stability and within-lake primary productivity in sediments from a low-elevation lake in northern Iceland shows parallel changes at similar times. Sea ice proxies and historical records document the first appearance of sea ice around Iceland following Medieval time about 1250 AD. The similarity in the onset and intensification of Little Ice Age cold-weather proxies across a wide region of the northern North Atlantic suggests at least a regional driver of abrupt climate change. The time intervals for which these abrupt changes occur coincide with the three most intense episodes of multiple explosive volcanic eruptions that introduced large volumes of sulfate aerosols into the stratosphere during the past millennium. Although the direct impacts of volcanic aerosols have a duration of only a few years, the memory stored by the

Thermodynamic Analysis of a Rankine Cycle Powered Vapor Compression Ice Maker Using Solar Energy

PubMed Central

Hu, Bing; Bu, Xianbiao; Ma, Weibin

2014-01-01

To develop the organic Rankine-vapor compression ice maker driven by solar energy, a thermodynamic model was developed and the effects of generation temperature, condensation temperature, and working fluid types on the system performance were analyzed. The results show that the cooling power per square meter collector and ice production per square meter collector per day depend largely on generation temperature and condensation temperature and they increase firstly and then decrease with increasing generation temperature. For every working fluid there is an optimal generation temperature at which organic Rankine efficiency achieves the maximum value. The cooling power per square meter collector and ice production per square meter collector per day are, respectively, 126.44 W m−2 and 7.61 kg m−2 day−1 at the generation temperature of 140°C for working fluid of R245fa, which demonstrates the feasibility of organic Rankine cycle powered vapor compression ice maker. PMID:25202735

Constraints on ice volume changes of the WAIS and Ross Ice Shelf since the LGM based on cosmogenic exposure ages in the Darwin-Hatherton glacial system of the Transantarctic Mountains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fink, David; Storey, Bryan; Hood, David; Joy, Kurt; Shulmeister, James

2010-05-01

Quantitative assessment of the spatial and temporal scale of ice volume change of the West Antarctic ice sheet (WAIS) and Ross Ice Shelf since the last glacial maximum (LGM) ~20 ka is essential to accurately predict ice sheet response to current and future climate change. Although global sea level rose by approximately 120 metres since the LGM, the contribution of polar ice sheets is uncertain and the timing of any such contribution is controversial. Mackintosh et al (2007) suggest that sectors of the EAIS, similar to those studied at Framnes Mountains where the ice sheet slowly calves at coastal margins, have made marginal contributions to global sea-level rise between 13 and 7 ka. In contrast, Stone et al (2003) document continuing WAIS decay during the mid-late Holocene, raising the question of what was the response of the WAIS since LGM and into the Holocene. Terrestrial evidence is restricted to sparse coastal oasis and ice free mountains which archive limits of former ice advances. Mountain ranges flanking the Darwin-Hatherton glaciers exhibit well-defined moraines, weathering signatures, boulder rich plateaus and glacial tills, which preserve the evidence of advance and retreat of the ice sheet during previous glacial cycles. Previous studies suggest a WAIS at the LGM in this location to be at least 1,000 meters thicker than today. As part of the New Zealand Latitudinal Gradient Project along the Transantarctic, we collected samples for cosmogenic exposure dating at a) Lake Wellman area bordering the Hatherton Glacier, (b) Roadend Nunatak at the confluence of the Darwin and Hatherton glaciers and (c) Diamond Hill which is positioned at the intersection of the Ross Ice Shelf and Darwin Glacier outlet. While the technique of exposure dating is very successful in mid-latitude alpine glacier systems, it is more challenging in polar ice-sheet regions due to the prevalence of cold-based ice over-riding events and absence of outwash processes which removes

Pollen from the Deep-Sea: A Breakthrough in the Mystery of the Ice Ages

PubMed Central

Sánchez Goñi, María F.; Desprat, Stéphanie; Fletcher, William J.; Morales-Molino, César; Naughton, Filipa; Oliveira, Dulce; Urrego, Dunia H.; Zorzi, Coralie

2018-01-01

Pollen from deep-sea sedimentary sequences provides an integrated regional reconstruction of vegetation and climate (temperature, precipitation, and seasonality) on the adjacent continent. More importantly, the direct correlation of pollen, marine and ice indicators allows comparison of the atmospheric climatic changes that have affected the continent with the response of the Earth’s other reservoirs, i.e., the oceans and cryosphere, without any chronological uncertainty. The study of long continuous pollen records from the European margin has revealed a changing and complex interplay between European climate, North Atlantic sea surface temperatures (SSTs), ice growth and decay, and high- and low-latitude forcing at orbital and millennial timescales. These records have shown that the amplitude of the last five terrestrial interglacials was similar above 40°N, while below 40°N their magnitude differed due to precession-modulated changes in seasonality and, particularly, winter precipitation. These records also showed that vegetation response was in dynamic equilibrium with rapid climate changes such as the Dangaard-Oeschger (D-O) cycles and Heinrich events, similar in magnitude and velocity to the ongoing global warming. However, the magnitude of the millennial-scale warming events of the last glacial period was regionally-specific. Precession seems to have imprinted regions below 40°N while obliquity, which controls average annual temperature, probably mediated the impact of D-O warming events above 40°N. A decoupling between high- and low-latitude climate was also observed within last glacial warm (Greenland interstadials) and cold phases (Greenland stadials). The synchronous response of western European vegetation/climate and eastern North Atlantic SSTs to D-O cycles was not a pervasive feature throughout the Quaternary. During periods of ice growth such as MIS 5a/4, MIS 11c/b and MIS 19c/b, repeated millennial-scale cold-air/warm-sea decoupling events

Pollen from the Deep-Sea: A Breakthrough in the Mystery of the Ice Ages.

PubMed

Sánchez Goñi, María F; Desprat, Stéphanie; Fletcher, William J; Morales-Molino, César; Naughton, Filipa; Oliveira, Dulce; Urrego, Dunia H; Zorzi, Coralie

2018-01-01

Pollen from deep-sea sedimentary sequences provides an integrated regional reconstruction of vegetation and climate (temperature, precipitation, and seasonality) on the adjacent continent. More importantly, the direct correlation of pollen, marine and ice indicators allows comparison of the atmospheric climatic changes that have affected the continent with the response of the Earth's other reservoirs, i.e., the oceans and cryosphere, without any chronological uncertainty. The study of long continuous pollen records from the European margin has revealed a changing and complex interplay between European climate, North Atlantic sea surface temperatures (SSTs), ice growth and decay, and high- and low-latitude forcing at orbital and millennial timescales. These records have shown that the amplitude of the last five terrestrial interglacials was similar above 40°N, while below 40°N their magnitude differed due to precession-modulated changes in seasonality and, particularly, winter precipitation. These records also showed that vegetation response was in dynamic equilibrium with rapid climate changes such as the Dangaard-Oeschger (D-O) cycles and Heinrich events, similar in magnitude and velocity to the ongoing global warming. However, the magnitude of the millennial-scale warming events of the last glacial period was regionally-specific. Precession seems to have imprinted regions below 40°N while obliquity, which controls average annual temperature, probably mediated the impact of D-O warming events above 40°N. A decoupling between high- and low-latitude climate was also observed within last glacial warm (Greenland interstadials) and cold phases (Greenland stadials). The synchronous response of western European vegetation/climate and eastern North Atlantic SSTs to D-O cycles was not a pervasive feature throughout the Quaternary. During periods of ice growth such as MIS 5a/4, MIS 11c/b and MIS 19c/b, repeated millennial-scale cold-air/warm-sea decoupling events

Visual-Stratigraphic Dating of the GISP2 Ice Core: Basis, Reproducibility, and Application

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alley, R. B.; Shuman, C. A.; Meese, D. A.; Gow, A. J.; Taylor, K. C.; Cuffey, K. M.; Fitzpatrick, J. J.; Grootes, P. M.; Zielinski, G. A.; Ram, M.;

Visual-stratigraphic dating of the GISP2 ice core: Basis, reproducibility, and application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alley, R. B.; Shuman, C. A.; Meese, D. A.; Gow, A. J.; Taylor, K. C.; Cuffey, K. M.; Fitzpatrick, J. J.; Grootes, P. M.; Zielinski, G. A.; Ram, M.; Spinelli, G.; Elder, B.

1997-11-01

Annual layers are visible in the Greenland Ice Sheet Project 2 ice core from central Greenland, allowing rapid dating of the core. Changes in bubble and grain structure caused by near-surface, primarily summertime formation of hoar complexes provide the main visible annual marker in the Holocene, and changes in "cloudiness" of the ice correlated with dustiness mark Wisconsinan annual cycles; both markers are evident and have been intercalibrated in early Holocene ice. Layer counts are reproducible between different workers and for one worker at different times, with 1% error over century-length times in the Holocene. Reproducibility is typically 5% in Wisconsinan ice-age ice and decreases with increasing age and depth. Cumulative ages from visible stratigraphy are not significantly different from independent ages of prominent events for ice older than the historical record and younger than approximately 50,000 years. Visible observations are not greatly degraded by "brittle ice" or many other core-quality problems, allowing construction of long, consistently sampled time series. High accuracy requires careful study of the core by dedicated observers.

Morphological, Physiological and Skating Performance Profiles of Male Age-Group Elite Ice Hockey Players.

PubMed

Allisse, Maxime; Sercia, Pierre; Comtois, Alain-Steve; Leone, Mario

2017-09-01

The purpose of this study was to describe the evolution of morphological, physiological and skating performance profiles of elite age-group ice hockey players based on repeated measures spread over one season. In addition, the results of fitness tests and training programs performed in off-ice conditions and their relationship with skating performance were analyzed. Eighteen high level age-group ice hockey players (13.1 ± 0.6 years) were assessed off and on-ice at the beginning and at the end of the hockey season. A third evaluation was also conducted at the beginning of the following hockey season. The players were taller, heavier, and showed bone breadths and muscle girths above the reference population of the same age. Muscular variables improved significantly during and between the two hockey seasons (p < 0.05). However, maximal aerobic power improved only during the off-season. All skating performance tests exhibited significant enhancements during the hockey season, but not during the off-season where some degradation was observed. Finally, weak observed variances (generally <20% of the explained variance) between physiological variables measured off-ice and on-ice skating performance tests indicated important gaps, both in the choice of the off-ice assessment tools as well as in training methods conventionally used. The reflection on the best way to assess and train hockey players certainly deserves to be continued.

Morphological, Physiological and Skating Performance Profiles of Male Age-Group Elite Ice Hockey Players

PubMed Central

Allisse, Maxime; Sercia, Pierre; Comtois, Alain-Steve; Leone, Mario

2017-01-01

Abstract The purpose of this study was to describe the evolution of morphological, physiological and skating performance profiles of elite age-group ice hockey players based on repeated measures spread over one season. In addition, the results of fitness tests and training programs performed in off-ice conditions and their relationship with skating performance were analyzed. Eighteen high level age-group ice hockey players (13.1 ± 0.6 years) were assessed off and on-ice at the beginning and at the end of the hockey season. A third evaluation was also conducted at the beginning of the following hockey season. The players were taller, heavier, and showed bone breadths and muscle girths above the reference population of the same age. Muscular variables improved significantly during and between the two hockey seasons (p < 0.05). However, maximal aerobic power improved only during the off-season. All skating performance tests exhibited significant enhancements during the hockey season, but not during the off-season where some degradation was observed. Finally, weak observed variances (generally <20% of the explained variance) between physiological variables measured off-ice and on-ice skating performance tests indicated important gaps, both in the choice of the off-ice assessment tools as well as in training methods conventionally used. The reflection on the best way to assess and train hockey players certainly deserves to be continued. PMID:28828080

Variations in Nutrient Cycling and Meltwater Composition Between Ice-Lidded and Open System Cryoconites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mass, A.

2016-12-01

Cryoconites are small melt pools on the ablation surface of glaciers created by the accumulation of aeolian sediment with a lower albedo than the surrounding ice. While many cryoconites remain open to the surrounding atmosphere, environmental conditions in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica often lead to the formation of dense ice lids due to advection from cold winds. These lidded cryoconites are isolated from atmospheric exchange while maintaining subsurface melt in a solid-state greenhouse. The varying conditions for the formation and freeze-thaw cycle of cryoconites lead to a range of biogeochemical processes occurring within the pools. This study analyzed the biochemistry of both open and lidded cryoconite water from six glaciers in the Dry Valleys throughout the initial pulse melt, equilibrium, and refreezing periods in 2013- 2015. Many of the spatial gradients in carbon cycling, solute concentrations, and pH identified for lidded cryoconites exhibited opposite trends for pools in equilibrium with the atmosphere, while temporal gradients were less diverse for open pools.

CJ2 Icing Effects Simulator. Delivery Order 0019: Development of an Icing Effects Simulation for a Typical Business Jet Configuration

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-08-01

considered were: - Icing protection system failure ice - Inter-cycle (roughness) ice - Run-back ice. The study entailed wind tunnel tests of different...jet that incorporates the effects of various forms of ice. The ice conditions considered were:  Icing protection system failure ice  Inter-cycle...accretions. These were pre-activation roughness, runback shapes that form downstream of the thermal wing ice protection system , and a wing ice

The Effects of Crushed Ice Ingestion Prior to Steady State Exercise in the Heat.

PubMed

Zimmermann, Matthew; Landers, Grant; Wallman, Karen E; Saldaris, Jacinta

2017-06-01

This study examined the physiological effects of crushed ice ingestion before steady state exercise in the heat. Ten healthy males with age (23 ± 3 y), height (176.9 ± 8.7 cm), body-mass (73.5 ± 8.0 kg), VO 2peak (48.5 ± 3.6 mL∙kg∙min -1 ) participated in the study. Participants completed 60 min of cycling at 55% of their VO 2peak preceded by 30 min of precooling whereby 7 g∙kg -1 of thermoneutral water (CON) or crushed ice (ICE) was ingested. The reduction in T c at the conclusion of precooling was greater in ICE (-0.9 ± 0.3 °C) compared with CON (-0.2 ± 0.2 °C) (p ≤ .05). Heat storage capacity was greater in ICE compared with CON after precooling (ICE -29.3 ± 4.8 W∙m -2 ; CON -11.1 ± 7.3 W∙m -2 , p < .05). Total heat storage was greater in ICE compared with CON at the end of the steady state cycle (ICE 62.0 ± 12.5 W∙m-2; CON 49.9 ± 13.4 W∙m -2 , p < .05). Gross efficiency was higher in ICE compared with CON throughout the steady state cycle (ICE 21.4 ± 1.8%; CON 20.4 ± 1.9%, p < .05). Ice ingestion resulted in a lower thermal sensation at the end of precooling and a lower sweat rate during the initial stages of cycling (p < .05). Sweat loss, respiratory exchange ratio, heart rate and ratings of perceived exertion and thirst were similar between conditions (p > .05). Precooling with crushed ice led to improved gross efficiency while cycling due to an increased heat storage capacity, which was the result of a lower core temperature.

Role of ice structuring proteins on freezing-thawing cycles of pasta sauces.

PubMed

Calderara, Marianna; Deorsola, Fabio A; Bensaid, Samir; Fino, Debora; Russo, Nunzio; Geobaldo, Francesco

2016-12-01

The freezing of the food is one of the most important technological developments for the storage of food in terms of quality and safety. The aim of this work was to study the role of an ice structuring protein (ISP) on freezing-thawing cycles of different solutions and commercial Italian pasta sauces. Ice structuring proteins were related to the modification of the structure of ice. The results showed that the freezing time of an aqueous solution containing the protein was reduced to about 20% with respect to a pure water solution. The same effect was demonstrated in sugar-containing solutions and in lipid-containing sauces. The study proved a specific role of ISP during thawing, inducing a time decrease similar to that of freezing and even more important in the case of tomato-based sauces. This work demonstrated the role of ISP in the freezing-thawing process, showing a significant reduction of processing in the freezing and thawing phase by adding the protein to pure water and different sugar-, salt- and lipid-containing solutions and commercial sauces, with considerable benefits for the food industry in terms of costs and food quality.

Cosmogenic nuclide age estimate for Laurentide Ice Sheet recession from the terminal moraine, New Jersey, USA, and constraints on latest Pleistocene ice sheet history

USGS Publications Warehouse

Corbett, Lee B.; Bierman, Paul R.; Stone, Byron D.; Caffee, Marc W.; Larsen, Patrick L.

2017-01-01

The time at which the Laurentide Ice Sheet reached its maximum extent and subsequently retreated from its terminal moraine in New Jersey has been constrained by bracketing radiocarbon ages on preglacial and postglacial sediments. Here, we present measurements of in situ produced 10Be and 26Al in 16 quartz-bearing samples collected from bedrock outcrops and glacial erratics just north of the terminal moraine in north-central New Jersey; as such, our ages represent a minimum limit on the timing of ice recession from the moraine. The data set includes field and laboratory replicates, as well as replication of the entire data set five years after initial measurement. We find that recession of the Laurentide Ice Sheet from the terminal moraine in New Jersey began before 25.2±2.1 ka (10Be, n=16, average, 1 standard deviation). This cosmogenic nuclide exposure age is consistent with existing limiting radiocarbon ages in the study area and cosmogenic nuclide exposure ages from the terminal moraine on Martha’s Vineyard ~300 km to the northeast. The age we propose for Laurentide Ice Sheet retreat from the New Jersey terminal position is broadly consistent with regional and global climate records of the last glacial maximum termination and records of fluvial incision.

Obliquity-paced Pliocene West Antarctic ice sheet oscillations.

PubMed

Naish, T; Powell, R; Levy, R; Wilson, G; Scherer, R; Talarico, F; Krissek, L; Niessen, F; Pompilio, M; Wilson, T; Carter, L; DeConto, R; Huybers, P; McKay, R; Pollard, D; Ross, J; Winter, D; Barrett, P; Browne, G; Cody, R; Cowan, E; Crampton, J; Dunbar, G; Dunbar, N; Florindo, F; Gebhardt, C; Graham, I; Hannah, M; Hansaraj, D; Harwood, D; Helling, D; Henrys, S; Hinnov, L; Kuhn, G; Kyle, P; Läufer, A; Maffioli, P; Magens, D; Mandernack, K; McIntosh, W; Millan, C; Morin, R; Ohneiser, C; Paulsen, T; Persico, D; Raine, I; Reed, J; Riesselman, C; Sagnotti, L; Schmitt, D; Sjunneskog, C; Strong, P; Taviani, M; Vogel, S; Wilch, T; Williams, T

2009-03-19

Thirty years after oxygen isotope records from microfossils deposited in ocean sediments confirmed the hypothesis that variations in the Earth's orbital geometry control the ice ages, fundamental questions remain over the response of the Antarctic ice sheets to orbital cycles. Furthermore, an understanding of the behaviour of the marine-based West Antarctic ice sheet (WAIS) during the 'warmer-than-present' early-Pliocene epoch ( approximately 5-3 Myr ago) is needed to better constrain the possible range of ice-sheet behaviour in the context of future global warming. Here we present a marine glacial record from the upper 600 m of the AND-1B sediment core recovered from beneath the northwest part of the Ross ice shelf by the ANDRILL programme and demonstrate well-dated, approximately 40-kyr cyclic variations in ice-sheet extent linked to cycles in insolation influenced by changes in the Earth's axial tilt (obliquity) during the Pliocene. Our data provide direct evidence for orbitally induced oscillations in the WAIS, which periodically collapsed, resulting in a switch from grounded ice, or ice shelves, to open waters in the Ross embayment when planetary temperatures were up to approximately 3 degrees C warmer than today and atmospheric CO(2) concentration was as high as approximately 400 p.p.m.v. (refs 5, 6). The evidence is consistent with a new ice-sheet/ice-shelf model that simulates fluctuations in Antarctic ice volume of up to +7 m in equivalent sea level associated with the loss of the WAIS and up to +3 m in equivalent sea level from the East Antarctic ice sheet, in response to ocean-induced melting paced by obliquity. During interglacial times, diatomaceous sediments indicate high surface-water productivity, minimal summer sea ice and air temperatures above freezing, suggesting an additional influence of surface melt under conditions of elevated CO(2).

Preservation of Midlatitude Ice Sheets on Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bramson, A. M.; Byrne, S.; Bapst, J.

2017-11-01

Excess ice with a minimum age of tens of millions of years is widespread in Arcadia Planitia on Mars, and a similar deposit has been found in Utopia Planitia. The conditions that led to the formation and preservation of these midlatitude ice sheets hold clues to past climate and subsurface structure on Mars. We simulate the thermal stability and retreat of buried excess ice sheets over 21 Myr of Martian orbital solutions and find that the ice sheets can be orders of magnitude older than the obliquity cycles that are typically thought to drive midlatitude ice deposition and sublimation. Retreat of this ice in the last 4 Myr could have contributed 6% of the volume of the north polar layered deposits (NPLD) and more than 10% if the NPLD are older than 4 Myr. Matching the measured dielectric constants of the Arcadia and Utopia Planitia deposits requires ice porosities of 25-35%. We model geothermally driven vapor migration through porous ice under Martian temperatures and find that Martian firn may be able to maintain porosity for timescales longer than we predict for retreat of the ice.

The Effect of Surface Ice and Topography on the Atmospheric Circulation and Distribution of Nitrogen Ice on Pluto

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rafkin, Scot C. R.; Soto, Alejandro; Michaels, Timothy I.

2016-10-01

A newly developed general circulation model (GCM) for Pluto is used to investigate the impact of a heterogeneous distribution of nitrogen surface ice and large scale topography on Pluto's atmospheric circulation. The GCM is based on the GFDL Flexible Modeling System (FSM). Physics include a gray model radiative-conductive scheme, subsurface conduction, and a nitrogen volatile cycle. The radiative-conductive model takes into account the 2.3, 3.3 and 7.8 μm bands of CH4 and CO, including non-local thermodynamic equilibrium effects. including non-local thermodynamic equilibrium effects. The nitrogen volatile cycle is based on a vapor pressure equilibrium assumption between the atmosphere and surface. Prior to the arrival of the New Horizons spacecraft, the expectation was that the volatile ice distribution on the surface of Pluto would be strongly controlled by the latitudinal temperature gradient. If this were the case, then Pluto would have broad latitudinal bands of both ice covered surface and ice free surface, as dictated by the season. Further, the circulation, and the thus the transport of volatiles, was thought to be driven almost exclusively by sublimation and deposition flows associated with the volatile cycle. In contrast to expectations, images from New Horizon showed an extremely complex, heterogeneous distribution of surface ices draped over substantial and variable topography. To produce such an ice distribution, the atmospheric circulation and volatile transport must be more complex than previously envisioned. Simulations where topography, surface ice distributions, and volatile cycle physics are added individually and in various combinations are used to individually quantify the importance of the general circulation, topography, surface ice distributions, and condensation flows. It is shown that even regional patches of ice or large craters can have global impacts on the atmospheric circulation, the volatile cycle, and hence, the distribution of

Tradition and Technology: Sea Ice Science on Inuit Sleds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilkinson, Jeremy P.; Hanson, Susanne; Hughes, Nick E.; James, Alistair; Jones, Bryn; MacKinnon, Rory; Rysgaard, Søren; Toudal, Leif

2011-01-01

The Arctic is home to a circumpolar community of native people whose culture and traditions have enabled them to thrive in what most would perceive as a totally inhospitable and untenable environment. In many ways, sea ice can be viewed as the glue that binds these northern communities together; it is utilized in all aspects of their daily life. Sea ice acts as highways of the north; indeed, one can travel on these highways with dogsleds and snowmobiles. These travels over the frozen ocean occur at all periods of the sea ice cycle and over different ice types and ages. Excursions may be hunting trips to remote regions or social visits to nearby villages. Furthermore, hunting on the sea ice contributes to the health, culture, and commercial income of a community.

The Mars Dust Cycle: Investigating the Effects of Radiatively Active Water Ice Clouds on Surface Stresses and Dust Lifting Potential with the NASA Ames Mars General Circulation Model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kahre, Melinda A.; Hollingsworth, Jeffery

2012-01-01

The dust cycle is a critically important component of Mars' current climate system. Dust is present in the atmosphere of Mars year-round but the dust loading varies with season in a generally repeatable manner. Dust has a significant influence on the thermal structure of the atmosphere and thus greatly affects atmospheric circulation. The dust cycle is the most difficult of the three climate cycles (CO2, water, and dust) to model realistically with general circulation models. Until recently, numerical modeling investigations of the dust cycle have typically not included the effects of couplings to the water cycle through cloud formation. In the Martian atmosphere, dust particles likely provide the seed nuclei for heterogeneous nucleation of water ice clouds. As ice coats atmospheric dust grains, the newly formed cloud particles exhibit different physical and radiative characteristics. Thus, the coupling between the dust and water cycles likely affects the distributions of dust, water vapor and water ice, and thus atmospheric heating and cooling and the resulting circulations. We use the NASA Ames Mars GCM to investigate the effects of radiatively active water ice clouds on surface stress and the potential for dust lifting. The model includes a state-of-the-art water ice cloud microphysics package and a radiative transfer scheme that accounts for the radiative effects of CO2 gas, dust, and water ice clouds. We focus on simulations that are radiatively forced by a prescribed dust map, and we compare simulations that do and do not include radiatively active clouds. Preliminary results suggest that the magnitude and spatial patterns of surface stress (and thus dust lifting potential) are substantial influenced by the radiative effects of water ice clouds.

Inhibition of ice crystal growth in ice cream mix by gelatin hydrolysate.

PubMed

Damodaran, Srinivasan

2007-12-26

The inhibition of ice crystal growth in ice cream mix by gelatin hydrolysate produced by papain action was studied. The ice crystal growth was monitored by thermal cycling between -14 and -12 degrees C at a rate of one cycle per 3 min. It is shown that the hydrolysate fraction containing peptides in the molecular weight range of about 2000-5000 Da exhibited the highest inhibitory activity on ice crystal growth in ice cream mix, whereas fractions containing peptides greater than 7000 Da did not inhibit ice crystal growth. The size distribution of gelatin peptides formed in the hydrolysate was influenced by the pH of hydrolysis. The optimum hydrolysis conditions for producing peptides with maximum ice crystal growth inhibitory activity was pH 7 at 37 degrees C for 10 min at a papain to gelatin ratio of 1:100. However, this may depend on the type and source of gelatin. The possible mechanism of ice crystal growth inhibition by peptides from gelatin is discussed. Molecular modeling of model gelatin peptides revealed that they form an oxygen triad plane at the C-terminus with oxygen-oxygen distances similar to those found in ice nuclei. Binding of this oxygen triad plane to the prism face of ice nuclei via hydrogen bonding appears to be the mechanism by which gelatin hydrolysate might be inhibiting ice crystal growth in ice cream mix.

Correlation of climate cycles in middle Mississippi Valley loess and Greenland ice

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wang, Hongfang; Hughes, R.E.; Steele, J.D.; Lepley, S.W.; Tian, J.

2003-01-01

Two complete late Wisconsin loess successions in the middle Mississippi River Valley reveal 39 and 41 alternating paleosol A- and C-horizons. Striking changes in soil color, iron content, and carbonate content define four major and two minor paleosol A-horizon complexes, which were interpreted to represent Wisconsin interstadials 1, 2, 3, 4, and semiinterstadials 1.5 and 2.5, respectively. The timing of Wisconsin interstadials matches that of corresponding Greenland interstadials. Midcontinent loess and Greenland ice records as well as rates of atmospheric 14C production have periodicities in common, suggesting a solar influence. Only a persistent heat and moisture supply could produce prominent paleosol complexes near the continental ice margin. This record suggests that El Nin??o-Southern Oscillation variability has amplified solar forcing, and resultant tropical heat and moisture transport played a significant role in millennial- and centennial-scale climate cycles during the late Wisconsin glaciation over the Northern Hemisphere.

Foraminiferal faunal estimates of paleotemperature: Circumventing the no-analog problem yields cool ice age tropics

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mix, A.C.; Morey, A.E.; Pisias, N.G.; Hostetler, S.W.

1999-01-01

The sensitivity of the tropics to climate change, particularly the amplitude of glacial-to-interglacial changes in sea surface temperature (SST), is one of the great controversies in paleoclimatology. Here we reassess faunal estimates of ice age SSTs, focusing on the problem of no-analog planktonic foraminiferal assemblages in the equatorial oceans that confounds both classical transfer function and modern analog methods. A new calibration strategy developed here, which uses past variability of species to define robust faunal assemblages, solves the no-analog problem and reveals ice age cooling of 5??to 6??C in the equatorial current systems of the Atlantic and eastern Pacific Oceans. Classical transfer functions underestimated temperature changes in some areas of the tropical oceans because core-top assemblages misrepresented the ice age faunal assemblages. Our finding is consistent with some geochemical estimates and model predictions of greater ice age cooling in the tropics than was inferred by Climate: Long-Range Investigation, Mapping, and Prediction (CLIMAP) [1981] and thus may help to resolve a long-standing controversy. Our new foraminiferal transfer function suggests that such cooling was limited to the equatorial current systems, however, and supports CLIMAP's inference of stability of the subtropical gyre centers.

Implications of 36Cl exposure ages from Skye, northwest Scotland for the timing of ice stream deglaciation and deglacial ice dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Small, David; Rinterknecht, Vincent; Austin, William E. N.; Bates, Richard; Benn, Douglas I.; Scourse, James D.; Bourlès, Didier L.; Hibbert, Fiona D.

2016-10-01

Geochronological constraints on the deglaciation of former marine based ice streams provide information on the rates and modes by which marine based ice sheets have responded to external forcing factors such as climate change. This paper presents new 36Cl cosmic ray exposure dating from boulders located on two moraines (Glen Brittle and Loch Scavaig) in southern Skye, northwest Scotland. Ages from the Glen Brittle moraines constrain deglaciation of a major marine terminating ice stream, the Barra-Donegal Ice Stream that drained the former British-Irish Ice Sheet, depending on choice of production method and scaling model this occurred 19.9 ± 1.5-17.6 ± 1.3 ka ago. We compare this timing of deglaciation to existing geochronological data and changes in a variety of potential forcing factors constrained through proxy records and numerical models to determine what deglaciation age is most consistent with existing evidence. Another small section of moraine, the Scavaig moraine, is traced offshore through multibeam swath-bathymetry and interpreted as delimiting a later stillstand/readvance stage following ice stream deglaciation. Additional cosmic ray exposure dating from the onshore portion of this moraine indicate that it was deposited 16.3 ± 1.3-15.2 ± 0.9 ka ago. When calculated using the most up-to-date scaling scheme this time of deposition is, within uncertainty, the same as the timing of a widely identified readvance, the Wester Ross Readvance, observed elsewhere in northwest Scotland. This extends the area over which this readvance has potentially occurred, reinforcing the view that it was climatically forced.

Ice haze, snow, and the Mars water cycle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kahn, Ralph

1990-01-01

Light curves and extinction profiles derived from Martian limb observations are used to constrain the atmospheric temperature structure in regions of the atmosphere with thin haze and to analyze the haze particle properties and atmospheric eddy mixing. Temperature between 170 and 190 K are obtained for three cases at levels in the atmosphere ranging from 20 to 50 km. Eddy diffusion coefficients around 100,000 sq cm/s, typical of a nonconvecting atmosphere, are derived in the haze regions at times when the atmosphere is relatively clear of dust. This parameter apparently changes by more than three orders of magnitude with season and local conditions. The derived particle size parameter varies systematically by more than an order of magnitude with condensation level, in such a way that the characteristic fall time is always about one Martian day. Ice hazes provide a mechanism for scavenging water vapor in the thin Mars atmosphere and may play a key role in the seasonal cycle of water on Mars.

Possible effects of anthropogenically-increased CO[sub 2] on the dynamics of climate: Implications for ice age cycles

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Saltzman, B.; Maasch, K.A.; Verbitsky, M.Ya.

1993-06-07

The authors look at the impact of an antropogenic step increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide content on a dynamic model designed to look at long-term variations in climate. The model is one developed by Saltzman and Maasch, and Saltzman and Verbitsky, where four slow responding variables are considered to carry the climatic change information over the past 5 My. One of these variables is the carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere. If this step increase is maintained over a long period of time, what impact does this have of the present unstable regime where climate oscillates through ice age periodsmore » Indications are that the climate shifts to a regime where the oscillations are much weaker than those which prevailed during the Pleistocene.« less

Improved age constraints for the retreat of the Irish Sea Ice Stream

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smedley, Rachel; Chiverrell, Richard; Duller, Geoff; Scourse, James; Small, David; Fabel, Derek; Burke, Matthew; Clarke, Chris; McCarroll, Danny; McCarron, Stephen; O'Cofaigh, Colm; Roberts, David

2016-04-01

BRITICE-CHRONO is a large (> 45 researchers) consortium project working to provide an extensive geochronological dataset constraining the rate of retreat of a number of ice streams of the British-Irish Ice Sheet following the Last Glacial Maximum. When complete, the large empirical dataset produced by BRITICE-CHRONO will be integrated into model simulations to better understand the behaviour of the British-Irish Ice Sheet in response to past climate change, and provide an analogue for contemporary ice sheets. A major feature of the British-Irish Ice Sheet was the dynamic Irish Sea Ice Stream, which drained a large proportion of the ice sheet and extended to the proposed southern limit of glaciation upon the Isles of Scilly (Scourse, 1991). This study will focus on a large suite of terrestrial samples that were collected along a transect of the Irish Sea basin, covering the line of ice retreat from the Isles of Scilly (50°N) in the south, to the Isle of Man (54°N) in the north; a distance of 500 km. Ages are determined for both the eastern and western margins of the Irish Sea using single-grain luminescence dating (39 samples) and terrestrial cosmogenic nuclide dating (10 samples). A Bayesian sequence model is then used in combination with the prior information determined for deglaciation to integrate the geochronological datasets, and assess retreat rates for the Irish Sea Ice Stream. Scourse, J.D., 1991. Late Pleistocene stratigraphy and palaeobotany of the Isles of Scilly. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London B334, 405 - 448.

Depositional environments during the Late Palaeozoic ice age (LPIA) in northern Ethiopia, NE Africa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bussert, Robert

2014-11-01

The Late Palaeozoic sediments in northern Ethiopia record a series of depositional environments during and after the Late Paleozoic ice age (LPIA). These sediments are up to 200 m thick and exceptionally heterogeneous in lithofacies composition. A differentiation of numerous types of lithofacies associations forms the basis for the interpretation of a large range of depositional processes. Major glacigenic lithofacies associations include: (1) sheets of diamictite, either overlying glacially eroded basement surfaces or intercalated into the sediment successions, and representing subglacial tillites, (2) thick massive to weakly stratified muddy clast-poor diamictites to lonestone-bearing laminated mudstones originating from a combination of suspension settling of fines and iceberg rainout, (3) lensoidal or thin-bedded diamictites deposited from debris flows, (4) wedges of traction and gravity transported coarse-grained sediments deposited in outwash fans, (5) irregular wedges or sheets of mudstones deformed primarily by extension and incorporating deformed beds or rafts of other lithofacies formed by slumping, and (6) irregular bodies of sandstone, conglomerate and diamictite deformed by glacial pushing. The dominance of laminated or massive clast-bearing mudstones in most successions indicates ice-contact water bodies as the major depositional environment. Into this environment, coarse-grained sediments were transported by various gravity driven transport processes, including dropstone activity of ice-bergs, slumping, cohesive debris flow, hyperconcentrated to concentrated flow, hyperpycnal flow, and by turbidity flow. Close to glacier termini, wedge-shaped bodies of conglomerate, sandstone, diamictite and mudstone were deposited primarily in subaqueous outwash-fans. Soft-sediment deformation of these sediments either records ice push during glacier advance or re-sedimentation by slumping. Apart from an initial glacier advance when thick ice of temperate or

Cosmogenic exposure age constraints on deglaciation and flow behaviour of a marine-based ice stream in western Scotland, 21-16 ka

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Small, David; Benetti, Sara; Dove, Dayton; Ballantyne, Colin K.; Fabel, Derek; Clark, Chris D.; Gheorghiu, Delia M.; Newall, Jennifer; Xu, Sheng

2017-07-01

Understanding how marine-based ice streams operated during episodes of deglaciation requires geochronological data that constrain both timing of deglaciation and changes in their flow behaviour, such as that from unconstrained ice streaming to topographically restricted flow. We present seventeen new 10Be exposure ages from glacial boulders and bedrock at sites in western Scotland within the area drained by the Hebrides Ice Stream, a marine-based ice stream that drained a large proportion of the former British-Irish Ice Sheet. Exposure ages from Tiree constrain deglaciation of a topographic high within the central zone of the ice stream, from which convergent flowsets were produced during ice streaming. These ages thus constrain thinning of the Hebrides Ice Stream, which, on the basis of supporting information, we infer to represent cessation of ice streaming at 20.6 ± 1.2 ka, 3-4 ka earlier than previously inferred. A period of more topographically restricted flow produced flow indicators superimposed on those relating to full ice stream conditions, and exposure ages from up-stream of these constrain deglaciation to 17.5 ± 1.0 ka. Complete deglaciation of the marine sector of the Hebrides Ice Stream occurred by 17-16 ka at which time the ice margin was located near the present coastline. Exposure ages from the southernmost Outer Hebrides (Mingulay and Barra) indicate deglaciation at 18.9 ± 1.0 and 17.1 ± 1.0 ka respectively, demonstrating that an independent ice cap persisted on the southern Outer Hebrides for 3-4 ka after initial ice stream deglaciation. This suggests that deglaciation of the Hebrides Ice Stream was focused along major submarine troughs. Collectively, our data constrain initial deglaciation and changes in flow regime of the Hebrides Ice Stream, final deglaciation of its marine sector, and deglaciation of the southern portion of the independent Outer Hebrides Ice Cap, providing chronological constraints on future numerical reconstructions of

Obliquity-paced Pliocene West Antarctic ice sheet oscillations

USGS Publications Warehouse

Naish, T.; Powell, R.; Levy, R.; Wilson, G.; Scherer, R.; Talarico, F.; Krissek, L.; Niessen, F.; Pompilio, M.; Wilson, T.; Carter, L.; DeConto, R.; Huybers, P.; McKay, R.; Pollard, D.; Ross, J.; Winter, D.; Barrett, P.; Browne, G.; Cody, R.; Cowan, E.; Crampton, J.; Dunbar, G.; Dunbar, N.; Florindo, F.; Gebhardt, C.; Graham, I.; Hannah, M.; Hansaraj, D.; Harwood, D.; Helling, D.; Henrys, S.; Hinnov, L.; Kuhn, G.; Kyle, P.; Laufer, A.; Maffioli, P.; Magens, D.; Mandernack, K.; McIntosh, W.; Millan, C.; Morin, R.; Ohneiser, C.; Paulsen, T.; Persico, D.; Raine, I.; Reed, J.; Riesselman, C.; Sagnotti, L.; Schmitt, D.; Sjunneskog, C.; Strong, P.; Taviani, M.; Vogel, S.; Wilch, T.; Williams, T.

2009-01-01

Thirty years after oxygen isotope records from microfossils deposited in ocean sediments confirmed the hypothesis that variations in the Earth's orbital geometry control the ice ages1, fundamental questions remain over the response of the Antarctic ice sheets to orbital cycles2. Furthermore, an understanding of the behaviour of the marine-based West Antarctic ice sheet (WAIS) during the 'warmer-than-present' early-Pliocene epoch (5–3 Myr ago) is needed to better constrain the possible range of ice-sheet behaviour in the context of future global warming3. Here we present a marine glacial record from the upper 600 m of the AND-1B sediment core recovered from beneath the northwest part of the Ross ice shelf by the ANDRILL programme and demonstrate well-dated, 40-kyr cyclic variations in ice-sheet extent linked to cycles in insolation influenced by changes in the Earth's axial tilt (obliquity) during the Pliocene. Our data provide direct evidence for orbitally induced oscillations in the WAIS, which periodically collapsed, resulting in a switch from grounded ice, or ice shelves, to open waters in the Ross embayment when planetary temperatures were up to 3 °C warmer than today4 and atmospheric CO2 concentration was as high as 400 p.p.m.v. (refs 5, 6). The evidence is consistent with a new ice-sheet/ice-shelf model7 that simulates fluctuations in Antarctic ice volume of up to +7 m in equivalent sea level associated with the loss of the WAIS and up to +3 m in equivalent sea level from the East Antarctic ice sheet, in response to ocean-induced melting paced by obliquity. During interglacial times, diatomaceous sediments indicate high surface-water productivity, minimal summer sea ice and air temperatures above freezing, suggesting an additional influence of surface melt8 under conditions of elevated CO2.

Aeolian stratigraphy describes ice-age paleoenvironments in unglaciated Arctic Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gaglioti, Benjamin V.; Mann, Daniel H.; Groves, Pamela; Kunz, Michael L.; Farquharson, Louise M.; Reanier, Richard E.; Jones, Benjamin M.; Wooller, Matthew J.

2018-02-01

Terrestrial paleoenvironmental records with high dating resolution extending into the last ice age are rare from the western Arctic. Such records can test the synchronicity and extent of ice-age climatic events and define how Arctic landscapes respond to rapid climate changes. Here we describe the stratigraphy and sedimentology of a yedoma deposit in Arctic Alaska (the Carter Section) dating to between 37,000 and 9000 calibrated radiocarbon years BP (37-9 ka) and containing detailed records of loess and sand-sheet sedimentation, soil development, carbon storage, and permafrost dynamics. Alternation between sand-sheet and loess deposition provides a proxy for the extent and activity of the Ikpikpuk Sand Sea (ISS), a large dune field located immediately upwind. Warm, moist interstadial times (ca. 37, 36.3-32.5, and 15-13 ka) triggered floodplain aggradation, permafrost thaw, reduced loess deposition, increased vegetation cover, and rapid soil development accompanied by enhanced carbon storage. During the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, ca. 28-18 ka), rapid loess deposition took place on a landscape where vegetation was sparse and non-woody. The most intense aeolian activity occurred after the LGM between ca. 18 and 15 ka when sand sheets fringing the ISS expanded over the site, possibly in response to increasingly droughty conditions as summers warmed and active layers deepened. With the exception of this lagged LGM response, the record of aeolian activity at the Carter Section correlates with other paleoenvironmental records from unglaciated Siberia and Alaska. Overall, rapid shifts in geomorphology, soils, vegetation, and permafrost portray an ice-age landscape where, in contrast to the Holocene, environmental change was chronic and dominated by aeolian processes.

Aircraft Icing Handbook. Volume 2

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-03-01

an airfoil surface. icenhobig - A surface property exhibiting a reduced adhesion to ice; literally, "ice-hating." light icing - The rate of...power, and are a light weight system of reasonable cost. K. ill I-I1 1.I.2 Pneumatic Impulse Ice Protection A Pneumatic Impulse Ice Protection System...should be about 5 to 6 seconds. During moderate icing a 60 second cycle is suggested, while for light icing, longer accretion times of 3 to 4 minutes

Effects of Water Amount on the Surface Environment of Terrestrial Planets: High Pressure Ice and Carbon Cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nakayama, Akifumi; Abe, Yutaka

2015-12-01

Terrestrial planets with several wt% of H2O in extrasolar planetary systems are theoretically predicted in the habitable zone [Raymond et al., 2004]. Such planets are expected to be covered by an ocean entirely (called as “ocean planets”). Amount of atmospheric CO2 (PCO2) is important for surface environment because CO2 is a strong greenhouse gas. PCO2 is determined by a race between degassing and sink through weathering on carbon cycle. On an ocean planet, seafloor weathering is important because continental weathering can’t work [Abbot et al., 2012]. In addition, ocean planets with large water amount may have high-pressure (HP) ice on the seafloor [Leger et al., 2004]. Since the ocean floor is covered by ice in such case, it has been thought that any weathering processes will not work and PCO2 will be extremely high. When plate tectonics works, heat flow from oceanic crust decreases with distance from the mid ocean ridge. Therefore, HP ice near the mid ocean ridge will be kept solid-liquid coexistent state at the melting point because of high heat flow. Seafloor weathering works in this region. The seafloor weathering under this condition efficiently works because weathering temperature is kept melting point regardless of surface temperature. Thus, our aim is to clarify the relationship between water amount and surface environment focusing seafloor environment. We develop a carbon cycle model considering the seafloor weathering. Our major assumptions are following; 1) Earth-sized ocean planets with various water amount, 2) Degassing rate is depended on the total amount of carbon and total carbon inventory is proportional to the surface water amount. We investigated thermal state of HP ice and determined effective weathering region where HP ice is coexistent with water, then we investigated the PCO2 in equilibrium state where degassing and regassing are balanced. As a result, forming of HP ice may cause snowball state due to high weathering rate. When solar

Effect of aging and ice structuring proteins on the morphology of frozen hydrated gluten networks.

PubMed

Kontogiorgos, Vassilis; Goff, H Douglas; Kasapis, Stefan

2007-04-01

The present investigation constitutes an attempt to rationalize the effect of aging and ice structuring proteins (ISPs) on the network morphology of frozen hydrated gluten. In doing so, it employs differential scanning calorimetry, time-domain NMR, dynamic oscillation on shear, creep testing, and electron microscopy. Experimentation and first principles modeling allows identification and description of the processes of ice formation and recrystallization in molecular terms. It is demonstrated that in the absence of a readily discernible glass transition temperature in gluten-ice composites, the approach of considering the melting point and aging at constant or fluctuating temperature conditions in the vicinity of this point can provide a valid index of functional quality. A theoretical framework supporting the concept of capillary confined frozen water in the gluten matrix was advanced, and it was found that ISPs were effective in controlling recrystallization both within these confines and within ice in the bulk.

Uranium isotopes and dissolved organic carbon in loess permafrost: Modeling the age of ancient ice

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ewing, Stephanie A.; Paces, James B.; O'Donnell, J.A.; Jorgenson, M.T.; Kanevskiy, M.Z.; Aiken, George R.; Shur, Y.; Harden, Jennifer W.; Striegl, Robert G.

2015-01-01

The residence time of ice in permafrost is an indicator of past climate history, and of the resilience and vulnerability of high-latitude ecosystems to global change. Development of geochemical indicators of ground-ice residence times in permafrost will advance understanding of the circumstances and evidence of permafrost formation, preservation, and thaw in response to climate warming and other disturbance. We used uranium isotopes to evaluate the residence time of segregated ground ice from ice-rich loess permafrost cores in central Alaska. Activity ratios of 234U vs. 238U (234U/238U) in water from thawed core sections ranged between 1.163 and 1.904 due to contact of ice and associated liquid water with mineral surfaces over time. Measured (234U/238U) values in ground ice showed an overall increase with depth in a series of five neighboring cores up to 21 m deep. This is consistent with increasing residence time of ice with depth as a result of accumulation of loess over time, as well as characteristic ice morphologies, high segregated ice content, and wedge ice, all of which support an interpretation of syngenetic permafrost formation associated with loess deposition. At the same time, stratigraphic evidence indicates some past sediment redistribution and possibly shallow thaw among cores, with local mixing of aged thaw waters. Using measures of surface area and a leaching experiment to determine U distribution, a geometric model of (234U/238U) evolution suggests mean ages of up to ∼200 ky BP in the deepest core, with estimated uncertainties of up to an order of magnitude. Evidence of secondary coatings on loess grains with elevated (234U/238U) values and U concentrations suggests that refinement of the geometric model to account for weathering processes is needed to reduce uncertainty. We suggest that in this area of deep ice-rich loess permafrost, ice bodies have been preserved from the last glacial period (10–100 ky BP), despite subsequent

Antarctic Circumpolar Current Dynamics and Their Relation to Antarctic Ice Sheet and Perennial Sea-Ice Variability in the Central Drake Passage During the Last Climate Cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuhn, G.; Wu, S.; Hass, H. C.; Klages, J. P.; Zheng, X.; Arz, H. W.; Esper, O.; Hillenbrand, C. D.; Lange, C.; Lamy, F.; Lohmann, G.; Müller, J.; McCave, I. N. N.; Nürnberg, D.; Roberts, J.; Tiedemann, R.; Timmermann, A.; Titschack, J.; Zhang, X.

2017-12-01

The evolution of the Antarctic Ice Sheet during the last climate cycle and the interrelation to global atmospheric and ocean circulation remains controversial and plays an important role for our understanding of ice sheet response to modern global warming. The timing and sequence of deglacial warming is relevant for understanding the variability and sensitivity of the Antarctic Ice Sheet to climatic changes, and the continuing rise of atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations. The Antarctic Ice Sheet is a pivotal component of the global water budget. Freshwater fluxes from the ice sheet may affect the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC), which is strongly impacted by the westerly wind belt in the Southern Hemisphere (SHWW) and constricted to its narrowest extent in the Drake Passage. The flow of ACC water masses through Drake Passage is, therefore, crucial for advancing our understanding of the Southern Ocean's role in global meridional overturning circulation and global climate change. In order to address orbital and millennial-scale variability of the Antarctic ice sheet and the ACC, we applied a multi-proxy approach on a sediment core from the central Drake Passage including grain size, iceberg-rafted debris, mineral dust, bulk chemical and mineralogical composition, and physical properties. In combination with already published and new sediment records from the Drake Passage and Scotia Sea, as well as high-resolution data from Antarctic ice cores (WDC, EDML), we now have evidence that during glacial times a more northerly extent of the perennial sea-ice zone decreased ACC current velocities in the central Drake Passage. During deglaciation the SHWW shifted southwards due to a decreasing temperature gradient between subtropical and polar latitudes caused by sea ice and ice sheet decline. This in turn caused Southern Hemisphere warming, a more vigorous ACC, stronger Southern Ocean ventilation, and warm Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW) upwelling on Antarctic shelves

The New ICE-Age: Frozen and Thawing Perceptions of Imagination

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hatt, Blaine E.

2018-01-01

The article examines the importance of imagination in adult-child relationships in 21st-century experiential learning, where ICE is an acronym for Imagination Creativity Education. It explores, through hermeneutic phenomenology, the impact of imagination in the life-experiences of three school-aged children through the wonder of toying, through…

Can Thermal Bending Fracture Ice Shelves?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

MacAyeal, D. R.; Sergienko, O. V.; Banwell, A. F.; Willis, I.; Macdonald, G. J.; Lin, J.

2017-12-01

Visco-elastic plates will bend if the temperature on one side is cooled. If the plate is constrained to float, as for sea ice floes, this bending will lead to tensile stresses that can fracture the ice. The hydroacoustic regime below sea ice displays increased fracture-sourced noise when air temperatures above the ice cools with the diurnal cycle. The McMurdo Ice Shelf, Antarctica, also displays a massive increase in seismicity during the cooling phase of the diurnal cycle, and this motivates the question: Can surface cooling (or other forcing with thermal consequences) drive through-thickness fracture leading to iceberg calving? Past study of this question for sea ice gives an upper limit of ice-plate thickness (order meters) for which diurnal-scale thermal bending fracture can occur; but could cooling with longer time scales induce fracture of thicker ice plates? Given the seismic evidence of thermal bending fracture on the McMurdo Ice Shelf, the authors examine this question further.

Rate and style of ice stream retreat constrained by new surface-exposure ages: The Minch, NW Scotland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bradwell, Tom; Small, David; Fabel, Derek; Dove, Dayton; Cofaigh, Colm O.; Clark, Chris; Consortium, Britice-Chrono

2016-04-01

Chronologically constrained studies of former ice-sheet extents and dynamics are important for understanding past cryospheric responses and modelling future ice-sheet and sea-level change. As part of the BRITICE-CHRONO project, we present new geomorphological and chronological data from a marine-terminating ice stream system in NW Europe that operated during the Late Weichselian Glaciation. A suite of 51 cosmogenic-nuclide exposure ages from ice sheet moraines and glacially transported boulders constrain the maximum extent of the ice sheet on the continental shelf (~28 ka BP) and its subsequent retreat, between ~27 and 16 ka BP, into a large marine embayment (ca. 7000 km2; the Minch, NW Scotland). Recently acquired swath bathymetry and acoustic sub-bottom profiler data reveal several large transverse grounding-zone wedges up to 40 m thick and 5 km wide with diagnostic acoustic-facies architecture. These seabed sediment wedges mark former quasi-stable positions of grounded marine-terminating ice-stream fronts; their size and thickness suggest long-lived stillstands of the order of centuries. Statistically significant clusters of exposure ages from glacial deposits on islands and intervening headlands shed important new light on the age of these marine grounding-zone wedges and, by inference, the rate and timing of Minch palaeo-ice stream retreat. We find strong evidence for episodic ice stream retreat on the continental shelf between ~28-24 ka BP, in the outer Minch between ~24-22 ka BP, and in the central Minch between 22-18.5 ka BP. In contrast, final ice stream deglaciation (<18 ka) across the deepest parts of the inner Minch embayment, was probably rapid and uninterrupted - with the ice sheet margin at or close to the present-day coastline in NW Scotland by 16.1 ka BP. It is hoped that these results will form the empirical basis for future ice-sheet modelling of this dynamically sensitive sector of the British-Irish Ice Sheet.

The little ice age and medieval warm period in the Sargasso Sea

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Keigwin, L.D.

1996-11-29

Sea surface temperature (SST), salinity, and flux of terrigenous material oscillated on millennial time scales in the Pleistocene North Atlantic, but there are few records of Holocene variability. Because of high rates of sediment accumulation, Holocene oscillations are well documented in the northern Sargasso Sea. Results from a radiocarbondated box core show that SST was {approximately} 1{degree}C cooler than today {approximately} 400 years ago (the Little Ice Age) and 1700 years ago, and {approximately} 1{degree}C warmer than today 1000 years ago (the Medieval Warm Period). Thus, at least some of the warming since the Little Ice Age appears to bemore » part of a natural oscillation. 39 refs., 4 figs., 1 tab.« less

Students' Conceptions of Glaciers and Ice Ages: Applying the Model of Educational Reconstruction to Improve Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Felzmann, Dirk

2017-01-01

Glaciers and ice ages are important topics in teaching geomorphology, earth history, and climate change. As with many geoscience topics, glacier formation, glacier movement, glacial morphology, and ice ages consist of a wide variety of processes and phenomena. Accordingly, it must be decided which of those processes and phenomena should be part of…

Accelerated warming of the Southern Ocean and its impacts on the hydrological cycle and sea ice.

PubMed

Liu, Jiping; Curry, Judith A

2010-08-24

The observed sea surface temperature in the Southern Ocean shows a substantial warming trend for the second half of the 20th century. Associated with the warming, there has been an enhanced atmospheric hydrological cycle in the Southern Ocean that results in an increase of the Antarctic sea ice for the past three decades through the reduced upward ocean heat transport and increased snowfall. The simulated sea surface temperature variability from two global coupled climate models for the second half of the 20th century is dominated by natural internal variability associated with the Antarctic Oscillation, suggesting that the models' internal variability is too strong, leading to a response to anthropogenic forcing that is too weak. With increased loading of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere through the 21st century, the models show an accelerated warming in the Southern Ocean, and indicate that anthropogenic forcing exceeds natural internal variability. The increased heating from below (ocean) and above (atmosphere) and increased liquid precipitation associated with the enhanced hydrological cycle results in a projected decline of the Antarctic sea ice.

The Depth of Ice Inside the Smallest Cold-Traps on Mercury: Implications for Age and Origin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rubanenko, L.; Mazarico, E.; Neumann, G. A.; Paige, D. A.

2018-05-01

We use Mercury Laser Altimeter data and an illumination model to constrain the depth of the smallest ice deposits on Mercury. By comparing this depth to modeled gardening rates, we estimate the age and delivery method of this ice.

Abiotic and biotic responses to Milankovitch-forced megamonsoon and glacial cycles recorded in South China at the end of the Late Paleozoic Ice Age

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fang, Qiang; Wu, Huaichun; Hinnov, Linda A.; Tian, Wenqian; Wang, Xunlian; Yang, Tianshui; Li, Haiyan; Zhang, Shihong

2018-04-01

At the end of the Late Paleozoic Ice Age (LPIA) from late Early Permian to early Late Permian, the global climate was impacted by a prevailing megamonsoon and Gondwanan deglaciation. To better understand the abiotic and biotic responses to Milankovitch-forced climate changes during this time period, multi-element X-ray fluorescence (XRF) geochemistry analyses were conducted on 948 samples from the late Early-late Middle Permian Maokou Formation at Shangsi, South China. The Fe/Ti, S/Ti, Ba/Ti and Ca time series, which were calibrated with an existing "floating" astronomical time scale (ATS), show the entire suite of Milankovitch rhythms including 405 kyr long eccentricity, 128 and 95 kyr short eccentricity, 33 kyr obliquity and 20 kyr precession. Spectral coherency and cross-phase analysis reveals that chemical weathering (monitored by Fe/Ti) and upwelling (captured by S/Ti and Ba/Ti) are nearly antiphase in the precession band, which suggests a contrast between summer and winter monsoon intensities. Strong obliquity signal in the Ba/Ti series is proposed to derive from changes in thermohaline circulation intensity from glaciation dynamics in southern Gondwana. The abundance of foraminifer, brachiopod and ostracod faunas within the Maokou Formation were mainly controlled by the 1.1 Myr obliquity modulation cycle. The obliquity-forced high-nutrient and oxygen-depleted conditions generally produced a benthic foraminifer bloom, but threatened the brachiopod and ostracod faunas.

Effect of Mantle Rheology on Viscous Heating induced during Ice Sheet Cycles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Pingping; Wu, Patrick; van der Wal, Wouter

2017-04-01

little more irregular than that from uniform viscosity model. However, peak heating in the VM5a model is as big as 22.5 times that of the chondritic radiogenic heating, and is much bigger than that from linear rheology with uniform viscosity (3.95 times the chondritic radiogenic heating), non-linear rheology model (10.14 times) and composite rheology model (10.04 times). Applications of viscous heating will also be discussed. References Hanyk, L., Matyska, C., & Yuen, D. A. (2005). Short time-scale heating of the Earth's mantle by ice-sheet dynamics. Earth, planets and space, 57(9), 895-902. Wu, P. (2004). Using commercial finite element packages for the study of earth deformations, sea levels and the state of stress. Geophysical Journal International, 158(2), 401-408. Van der Wal, W., P. Wu, H. Wang & M.G. Sideris, (2010). Sea levels and uplift rate from composite rheology in glacial isostatic adjustment modeling, J. Geod., J. Geod., 50:38-48. Peltier, W., Argus, D., and Drummond, R. (2015). Space geodesy constrains ice age terminal deglaciation: The global ICE-6GC (VM5a) model. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 120(1): 450-487

Global ice-sheet system interlocked by sea level

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Denton, George H.; Hughes, Terence J.; Karlén, Wibjörn

1986-07-01

Denton and Hughes (1983, Quaternary Research20, 125-144) postulated that sea level linked a global ice-sheet system with both terrestrial and grounded marine components during late Quaternary ice ages. Summer temperature changes near Northern Hemisphere melting margins initiated sea-level fluctuations that controlled marine components in both polar hemispheres. It was further proposed that variations of this ice-sheet system amplified and transmitted Milankovitch summer half-year insolation changes between 45 and 75°N into global climatic changes. New tests of this hypothesis implicate sea level as a major control of the areal extent of grounded portions of the Antarctic Ice Sheet, thus fitting the concept of a globally interlocked ice-sheet system. But recent atmospheric modeling results ( Manabe and Broccoli, 1985, Journal of Geophysical Research90, 2167-2190) suggest that factors other than areal changes of the grounded Antarctic Ice Sheet strongly influenced Southern Hemisphere climate and terminated the last ice age simultaneously in both polar hemispheres. Atmospheric carbon dioxide linked to high-latitude oceans is the most likely candidate ( Shackleton and Pisias, 1985, Atmospheric carbon dioxide, orbital forcing, and climate. In "The Carbon Cycle and Atmospheric CO 2: Natural Variations Archean to Present" (E. T. Sundquest and W. S. Broecker, Eds.), pp. 303-318. Geophysical Monograph 32, American Geophysical Union, Washington, D.C.), but another potential influence was high-frequency climatic oscillations (2500 yr). It is postulated that variations in atmospheric carbon dioxide acted through an Antarctic ice shelf linked to the grounded ice sheet to produce and terminate Southern Hemisphere ice-age climate. It is further postulated that Milankovitch summer insolation combined with a warm high-frequency oscillation caused marked recession of Northern Hemisphere ice-sheet melting margins and the North Atlantic polar front about 14,000 14C yr B.P. This

Sea-ice anomalies observed in the Greenland and Labrador seas during 1901 1984 and their relation to an interdecadal Arctic climate cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mysak, L. A.; Manak, D. K.; Marsden, R. F.

1990-12-01

Two independent ice data sets from the Greenland and Labrador Seas have been analyzed for the purpose of characterizing interannual and decadal time scale sea-ice extent anomalies during this century. Sea-ice concentration data for the 1953 1984 period revealed the presence of a large positive anomaly in the Greenland Sea during the 1960s which coincided with the “great salinity anomaly”, an upper-ocean low-salinity water mass that was observed to travel cyclonically around the northern North Atlantic during 1968 1982. This ice anomaly as well as several smaller ones propagated into the Labrador Sea and then across to the Labrador and east Newfoundland coast, over a period of 3 to 5 years. A complex empirical orthogonal function analysis of the same data also confirmed this propagation phenomenon. An inverse relation between sea-ice and salinity anomalies in the Greenland-Labrador Sea region was also generally found. An analysis of spring and summer ice-limit data obtained from Danish Meteorological Institute charts for the period 1901 1956 indicated the presence of heavy ice conditions (i.e., positive ice anomalies) in the Greenland Sea during 1902 1920 and in the late 1940s, and generally negative ice anomalies during the 1920s and 1930s. Only limited evidence of the propagation of Greenland Sea ice anomalies into the Labrador Sea was observed, however, probably because the data were from the ice-melt seasons. On the other hand, several large ice anomalies in the Greenland Sea occurred 2 3 years after large runoffs (in the early 1930s and the late 1940s) from northern Canada into the western Arctic Ocean. Similarly, a large runoff into the Arctic during 1964 1966 preceded the large Greenland Sea ice anomaly of the 1960s. These facts, together with recent evidence of ‘climatic jumps’ in the Northern Hemisphere tropospheric circulation, suggest the existence of an interdecadal self-sustained climate cycle in the Arctic. In the Greenland Sea, this cycle is

Ice-nucleating particle emissions from photochemically aged diesel and biodiesel exhaust

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schill, G. P.; Jathar, S. H.; Kodros, J. K.; Levin, E. J. T.; Galang, A. M.; Friedman, B.; Link, M. F.; Farmer, D. K.; Pierce, J. R.; Kreidenweis, S. M.; DeMott, P. J.

2016-05-01

Immersion-mode ice-nucleating particle (INP) concentrations from an off-road diesel engine were measured using a continuous-flow diffusion chamber at -30°C. Both petrodiesel and biodiesel were utilized, and the exhaust was aged up to 1.5 photochemically equivalent days using an oxidative flow reactor. We found that aged and unaged diesel exhaust of both fuels is not likely to contribute to atmospheric INP concentrations at mixed-phase cloud conditions. To explore this further, a new limit-of-detection parameterization for ice nucleation on diesel exhaust was developed. Using a global-chemical transport model, potential black carbon INP (INPBC) concentrations were determined using a current literature INPBC parameterization and the limit-of-detection parameterization. Model outputs indicate that the current literature parameterization likely overemphasizes INPBC concentrations, especially in the Northern Hemisphere. These results highlight the need to integrate new INPBC parameterizations into global climate models as generalized INPBC parameterizations are not valid for diesel exhaust.

Estimating the extent of Antarctic summer sea ice during the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Edinburgh, Tom; Day, Jonathan J.

2016-11-01

In stark contrast to the sharp decline in Arctic sea ice, there has been a steady increase in ice extent around Antarctica during the last three decades, especially in the Weddell and Ross seas. In general, climate models do not to capture this trend and a lack of information about sea ice coverage in the pre-satellite period limits our ability to quantify the sensitivity of sea ice to climate change and robustly validate climate models. However, evidence of the presence and nature of sea ice was often recorded during early Antarctic exploration, though these sources have not previously been explored or exploited until now. We have analysed observations of the summer sea ice edge from the ship logbooks of explorers such as Robert Falcon Scott, Ernest Shackleton and their contemporaries during the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration (1897-1917), and in this study we compare these to satellite observations from the period 1989-2014, offering insight into the ice conditions of this period, from direct observations, for the first time. This comparison shows that the summer sea ice edge was between 1.0 and 1.7° further north in the Weddell Sea during this period but that ice conditions were surprisingly comparable to the present day in other sectors.

Relative role of astronomical forcings and the atmospheric carbon dioxide during the glacial cycles of the last 1.5 million years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abe-Ouchi, A.; Saito, F.; Chan, W. L.; Kino, K.; Watanabe, Y.; Oishi, R.

2017-12-01

Climate change with wax and wane of large Northern Hemisphere ice sheet occurred in the past 800 thousand years characterized by about 100 thousand year cycle with a large amplitude of sawtooth pattern, following a transition from a period of 40 thousand years cycle with small amplitude of ice sheet change at about 1 million years ago. Although the importance of insolation as the ultimate driver is now appreciated, the mechanism what determines the timing and strength of ice age termination as well as the amplitude of glacial cycles are far from clearly understood. Here we simulate the glacial cycles of the last 1.5 Ma and investigate the origin of 100ka periodicity and the role of astronomical forcing and atmospheric carbon dioxide content using a three dimensional ice sheet model with the input examined by the MIROC 4m GCM. The model is forced by astronomical parameters (Berger, 1978) and atmospheric CO2 change obtained from ice cores (Vostok, EPICA and DomeF), where available. Ice age cycles with a saw-tooth shape 100 ka periodicity are simulated at low CO2 levels, with the major NH ice sheet volume as well as geographical distribution and timing of interglacials successfully simulated. The model shows the interglacials at the right timings even under constant CO2 levels, with few exceptions, e.g. MIS11 around 400 thousand years ago (400 kyr BP). Through sensitivity experiments we examine individual factors determining the glacial termination, such as constant and variable CO2 levels, obliquity, precession and eccentricity.

Effects of Medieval Warm Period and Little Ice Age on the hydrology of Mediterranean region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Markonis, Y.; Kossieris, P.; Lykou, A.; Koutsoyiannis, D.

2012-04-01

Medieval Warm Period (950 - 1250) and Little Ice Age (1450 - 1850) are the most recent periods that reflect the magnitude of natural climate variability. As their names suggest, the first one was characterized by higher temperatures and a generally moister climate, while the opposite happened during the second period. Although their existence is well documented for Northern Europe and North America, recent findings suggest strong evidence in lower latitudes as well. Here we analyze qualitatively the influence of these climatic fluctuations on the hydrological cycle all over the Mediterranean basin, highlighting the spatial characteristics of precipitation and runoff. We use both qualitative estimates from literature review in the field of paleoclimatology and statistical analysis of proxy data series. We investigate possible regional patterns and possible tele-connections with large scale atmospheric circulation phenomena such as North Atlantic Oscillation, Siberian High, African Sahel Rainfall and Indian Monsoon.

Regeneration of Little Ice Age bryophytes emerging from a polar glacier with implications of totipotency in extreme environments.

PubMed

La Farge, Catherine; Williams, Krista H; England, John H

2013-06-11

Across the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, widespread ice retreat during the 20th century has sharply accelerated since 2004. In Sverdrup Pass, central Ellesmere Island, rapid glacier retreat is exposing intact plant communities whose radiocarbon dates demonstrate entombment during the Little Ice Age (1550-1850 AD). The exhumed bryophyte assemblages have exceptional structural integrity (i.e., setae, stem structures, leaf hair points) and have remarkable species richness (60 of 144 extant taxa in Sverdrup Pass). Although the populations are often discolored (blackened), some have developed green stem apices or lateral branches suggesting in vivo regrowth. To test their biological viability, Little Ice Age populations emerging from the ice margin were collected for in vitro growth experiments. Our results include a unique successful regeneration of subglacial bryophytes following 400 y of ice entombment. This finding demonstrates the totipotent capacity of bryophytes, the ability of a cell to dedifferentiate into a meristematic state (analogous to stem cells) and develop a new plant. In polar ecosystems, regrowth of bryophyte tissue buried by ice for 400 y significantly expands our understanding of their role in recolonization of polar landscapes (past or present). Regeneration of subglacial bryophytes broadens the concept of Ice Age refugia, traditionally confined to survival of land plants to sites above and beyond glacier margins. Our results emphasize the unrecognized resilience of bryophytes, which are commonly overlooked vis-a-vis their contribution to the establishment, colonization, and maintenance of polar terrestrial ecosystems.

Regeneration of Little Ice Age bryophytes emerging from a polar glacier with implications of totipotency in extreme environments

PubMed Central

La Farge, Catherine; Williams, Krista H.; England, John H.

2013-01-01

Across the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, widespread ice retreat during the 20th century has sharply accelerated since 2004. In Sverdrup Pass, central Ellesmere Island, rapid glacier retreat is exposing intact plant communities whose radiocarbon dates demonstrate entombment during the Little Ice Age (1550–1850 AD). The exhumed bryophyte assemblages have exceptional structural integrity (i.e., setae, stem structures, leaf hair points) and have remarkable species richness (60 of 144 extant taxa in Sverdrup Pass). Although the populations are often discolored (blackened), some have developed green stem apices or lateral branches suggesting in vivo regrowth. To test their biological viability, Little Ice Age populations emerging from the ice margin were collected for in vitro growth experiments. Our results include a unique successful regeneration of subglacial bryophytes following 400 y of ice entombment. This finding demonstrates the totipotent capacity of bryophytes, the ability of a cell to dedifferentiate into a meristematic state (analogous to stem cells) and develop a new plant. In polar ecosystems, regrowth of bryophyte tissue buried by ice for 400 y significantly expands our understanding of their role in recolonization of polar landscapes (past or present). Regeneration of subglacial bryophytes broadens the concept of Ice Age refugia, traditionally confined to survival of land plants to sites above and beyond glacier margins. Our results emphasize the unrecognized resilience of bryophytes, which are commonly overlooked vis-a-vis their contribution to the establishment, colonization, and maintenance of polar terrestrial ecosystems. PMID:23716658

Coupled energy-balance/ice-sheet model simulations of the glacial cycle: A possible connection between terminations and terrigenous dust

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peltier, W. Richard; Marshall, Shawn

1995-07-01

We apply a coupled energy-balance/ice-sheet climate model in an investigation of northern hemisphere ice-sheet advance and retreat over the last glacial cycle. When driven only by orbital insolation variations, the model predicts ice-sheet advances over the continents of North America and Eurasia that are in good agreement with geological reconstructions in terms of the timescale of advance and the spatial positioning of the main ice masses. The orbital forcing alone, however, is unable to induce the observed rapid ice-sheet retreat, and we conclude that additional climatic feedbacks not explicitly included in the basic model must be acting. In the analyses presented here we have parameterized a number of potentially important effects in order to test their relative influence on the process of glacial termination. These include marine instability, thermohaline circulation effects, carbon dioxide variations, and snow albedo changes caused by dust loading during periods of high atmospheric aerosol concentration. For the purpose of these analyses the temporal changes in the latter two variables were inferred from ice core records. Of these various influences, our analyses suggest that the albedo variations in the ice-sheet ablation zone caused by dust loading may represent an extremely important ablation mechanism. Using our parameterization of "dirty" snow in the ablation zone we find glacial retreat to be strongly accelerated, such that complete collapse of the otherwise stable Laurentide ice sheet ensues. The last glacial maximum configurations of the Laurentide and Fennoscandian complexes are also brought into much closer accord with the ICE-3G reconstruction of Tushingham and Peltier (1991,1992) and the ICE-4G reconstruction of Peltier (1994) when this effect is reasonably introduced.

Erosion patterns produced by the paleo Haizishan ice cap, SE Tibetan Plateau

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fu, P.; Stroeven, A. P.; Harbor, J.; Hättestrand, C.; Heyman, J.; Caffee, M. W.

2017-12-01

Erosion is a primary driver of landscape evolution, topographic relief production, geochemical cycles, and climate change. Combining in situ 10Be and 26Al exposure age dating, geomorphological mapping, and field investigations, we examine glacial erosion patterns of the almost 4,000 km2 paleo Haizishan ice cap on the southeastern Tibetan Plateau. Our results show that ice caps on the low relief Haizishan Plateau produced a zonal pattern of landscape modification. In locations where apparent exposure ages on bedrock are consistent with the last deglaciation, complete resetting of the cosmogenic exposure age clock indicates glacial erosion of at least a few meters. However, older apparent exposure ages on bedrock in areas known to have been covered by the paleo ice cap during the Last Glacial Maximum indicate inheritance and thus limited glacial erosion. Inferred surface exposure ages from cosmogenic depth profiles through two saprolites vary from resetting and thus saprolite profile truncation to nuclide inheritance indicating limited erosion. Finally, significant nuclide inheritance in river sand samples from basins on the scoured plateau surface also indicate limited glacial erosion during the last glaciation. Hence, for the first time, our study shows clear evidence of preservation under non-erosive ice on the Tibetan Plateau. As patterns of glacial erosion intensity are largely driven by the basal thermal regime, our results confirm earlier inferences from geomorphology for a concentric basal thermal pattern for the paleo Haizishan ice cap during the LGM.

No iron fertilization in the equatorial Pacific Ocean during the last ice age.

PubMed

Costa, K M; McManus, J F; Anderson, R F; Ren, H; Sigman, D M; Winckler, G; Fleisher, M Q; Marcantonio, F; Ravelo, A C

2016-01-28

The equatorial Pacific Ocean is one of the major high-nutrient, low-chlorophyll regions in the global ocean. In such regions, the consumption of the available macro-nutrients such as nitrate and phosphate is thought to be limited in part by the low abundance of the critical micro-nutrient iron. Greater atmospheric dust deposition could have fertilized the equatorial Pacific with iron during the last ice age--the Last Glacial Period (LGP)--but the effect of increased ice-age dust fluxes on primary productivity in the equatorial Pacific remains uncertain. Here we present meridional transects of dust (derived from the (232)Th proxy), phytoplankton productivity (using opal, (231)Pa/(230)Th and excess Ba), and the degree of nitrate consumption (using foraminifera-bound δ(15)N) from six cores in the central equatorial Pacific for the Holocene (0-10,000 years ago) and the LGP (17,000-27,000 years ago). We find that, although dust deposition in the central equatorial Pacific was two to three times greater in the LGP than in the Holocene, productivity was the same or lower, and the degree of nitrate consumption was the same. These biogeochemical findings suggest that the relatively greater ice-age dust fluxes were not large enough to provide substantial iron fertilization to the central equatorial Pacific. This may have been because the absolute rate of dust deposition in the LGP (although greater than the Holocene rate) was very low. The lower productivity coupled with unchanged nitrate consumption suggests that the subsurface major nutrient concentrations were lower in the central equatorial Pacific during the LGP. As these nutrients are today dominantly sourced from the Subantarctic Zone of the Southern Ocean, we propose that the central equatorial Pacific data are consistent with more nutrient consumption in the Subantarctic Zone, possibly owing to iron fertilization as a result of higher absolute dust fluxes in this region. Thus, ice-age iron fertilization in the

Everyday Engineering: Should Ice Be Cubed?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moyer, Richard H.; Everett, Susan A.

2012-01-01

While ice is usually referred to as ice cubes, indeed, most are not really cubes at all. In this 5E learning-cycle lesson, students will investigate different shapes of ice and how shape affects the speed of melting and the rate of cooling a glass of water. Students will compare three different shapes of ice with the same volume but different…

Improving Surface Mass Balance Over Ice Sheets and Snow Depth on Sea Ice

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Koenig, Lora Suzanne; Box, Jason; Kurtz, Nathan

2013-01-01

Surface mass balance (SMB) over ice sheets and snow on sea ice (SOSI) are important components of the cryosphere. Large knowledge gaps remain in scientists' abilities to monitor SMB and SOSI, including insufficient measurements and difficulties with satellite retrievals. On ice sheets, snow accumulation is the sole mass gain to SMB, and meltwater runoff can be the dominant single loss factor in extremely warm years such as 2012. SOSI affects the growth and melt cycle of the Earth's polar sea ice cover. The summer of 2012 saw the largest satellite-recorded melt area over the Greenland ice sheet and the smallest satellite-recorded Arctic sea ice extent, making this meeting both timely and relevant.

The role of ice nuclei recycling in the maintenance of cloud ice in Arctic mixed-phase stratocumulus

DOE PAGES

Solomon, Amy; Feingold, G.; Shupe, M. D.

2015-09-25

This study investigates the maintenance of cloud ice production in Arctic mixed-phase stratocumulus in large eddy simulations that include a prognostic ice nuclei (IN) formulation and a diurnal cycle. Balances derived from a mixed-layer model and phase analyses are used to provide insight into buffering mechanisms that maintain ice in these cloud systems. We find that, for the case under investigation, IN recycling through subcloud sublimation considerably prolongs ice production over a multi-day integration. This effective source of IN to the cloud dominates over mixing sources from above or below the cloud-driven mixed layer. Competing feedbacks between dynamical mixing andmore » recycling are found to slow the rate of ice lost from the mixed layer when a diurnal cycle is simulated. Furthermore, the results of this study have important implications for maintaining phase partitioning of cloud ice and liquid that determine the radiative forcing of Arctic mixed-phase clouds.« less

The role of ice nuclei recycling in the maintenance of cloud ice in Arctic mixed-phase stratocumulus

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Solomon, Amy; Feingold, G.; Shupe, M. D.

This study investigates the maintenance of cloud ice production in Arctic mixed-phase stratocumulus in large eddy simulations that include a prognostic ice nuclei (IN) formulation and a diurnal cycle. Balances derived from a mixed-layer model and phase analyses are used to provide insight into buffering mechanisms that maintain ice in these cloud systems. We find that, for the case under investigation, IN recycling through subcloud sublimation considerably prolongs ice production over a multi-day integration. This effective source of IN to the cloud dominates over mixing sources from above or below the cloud-driven mixed layer. Competing feedbacks between dynamical mixing andmore » recycling are found to slow the rate of ice lost from the mixed layer when a diurnal cycle is simulated. Furthermore, the results of this study have important implications for maintaining phase partitioning of cloud ice and liquid that determine the radiative forcing of Arctic mixed-phase clouds.« less

Episodic Neoglacial snowline descent and glacier expansion on Svalbard reconstructed from the 14C ages of ice-entombed plants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miller, Gifford H.; Landvik, Jon Y.; Lehman, Scott J.; Southon, John R.

2017-01-01

The response of the Northern Hemisphere cryosphere to the monotonic decline in summer insolation and variable radiative forcing during the Holocene has been one of irregular expansion culminating in the Little Ice Age, when most glaciers attained their maximum late Holocene dimensions. Although periods of intervening still-stand or ice-retreat can be reconstructed by direct dating of ice-recessional features, defining times of Neoglacial ice growth has been limited to indirect proxies preserved in distal archives. Here we report 45 precise radiocarbon dates on in situ plants emerging from beneath receding glaciers on Svalbard that directly date the onset of snowline descent and glacier expansion, entombing the plants. Persistent snowline lowering occurred between 4.0 and 3.4 ka, but with little additional persistent lowering until early in the first millennium AD. Populations of individual 14C calendar age results and their aggregate calendar age probabilities define discrete episodes of vegetation kill and snowline lowering 240-340 AD, 410-540 AD and 670-750 AD, each with a lower snowline than the preceding episode, followed by additional snowline lowering between 1000 and 1220 AD, and between 1300 and 1450 AD. Snowline changes after 1450 AD, including the maximum ice extent of the Little Ice Age are not resolved by our collections, although snowlines remained lower than their 1450 AD level until the onset of modern warming. A time-distance diagram derived from a 250-m-long transect of dated ice-killed plants documents ice-margin advances ∼750, ∼1100 and after ∼1500 AD, concordant with distributed vegetation kill ages seen in the aggregate data set, supporting our central thesis that vegetation kill ages provide direct evidence of snowline lowering and cryospheric expansion. The mid- to late-Holocene history of snowline lowering on Svalbard is similar to ELA reconstructions of Norwegian and Svalbard cirque glaciers, and consistent with a cryospheric response

High-resolution mapping of Martian water ice clouds using Mars Express OMEGA observations - Derivation of the diurnal cloud life cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Szantai, Andre; Audouard, Joachim; Madeleine, Jean-Baptiste; Forget, Francois; Pottier, Alizée; Millour, Ehouarn; Gondet, Brigitte; Langevin, Yves; Bibring, Jean-Pierre

2016-10-01

The mapping in space and time of water ice clouds can help to explain the Martian water cycle and atmospheric circulation. For this purpose, an ice cloud index (ICI) corresponding to the depth of a water ice absorption band at 3.4 microns is derived from a series of OMEGA images (spectels) covering 5 Martian years. The ICI values for the corresponding pixels are then binned on a high-resolution regular grid (1° longitude x 1° latitude x 5° Ls x 1 h local time) and averaged. Inside each bin, the cloud cover is calculated by dividing the number of pixels considered as cloudy (after comparison to a threshold) to the number of all (valid) pixelsWe compare the maps of clouds obtained around local time 14:00 with collocated TES cloud observations (which were only obtained around this time of the day). A good agreement is found.Averaged ICI compared to the water ice column variable from the Martian Climate Database (MCD) show a correct correlation (~0.5) , which increases when values limited to the tropics only are compared.The number of gridpoints containing ICI values is small ( ~1%), but by taking several neighbor gridpoints and over longer periods, we can observe a cloud life cycle during daytime. An example in the the tropics, around the northern summer solstice, shows a decrease of cloudiness in the morning followed by an increase in the afternoon.

Extensive massive basal-ice structures in West Antarctica relate to ice-sheet anisotropy and ice-flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ross, N.; Bingham, R. G.; Corr, H. F. J.; Siegert, M. J.

2016-12-01

Complex structures identified within both the East Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets are thought to be generated by the action of basal water freezing to the ice-sheet base, evolving under ice flow. Here, we use ice-penetrating radar to image an extensive series of similarly complex basal ice facies in West Antarctica, revealing a thick (>500 m) tectonised unit in an area of cold-based and relatively slow-flowing ice. We show that major folding and overturning of the unit perpendicular to ice flow elevates deep, warm ice into the mid ice-sheet column. Fold axes align with present ice flow, and axis amplitudes increase down-ice, suggesting long-term consistency in the direction and convergence of flow. In the absence of basal water, and the draping of the tectonised unit over major subglacial mountain ranges, the formation of the unit must be solely through the deformation of meteoric ice. Internal layer radar reflectivity is consistently greater parallel to flow compared with the perpendicular direction, revealing ice-sheet crystal anisotropy is associated with the folding. By linking layers to the Byrd ice-core site, we show the basal ice dates to at least the last glacial cycle and may be as old as the last interglacial. Deformation of deep-ice in this sector of WAIS, and potentially elsewhere in Antarctica, may be caused by differential shearing at interglacial-glacial boundaries, in a process analogous to that proposed for interior Greenland. The scale and heterogeneity of the englacial structures, and their subsequent impact on ice sheet rheology, means that the nature of ice flow across the bulk of West Antarctica must be far more complex that is currently accounted for by any numerical ice sheet model.

The surface of the ice-age Earth.

PubMed

1976-03-19

In the Northern Hemisphere the 18,000 B.P. world differed strikingly from the present in the huge land-based ice sheets, reaching approximately 3 km in thickness, and in a dramatic increase in the extent of pack ice and marine-based ice sheets. In the Southern Hemisphere the most striking contrast was the greater extent of sea ice. On land, grasslands, steppes, and deserts spread at the expense of forests. This change in vegetation, together with extensive areas of permanent ice and sandy outwash plains, caused an increase in global surface albedo over modern values. Sea level was lower by at least 85 m. The 18,000 B.P. oceans were characterized by: (i) marked steepening of thermal gradients along polar frontal systems, particularly in the North Atlantic and Antarctic; (ii) an equatorward displacement of polar frontal systems; (iii) general cooling of most surface waters, with a global average of -2.3 degrees C; (iv) increased cooling and up-welling along equatorial divergences in the Pacific and Atlantic; (v) low temperatures extending equatorward along the western coast of Africa, Australia, and South America, indicating increased upwelling and advection of cool waters; and (vi) nearly stable positions and temperatures of the central gyres in the subtropical Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans.

Past and future ice age initiation: the role of an intrinsic deep-ocean millennial oscillation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, R. G.

2014-05-01

This paper offers three interdependent contributions to studies of climate variation: (1) the recognition and analysis of an intrinsic millennial oceanic oscillation that affects both Northern and Southern high latitude climates, (2) The recognition of an oceanographic switch to ice-free seas west of Greenland that explains the initiation of the Last Ice Age, and (3) an analysis of the effect of increasing salinity in the seas east of Greenland that suggests the possibility of the initiation of an ice age threshold climate in the near future. In the first contribution the millennial oscillation in the flow of the North Atlantic Drift reported by Bond et al. (1997) is proposed to be part of a 1500 yr intrinsic deep ocean oscillation. This oscillation involves the exchange of North Atlantic intermediate-level deep water (NADW) formed in the seas east of Greenland with Antarctic Bottom Water formed in a shallow-water zone at the edge of the Antarctic continent. The concept of NADW formation is already well known, with details of the sinking water flowing out of the Greenland Sea observed by Smethie et al. (2000) using chlorofluorocarbon tracers. The concept of Antarctic Bottom Water formation is also already well established. However, its modulation by the changing fraction of NADW in the Southern Ocean, which I infer from the analysis of Weyl (1968), has not been previously discussed. The modulated lower-salinity Antarctic Bottom Water that reaches the northern North Atlantic then provides negative feedback for the cyclic variation of NADW formation as proposed here. This causes the 1500 yr bipolar oscillation. The feedback suggests the possible sinusoidal character of the proposed oscillation model. The model is consistent with the cooling of the Little Ice Age (Lamb, 1972, 1995), and it also correctly predicts NASA's observation of today's record maximum area of winter sea ice on the Southern Ocean and the present observed record low rate of Antarctic Bottom Water

The reproductive-cell cycle theory of aging: an update.

PubMed

Atwood, Craig S; Bowen, Richard L

2011-01-01

The Reproductive-Cell Cycle Theory posits that the hormones that regulate reproduction act in an antagonistic pleiotrophic manner to control aging via cell cycle signaling; promoting growth and development early in life in order to achieve reproduction, but later in life, in a futile attempt to maintain reproduction, become dysregulated and drive senescence. Since reproduction is the most important function of an organism from the perspective of the survival of the species, if reproductive-cell cycle signaling factors determine the rate of growth, determine the rate of development, determine the rate of reproduction, and determine the rate of senescence, then by definition they determine the rate of aging and thus lifespan. The theory is able to explain: 1) the simultaneous regulation of the rate of aging and reproduction as evidenced by the fact that environmental conditions and experimental interventions known to extend longevity are associated with decreased reproductive-cell cycle signaling factors, thereby slowing aging and preserving fertility in a hostile reproductive environment; 2) two phenomena that are closely related to species lifespan-the rate of growth and development and the ultimate size of the animal; 3). the apparent paradox that size is directly proportional to lifespan and inversely proportional to fertility between species but vice versa within a species; 4). how differing rates of reproduction between species is associated with differences in their lifespan; 5). why we develop aging-related diseases; and 6). an evolutionarily credible reason for why and how aging occurs-these hormones act in an antagonistic pleiotrophic manner via cell cycle signaling; promoting growth and development early in life in order to achieve reproduction, but later in life, in a futile attempt to maintain reproduction, become dysregulated and drive senescence (dyosis). In essence, the Reproductive-Cell Cycle Theory can explain aging in all sexually reproductive life

New age constraints for the Saalian glaciation in northern central Europe: Implications for the extent of ice sheets and related proglacial lake systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lang, Jörg; Lauer, Tobias; Winsemann, Jutta

2018-01-01

A comprehensive palaeogeographic reconstruction of ice sheets and related proglacial lake systems for the older Saalian glaciation in northern central Europe is presented, which is based on the integration of palaeo-ice flow data, till provenance, facies analysis, geomorphology and new luminescence ages of ice-marginal deposits. Three major ice advances with different ice-advance directions and source areas are indicated by palaeo-ice flow directions and till provenance. The first ice advance was characterised by a southwards directed ice flow and a dominance of clasts derived from southern Sweden. The second ice advance was initially characterised by an ice flow towards the southwest. Clasts are mainly derived from southern and central Sweden. The latest stage in the study area (third ice advance) was characterised by ice streaming (Hondsrug ice stream) in the west and a re-advance in the east. Clasts of this stage are mainly derived from eastern Fennoscandia. Numerical ages for the first ice advance are sparse, but may indicate a correlation with MIS 8 or early MIS 6. New pIRIR290 luminescence ages of ice-marginal deposits attributed to the second ice advance range from 175 ± 10 to 156 ± 24 ka and correlate with MIS 6. The ice sheets repeatedly blocked the main river-drainage pathways and led to the formation of extensive ice-dammed lakes. The formation of proglacial lakes was mainly controlled by ice-damming of river valleys and major bedrock spillways; therefore the lake levels and extends were very similar throughout the repeated ice advances. During deglaciation the lakes commonly increased in size and eventually drained successively towards the west and northwest into the Lower Rhine Embayment and the North Sea. Catastrophic lake-drainage events occurred when large overspill channels were suddenly opened. Ice-streaming at the end of the older Saalian glaciation was probably triggered by major lake-drainage events.

Impact of Ice Ages on the genetic structure of trees and shrubs.

PubMed Central

Lascoux, Martin; Palmé, Anna E; Cheddadi, Rachid; Latta, Robert G

2004-01-01

Data on the genetic structure of tree and shrub populations on the continental scale have accumulated dramatically over the past decade. However, our ability to make inferences on the impact of the last ice age still depends crucially on the availability of informative palaeoecological data. This is well illustrated by the results from a recent project, during which new pollen fossil maps were established and the variation in chloroplast DNA was studied in 22 European species of trees and shrubs. Species exhibit very different levels of genetic variation between and within populations, and obviously went through very different histories after Ice Ages. However, when palaeoecological data are non-informative, inferences on past history are difficult to draw from entirely genetic data. On the other hand, as illustrated by a study in ponderosa pine, when we can infer the species' history with some certainty, coalescent simulations can be used and new hypotheses can be tested. PMID:15101576

The Holocene Minimum of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet: Radiocarbon Model Ages for Subglacial Sediments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tulaczyk, S. M.; Stansell, N.; Scherer, R. P.; Powell, R. D.

2017-12-01

It is commonly assumed that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) is at the present time as small as it has been since at least the last interglacial period about 125,000 years ago. Yet, our recent analyses of subglacial sediments recovered from beneath the ice sheet indicate regionally widespread presence of radiocarbon. This unstable isotope with half life of 5,730 years should decay to nil if the analyzed subglacial sediment samples have been isolated beneath the ice sheet from the atmosphere and the ocean for 125,000 years (over 20 half lives). However, the apparent radiocarbon ages for these samples are in the range of about 20,000-30,000 years BP, based on radiocarbon Fraction Modern (FM) of a few to several percent. The apparent sediment ages cannot be taken at face value because: (1) they overlap with the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) when WAIS is known to have extended over 1,000 km past the sediment sampling locations, and (2) Antarctic glacigenic sediments commonly contain significant admixture of old, radiocarbon-dead organic matter. The latter biases apparent radiocarbon ages because it violates the assumption that the initial radiocarbon fraction in a sample was equal to FM. To mitigate the problem with apparent ages, we assume that initial radiocarbon fraction in subglacial sediments was equal to that determined by us independently in J-9 sediments from beneath the Ross Ice Shelf (RIS) and calculate radiocarbon 'model ages' between 1,000 and 6,000 years BP. This period of time overlaps with a regional climatic optimum and with late phases of post-LGM glacioisostatic adjustment in the region (e.g., Kingslake et al., this session). We propose that the grounding line of WAIS, at least on the RIS side, retreated in mid/late Holocene more than 300 km beyond its current position and then re-advanced to reach its modern geometry. This implies that the main body of WAIS was significantly smaller than today in mid/late Holocene and that the ice sheet is capable of

Deep Radiostratigraphy of the East Antarctic Plateau: Connecting the Dome C and Vostok Ice Core Sites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cavitte, Marie G. P.; Blankenship, Donald D.; Young, Duncan A.; Schroeder, Dustin M.; Parrenin, Frederic; Lemeur, Emmanuel; Macgregor, Joseph A.; Siegert, Martin J.

2016-01-01

Several airborne radar-sounding surveys are used to trace internal reflections around the European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica Dome C and Vostok ice core sites. Thirteen reflections, spanning the last two glacial cycles, are traced within 200 km of Dome C, a promising region for million-year-old ice, using the University of Texas Institute for Geophysics High-Capacity Radar Sounder. This provides a dated stratigraphy to 2318 m depth at Dome C. Reflection age uncertainties are calculated from the radar range precision and signal-to-noise ratio of the internal reflections. The radar stratigraphy matches well with the Multichannel Coherent Radar Depth Sounder (MCoRDS) radar stratigraphy obtained independently. We show that radar sounding enables the extension of ice core ages through the ice sheet with an additional radar-related age uncertainty of approximately 1/3-1/2 that of the ice cores. Reflections are extended along the Byrd-Totten Glacier divide, using University of Texas/Technical University of Denmark and MCoRDS surveys. However, core-to-core connection is impeded by pervasive aeolian terranes, and Lake Vostok's influence on reflection geometry. Poor radar connection of the two ice cores is attributed to these effects and suboptimal survey design in affected areas. We demonstrate that, while ice sheet internal radar reflections are generally isochronal and can be mapped over large distances, careful survey planning is necessary to extend ice core chronologies to distant regions of the East Antarctic ice sheet.

Ice sheets and nitrogen.

PubMed

Wolff, Eric W

2013-07-05

Snow and ice play their most important role in the nitrogen cycle as a barrier to land-atmosphere and ocean-atmosphere exchanges that would otherwise occur. The inventory of nitrogen compounds in the polar ice sheets is approximately 260 Tg N, dominated by nitrate in the much larger Antarctic ice sheet. Ice cores help to inform us about the natural variability of the nitrogen cycle at global and regional scale, and about the extent of disturbance in recent decades. Nitrous oxide concentrations have risen about 20 per cent in the last 200 years and are now almost certainly higher than at any time in the last 800 000 years. Nitrate concentrations recorded in Greenland ice rose by a factor of 2-3, particularly between the 1950s and 1980s, reflecting a major change in NOx emissions reaching the background atmosphere. Increases in ice cores drilled at lower latitudes can be used to validate or constrain regional emission inventories. Background ammonium concentrations in Greenland ice show no significant recent trend, although the record is very noisy, being dominated by spikes of input from biomass burning events. Neither nitrate nor ammonium shows significant recent trends in Antarctica, although their natural variations are of biogeochemical and atmospheric chemical interest. Finally, it has been found that photolysis of nitrate in the snowpack leads to significant re-emissions of NOx that can strongly impact the regional atmosphere in snow-covered areas.

Ice sheets and nitrogen

PubMed Central

Wolff, Eric W.

2013-01-01

Snow and ice play their most important role in the nitrogen cycle as a barrier to land–atmosphere and ocean–atmosphere exchanges that would otherwise occur. The inventory of nitrogen compounds in the polar ice sheets is approximately 260 Tg N, dominated by nitrate in the much larger Antarctic ice sheet. Ice cores help to inform us about the natural variability of the nitrogen cycle at global and regional scale, and about the extent of disturbance in recent decades. Nitrous oxide concentrations have risen about 20 per cent in the last 200 years and are now almost certainly higher than at any time in the last 800 000 years. Nitrate concentrations recorded in Greenland ice rose by a factor of 2–3, particularly between the 1950s and 1980s, reflecting a major change in NOx emissions reaching the background atmosphere. Increases in ice cores drilled at lower latitudes can be used to validate or constrain regional emission inventories. Background ammonium concentrations in Greenland ice show no significant recent trend, although the record is very noisy, being dominated by spikes of input from biomass burning events. Neither nitrate nor ammonium shows significant recent trends in Antarctica, although their natural variations are of biogeochemical and atmospheric chemical interest. Finally, it has been found that photolysis of nitrate in the snowpack leads to significant re-emissions of NOx that can strongly impact the regional atmosphere in snow-covered areas. PMID:23713125

Climatic impact of glacial cycle polar motion: Coupled oscillations of ice sheet mass and rotation pole position

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bills, Bruce G.; James, Thomas S.; Mengel, John G.

1999-01-01

Precessional motion of Earth's rotation axis relative to its orbit is a well-known source of long-period climatic variation. It is less well appreciated that growth and decay of polar ice sheets perturb the symmetry of the global mass distribution enough that the geographic location of the rotation axis will change by at least 15 km and possibly as much as 100 km during a single glacial cycle. This motion of the pole will change the seasonal and latitudinal pattern of temperatures. We present calculations, based on a diurnal average energy balance, which compare the summer and winter temperature anomalies due to a 1° decrease in obliquity with those due to a 1° motion of the rotation pole toward Hudson Bay. Both effects result in peak temperature perturbations of about 1° Celsius. The obliquity change primarily influences the amplitude of the seasonal cycle, while the polar motion primarily changes the annual mean temperatures. The polar motion induced temperature anomaly is such that it will act as a powerful negative feedback on ice sheet growth. We also explore the evolution of the coupled system composed of ice sheet mass and pole position. Oscillatory solutions result from the conflicting constraints of rotational and thermal stability. A positive mass anomaly on an otherwise featureless Earth is in rotational equilibrium only at the poles or the equator. The two polar equilibria are rotationally unstable, and the equatorial equilibrium, though rotationally stable, is thermally unstable. We find that with a plausible choice for the strength of coupling between the thermal and rotational systems, relatively modest external forcing can produce significant response at periods of 104–106 years, but it strongly attenuates polar motion at longer periods. We suggest that these coupled oscillations may contribute to the observed dominance of 100 kyr glacial cycles since the mid-Pleistocene and will tend to stabilize geographic patterns that are suitable to

Heterogeneous ice nucleation of α-pinene SOA particles before and after ice cloud processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wagner, Robert; Höhler, Kristina; Huang, Wei; Kiselev, Alexei; Möhler, Ottmar; Mohr, Claudia; Pajunoja, Aki; Saathoff, Harald; Schiebel, Thea; Shen, Xiaoli; Virtanen, Annele

2017-05-01

The ice nucleation ability of α-pinene secondary organic aerosol (SOA) particles was investigated at temperatures between 253 and 205 K in the Aerosol Interaction and Dynamics in the Atmosphere cloud simulation chamber. Pristine SOA particles were nucleated and grown from pure gas precursors and then subjected to repeated expansion cooling cycles to compare their intrinsic ice nucleation ability during the first nucleation event with that observed after ice cloud processing. The unprocessed α-pinene SOA particles were found to be inefficient ice-nucleating particles at cirrus temperatures, with nucleation onsets (for an activated fraction of 0.1%) as high as for the homogeneous freezing of aqueous solution droplets. Ice cloud processing at temperatures below 235 K only marginally improved the particles' ice nucleation ability and did not significantly alter their morphology. In contrast, the particles' morphology and ice nucleation ability was substantially modified upon ice cloud processing in a simulated convective cloud system, where the α-pinene SOA particles were first activated to supercooled cloud droplets and then froze homogeneously at about 235 K. As evidenced by electron microscopy, the α-pinene SOA particles adopted a highly porous morphology during such a freeze-drying cycle. When probing the freeze-dried particles in succeeding expansion cooling runs in the mixed-phase cloud regime up to 253 K, the increase in relative humidity led to a collapse of the porous structure. Heterogeneous ice formation was observed after the droplet activation of the collapsed, freeze-dried SOA particles, presumably caused by ice remnants in the highly viscous material or the larger surface area of the particles.

Integrating Teaching about the Little Ice Age with History, Art, and Literature.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Glenn, William Harold

1996-01-01

Discusses climate change during the Little Ice Age as experienced during several historical events, including the settlement and demise of the Norse Greenland colonies, the landing of the Pilgrims at Plymouth, and both the Battle of Trenton and Washington's encampment at Valley Forge during the American Revolution. Associated artistic and literary…

Advanced ice protection systems test in the NASA Lewis icing research tunnel

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bond, Thomas H.; Shin, Jaiwon; Mesander, Geert A.

1991-01-01

Tests of eight different deicing systems based on variations of three different technologies were conducted in the NASA Lewis Research Center Icing Research Tunnel (IRT) in June and July 1990. The systems used pneumatic, eddy current repulsive, and electro-expulsive means to shed ice. The tests were conducted on a 1.83 m span, 0.53 m chord NACA 0012 airfoil operated at a 4 degree angle of attack. The models were tested at two temperatures: a glaze condition at minus 3.9 C and a rime condition at minus 17.2 C. The systems were tested through a range of icing spray times and cycling rates. Characterization of the deicers was accomplished by monitoring power consumption, ice shed particle size, and residual ice. High speed video motion analysis was performed to quantify ice particle size.

Ice Shapes on a Tail Rotor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kreeger, Richard E.; Tsao, Jen-Ching

2014-01-01

Testing of a thermally-protected helicopter rotor in the Icing Research Tunnel (IRT) was completed. Data included inter-cycle and cold blade ice shapes. Accreted ice shapes were thoroughly documented, including tracing, scanning and photographing. This was the first time this scanning capability was used outside of NASA. This type of data has never been obtained for a rotorcraft before. This data will now be used to validate the latest generation of icing analysis tools.

Life under ice: Investigating microbial-related biogeochemical cycles in the seasonally-covered Great Lake Onego, Russia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thomas, Camille; Ariztegui, Daniel; Victor, Frossard; Emilie, Lyautey; Marie-Elodie, Perga; Life Under Ice Scientific Team

2016-04-01

The Great European lakes Ladoga and Onego are important resources for Russia in terms of drinking water, energy, fishing and leisure. Because their northern location (North of Saint Petersburgh), these lakes are usually ice-covered during winter. Due to logistical reasons, their study has thus been limited to the ice-free periods, and very few data are available for the winter season. As a matter of fact, comprehension of large lakes behaviour in winter is very limited as compared to the knowledge available from small subpolar lakes or perennially ice-covered polar lakes. To tackle this issue, an international consortium of scientists has gathered around the « life under ice » project to investigate physical, chemical and biogeochemical changes during winter in Lake Onego. Our team has mainly focused on the characterization and quantification of biological processes, from the water column to the sediment, with a special focus on methane cycling and trophic interactions. A first « on-ice » campaign in March 2015 allowed the sampling of a 120 cm sedimentary core and the collection of water samples at multiple depths. The data resulting from this expedition will be correlated to physical and chemical parameters collected simultaneously. A rapid biological activity test was applied immediately after coring in order to test for microbial activity in the sediments. In situ adenosine-5'-triphosphate (ATP) measurements were carried out in the core and taken as an indication of living organisms within the sediments. The presence of ATP is a marker molecule for metabolically active cells, since it is not known to form abiotically. Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA) were extracted from these samples, and quantified. Quantitative polymerase chain reactions (PCR) were performed on archaeal and bacterial 16S rRNA genes used to reconstruct phylogenies, as well as on their transcripts. Moreover, functional genes involved in the methane and nitrogen cycles

No iron fertilization in the equatorial Pacific Ocean during the last ice age

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Costa, K. M.; McManus, J. F.; Anderson, R. F.; Ren, H.; Sigman, D. M.; Winckler, G.; Fleisher, M. Q.; Marcantonio, F.; Ravelo, A. C.

2016-01-01

The equatorial Pacific Ocean is one of the major high-nutrient, low-chlorophyll regions in the global ocean. In such regions, the consumption of the available macro-nutrients such as nitrate and phosphate is thought to be limited in part by the low abundance of the critical micro-nutrient iron. Greater atmospheric dust deposition could have fertilized the equatorial Pacific with iron during the last ice age—the Last Glacial Period (LGP)—but the effect of increased ice-age dust fluxes on primary productivity in the equatorial Pacific remains uncertain. Here we present meridional transects of dust (derived from the 232Th proxy), phytoplankton productivity (using opal, 231Pa/230Th and excess Ba), and the degree of nitrate consumption (using foraminifera-bound δ15N) from six cores in the central equatorial Pacific for the Holocene (0-10,000 years ago) and the LGP (17,000-27,000 years ago). We find that, although dust deposition in the central equatorial Pacific was two to three times greater in the LGP than in the Holocene, productivity was the same or lower, and the degree of nitrate consumption was the same. These biogeochemical findings suggest that the relatively greater ice-age dust fluxes were not large enough to provide substantial iron fertilization to the central equatorial Pacific. This may have been because the absolute rate of dust deposition in the LGP (although greater than the Holocene rate) was very low. The lower productivity coupled with unchanged nitrate consumption suggests that the subsurface major nutrient concentrations were lower in the central equatorial Pacific during the LGP. As these nutrients are today dominantly sourced from the Subantarctic Zone of the Southern Ocean, we propose that the central equatorial Pacific data are consistent with more nutrient consumption in the Subantarctic Zone, possibly owing to iron fertilization as a result of higher absolute dust fluxes in this region. Thus, ice-age iron fertilization in the

Replicating the Ice-Volume Signal of the Early Pleistocene with a Complex Earth System Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tabor, C. R.; Poulsen, C. J.; Pollard, D.

2013-12-01

Milankovitch theory proposes high-latitude summer insolation intensity paces the ice ages by controlling perennial snow cover amounts (Milankovitch, 1941). According to theory, the ~21 kyr cycle of precession should dominate the ice-volume records since it has the greatest influence on high-latitude summer insolation. Modeling experiments frequently support Milankovitch theory by attributing the majority of Northern Hemisphere high-latitude summer snowmelt to changes in the cycle of precession (e.g. Jackson and Broccoli, 2003). However, ice-volume proxy records, especially those of the Early Pleistocene (2.6-0.8 Ma), display variability with a period of ~41 kyr (Raymo and Lisiecki, 2005), indicative of insolation forcing from obliquity, which has a much smaller influence on summer insolation intensity than precession. Several hypotheses attempt to explain the discrepancies between Milkankovitch theory and the proxy records by invoking phenomena such as insolation gradients (Raymo and Nisancioglu, 2003), hemispheric offset (Raymo et al., 2006; Lee and Poulsen, 2009), and integrated summer energy (Huybers, 2006); however, all of these hypotheses contain caveats (Ruddiman, 2006) and have yet to be supported by modeling studies that use a complex GCM. To explore potential solutions to this '41 kyr problem,' we use an Earth system model composed of the GENESIS GCM and Land Surface model, the BIOME4 vegetation model, and the Pennsylvania State ice-sheet model. Using an asynchronous coupling technique, we run four idealized transient combinations of obliquity and precession, representing the orbital extremes of the Pleistocene (Berger and Loutre, 1991). Each experiment is run through several complete orbital cycles with a dynamic ice domain spanning North America and Greenland, and fixed preindustrial greenhouse-gas concentrations. For all orbital configurations, model results produce greater ice-volume spectral power at the frequency of obliquity despite significantly

Changes in the seasonality of Arctic sea ice and temperature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bintanja, R.

2012-04-01

Observations show that the Arctic sea ice cover is currently declining as a result of climate warming. According to climate models, this retreat will continue and possibly accelerate in the near-future. However, the magnitude of this decline is not the same throughout the year. With temperatures near or above the freezing point, summertime Arctic sea ice will quickly diminish. However, at temperatures well below freezing, the sea ice cover during winter will exhibit a much weaker decline. In the future, the sea ice seasonal cycle will be no ice in summer, and thin one-year ice in winter. Hence, the seasonal cycle in sea ice cover will increase with ongoing climate warming. This in itself leads to an increased summer-winter contrast in surface air temperature, because changes in sea ice have a dominant influence on Arctic temperature and its seasonality. Currently, the annual amplitude in air temperature is decreasing, however, because winters warm faster than summer. With ongoing summer sea ice reductions there will come a time when the annual temperature amplitude will increase again because of the large seasonal changes in sea ice. This suggests that changes in the seasonal cycle in Arctic sea ice and temperature are closely, and intricately, connected. Future changes in Arctic seasonality (will) have an profound effect on flora, fauna, humans and economic activities.

The Little Ice Age in the tropical Andes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jomelli, V.; Cooley, D.; Naveau, P.; Rabatel, A.

2003-12-01

The period known as the Little Ice Age, from the 17th to the 19th century, brought a cooling of around 0.5 degrees Celsius as well as varyingly humid episodes Eurasia and North America. Because of a lack of long paleoclimatic time series in the tropical Andes, it is still unclear if similar cooling occurred over these tropical and Southern Hemisphere regions. Furthermore, if changes did take place, it is currently not well established if they were temporally synchronous or shifted with respect of the variations in the Northern Hemisphere or the globe. To look into this important climatic question and for advancing our understanding of the past climate links between the tropics and higher latitudes, 25 glaciers located in Bolivia and in Peru were carefully selected. Glacial activity and environmental changes were analyzed using lichenometry. Largest lichen diameters were measured in the different glacial basins. To better analyze these maximum diameters and to more appropriately represent uncertainty and the character of this collected data, age estimates of the different moraine systems were derived using extreme value theory rather than the traditional averaging. The results reveal two particular phases of glacier growth, 1550-1600 and 1800-1850. These two phases have also been identified in other proxy records, such as ice-cores and documentary data (particularly from church chronicles). In order to understand the climatic changes that could have contributed to the glacial variations, a simple model based on both precipitations and temperatures is applied to estimate mass balance questions in the basins. A cooling of the order of 0.5 C seems to be the most consistent with the data. Finally, these findings are compared with the better-known histories of Northern Hemisphere mid-latitude glaciers.

Slow-slip events on the Whillans Ice Plain, Antarctica, described using rate-and-state friction as an ice stream sliding law

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lipovsky, Bradley Paul; Dunham, Eric M.

2017-04-01

The Whillans Ice Plain (WIP), Antarctica, experiences twice daily tidally modulated stick-slip cycles. Slip events last about 30 min, have sliding velocities as high as ˜0.5 mm/s (15 km/yr), and have total slip ˜0.5 m. Slip events tend to occur during falling ocean tide: just after high tide and just before low tide. To reproduce these characteristics, we use rate-and-state friction, which is commonly used to simulate tectonic faulting, as an ice stream sliding law. This framework describes the evolving strength of the ice-bed interface throughout stick-slip cycles. We present simulations that resolve the cross-stream dimension using a depth-integrated treatment of an elastic ice layer loaded by tides and steady ice inflow. Steady sliding with rate-weakening friction is conditionally stable with steady sliding occurring for sufficiently narrow ice streams relative to a nucleation length. Stick-slip cycles occur when the ice stream is wider than the nucleation length or, equivalently, when effective pressures exceed a critical value. Ice streams barely wider than the nucleation length experience slow-slip events, and our simulations suggest that the WIP is in this slow-slip regime. Slip events on the WIP show a sense of propagation, and we reproduce this behavior by introducing a rate-strengthening region in the center of the otherwise rate-weakening ice stream. If pore pressures are raised above a critical value, our simulations predict that the WIP would exhibit quasi-steady tidally modulated sliding as observed on other ice streams. This study validates rate-and-state friction as a sliding law to describe ice stream sliding styles.

Ice Age terrestrial carbon changes revisited

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crowley, Thomas J.

1995-09-01

N. Shackleton (1977) first proposed that changes in the marine δ13C record (Δδ13C) could be used to infer ice age changes in carbon storage on land. The previously published best estimate from the marine record is equivalent to about 490 Gt (0.32 Δδ13C). However, Adams et al. (1990) utilized a pollen database to estimate a 1350 Gt change in carbon storage, which would cause a Δδ13C of about 0.90‰. The nearly trillion ton difference in estimates amounts to almost half of the total carbon stored on land. To address the nature of this discrepancy, I have reexamined the terrestrial carbon record based on a new pollen database compiled by R. Webb and the Cooperative Holocene Mapping Project (COHMAP) group. I estimate about 750-1050 Gt glacial-interglacial change in terrestrial carbon storage, with the range reflecting uncertainties in carbon storage values for different biomes. Additional uncertainties apply to rainforest and wetland extent and presence of C4 plants, which have a significantly different isotopic signature than C3 plants. Although some scenarios overlap a new estimate of carbon storage based on the oceanic Δδ13C record (revised to 0.40‰ and 610 Gt), most estimates seem to fall outside the envelope of uncertainty in the marine record. Several possible explanations for this gap involve: (1) a missing sink may be involved in land-sea carbon exchange (e.g., continental slopes); (2) the geochemistry of the exchange process is not understood; (3) carbon storage by biome may have changed under ice age boundary conditions; or (4) the standard interpretation of whole ocean changes in the marine δ13C record requires reevaluation. This latter conclusion receives some support from comparison of the δ13C records for δ18O Stages 2 and 6. For the Stage 6 glacial, the δ13C changes are 50-60% larger than for the Stage 2 glacial. Yet implications of increased aridity are not supported by longterm trends in atmospheric dust loading. To summarize, the above

Surface-exposure ages of Front Range moraines that may have formed during the Younger Dryas, 8.2 cal ka, and Little Ice Age events

USGS Publications Warehouse

Benson, L.; Madole, R.; Kubik, P.; McDonald, R.

2007-01-01

Surface-exposure (10Be) ages have been obtained on boulders from three post-Pinedale end-moraine complexes in the Front Range, Colorado. Boulder rounding appears related to the cirque-to-moraine transport distance at each site with subrounded boulders being typical of the 2-km-long Chicago Lakes Glacier, subangular boulders being typical of the 1-km-long Butler Gulch Glacier, and angular boulders being typical of the few-hundred-m-long Isabelle Glacier. Surface-exposure ages of angular boulders from the Isabelle Glacier moraine, which formed during the Little Ice Age (LIA) according to previous lichenometric dating, indicate cosmogenic inheritance values ranging from 0 to ???3.0 10Be ka.11Surface-exposure ages in this paper are labeled 10Be; radiocarbon ages are labeled 14C ka, calendar and calibrated radiocarbon ages are labeled cal ka, and layer-based ice-core ages are labeled ka. 14C ages, calibrated 14C ages, and ice core ages are given relative to AD 1950, whereas 10Be ages are given relative to the sampling date. Radiocarbon ages were calibrated using CALIB 5.01 and the INTCAL04 data base Stuiver et al. (2005). Ages estimated using CALIB 5.01 are shown in terms of their 1-sigma range. Subangular boulders from the Butler Gulch end moraine yielded surface-exposure ages ranging from 5 to 10.2 10Be ka. We suggest that this moraine was deposited during the 8.2 cal ka event, which has been associated with outburst floods from Lake Agassiz and Lake Ojibway, and that the large age range associated with the Butler Gulch end moraine is caused by cosmogenic shielding of and(or) spalling from boulders that have ages in the younger part of the range and by cosmogenic inheritance in boulders that have ages in the older part of the range. The surface-exposure ages of eight of nine subrounded boulders from the Chicago Lakes area fall within the 13.0-11.7 10Be ka age range, and appear to have been deposited during the Younger Dryas interval. The general lack of inheritance in

Preliminary Cosmogenic Surface Exposure Ages on Laurentide Ice-sheet Retreat and Opening of the Eastern Lake Agassiz Outlets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leydet, D.; Carlson, A. E.; Sinclair, G.; Teller, J. T.; Breckenridge, A. J.; Caffee, M. W.; Barth, A. M.

2015-12-01

The chronology for the eastern outlets of glacial Lake Agassiz holds important consequences for the cause of Younger Dryas cold event during the last deglaciation. Eastward routing of Lake Agassiz runoff was originally hypothesized to have triggered the Younger Dryas. However, currently the chronology of the eastern outlets is only constrained by minimum-limiting radiocarbon ages that could suggest the eastern outlets were still ice covered at the start of the Younger Dryas at ~12.9 ka BP, requiring a different forcing of this abrupt climate event. Nevertheless, the oldest radiocarbon ages are still consistent with an ice-free eastern outlet at the start of the Younger Dryas. Here we will present preliminary 10-Be cosmogenic surface exposure ages from the North Lake, Flat Rock Lake, glacial Lake Kaministiquia, and Lake Nipigon outlets located near Thunder Bay, Ontario. These ages will date the timing of the deglaciation of the Laurentide ice sheet in the eastern outlet region of glacial Lake Agassiz. This will provide an important constraint for the hypothesized freshwater forcing of the cause of Younger Dryas cold event.

Development of lysozyme-combined antibacterial system to reduce sulfur dioxide and to stabilize Italian Riesling ice wine during aging process

PubMed Central

Chen, Kai; Han, Shun-yu; Zhang, Bo; Li, Min; Sheng, Wen-jun

2015-01-01

For the purpose of SO2 reduction and stabilizing ice wine, a new antibacterial technique was developed and verified in order to reduce the content of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and simultaneously maintain protein stability during ice wine aging process. Hazardous bacterial strain (lactic acid bacteria, LAB) and protein stability of Italian Riesling ice wine were evaluated in terms of different amounts of lysozyme, SO2, polyphenols, and wine pH by single-factor experiments. Subsequently, a quadratic rotation-orthogonal composite design with four variables was conducted to establish the multiple linear regression model that demonstrated the influence of different treatments on synthesis score between LAB inhibition and protein stability of ice wine. The results showed that, synthesis score can be influenced by lysozyme and SO2 concentrations on an extremely significant level (P < 0.01). Furthermore, the lysozyme-combined antibacterial system, which is specially designed for ice wine aging, was optimized step by step by response surface methodology and ridge analysis. As a result, the optimal proportion should be control in ice wine as follows: 179.31 mg L−1 lysozyme, 177.14 mg L−1 SO2, 0.60 g L−1 polyphenols, and 4.01 ice wine pH. Based on this system, the normalized synthesis score between LAB inhibition and protein stability can reach the highest point 0.920. Finally, by the experiments of verification and comparison, it was indicated that lysozyme-combined antibacterial system, which was a practical and prospective method to reduce SO2 concentration and effectively prevent contamination from hazardous LAB, can be used to stabilize ice wine during aging process. PMID:26405531

Frequency variations of the earth's obliquity and the 100-kyr ice-age cycles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Liu, Han-Shou

1992-01-01

Changes in the earth's climate are induced by variations in the earth's orbital parameters which modulate the seasonal distribution of solar radiation. Periodicities in the geological climate record with cycles of 100, 41, and 23 kyr have been linked with changes in obliquity, eccentricity, and precession of the equinoxes. The effect of variations of eccentricity during a 100 kyr period is weak relative to the signals from obliquity and precession variations and it may therefore be expected that the 100 kyr signal in the climate record would be of low intensity. However, this signal dominates the climate record and internal nonlinear processes within the climate system have previously been proposed to account for this fact. The author shows that variations in the frequency of the obliquity cycle can give rise to strong 100-kyr forcing of climate.

New exposure ages for the Last Glacial Cycle in the Sanabria Lake region (northwestern Spain)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rodríguez-Rodríguez, Laura; Jiménez-Sánchez, Montserrat; Domínguez-Cuesta, María Jose; Rinterknecht, Vincent; Pallàs, Raimon; Braucher, Régis; Bourlès, Didier; Valero-Garcés, Blas

2013-04-01

The Sanabria Lake region is located in the Trevinca Massif, a mid-latitude mountain area up to 2128 m asl in the northwest corner of the Iberian Peninsula (42oN 6oW). An ice cap glaciation took place during the Last Glacial Cycle in this massif, with an equilibrium line altitude of 1687 m for the Tera glacial outlet at its local maximum (Cowton et al., 2009). A well preserved glacial sequence occurs on an area of 45 km2 around the present Sanabria Lake (1000 m asl) and is composed by lateral and end moraines in close relationship with glaciolacustrine deposits. This sequence shows the ice snout oscillations of the former Tera glacier during the Last Glacial Cycle and offers a good opportunity to compare radiocarbon and OSL- based chronological models with new cosmogenic isotope dates. The new dataset of 10Be exposure ages presented here for the Sanabria Lake moraines is based on measurements conducted on 23 boulders and is compared with previous radiocarbon and OSL data conducted on ice related deposits (Pérez-Alberti et al., 2011; Rodríguez-Rodríguez et al., 2011). Our results are coherent with the available deglaciation radiocarbon chronology, and support a last deglaciation origin for the whole set of end moraines that are downstream the Sanabria Lake (19.2 - 15.7 10Be ka). Discrepancies between results of the different dating methods concern the timing of the local glacial maximum, with the cosmogenic exposure method always yielding the youngest minimum ages. As proposed to explain similar observations made elsewhere (Palacios et al., 2012), reconciling the ages from different dating methods would imply the occurrence of two glacial advances close enough in extent to generate an overlapping polygenic moraine. Cowton, T., Hughes, P.D., Gibbard, P.L., 2009. Palaeoglaciation of Parque Natural Lago de Sanabria, northwest Spain. Geomorphology 108, 282-291. Rodríguez-Rodríguez, L., Jiménez-Sánchez, M., Domínguez-Cuesta, M.J., Rico, M.T., Valero-Garcés, B

County-Level Climate Uncertainty for Risk Assessments: Volume 24 Appendix W - Historical Sea Ice Age.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Backus, George A.; Lowry, Thomas Stephen; Jones, Shannon M

2017-05-01

This report uses the CMIP5 series of climate model simulations to produce country- level uncertainty distributions for use in socioeconomic risk assessments of climate change impacts. It provides appropriate probability distributions, by month, for 169 countries and autonomous-areas on temperature, precipitation, maximum temperature, maximum wind speed, humidity, runoff, soil moisture and evaporation for the historical period (1976-2005), and for decadal time periods to 2100. It also provides historical and future distributions for the Arctic region on ice concentration, ice thickness, age of ice, and ice ridging in 15-degree longitude arc segments from the Arctic Circle to 80 degrees latitude, plusmore » two polar semicircular regions from 80 to 90 degrees latitude. The uncertainty is meant to describe the lack of knowledge rather than imprecision in the physical simulation because the emphasis is on unfalsified risk and its use to determine potential socioeconomic impacts. The full report is contained in 27 volumes.« less

County-Level Climate Uncertainty for Risk Assessments: Volume 25 Appendix X - Forecast Sea Ice Age.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Backus, George A.; Lowry, Thomas Stephen; Jones, Shannon M.

2017-05-01

This report uses the CMIP5 series of climate model simulations to produce country- level uncertainty distributions for use in socioeconomic risk assessments of climate change impacts. It provides appropriate probability distributions, by month, for 169 countries and autonomous-areas on temperature, precipitation, maximum temperature, maximum wind speed, humidity, runoff, soil moisture and evaporation for the historical period (1976-2005), and for decadal time periods to 2100. It also provides historical and future distributions for the Arctic region on ice concentration, ice thickness, age of ice, and ice ridging in 15-degree longitude arc segments from the Arctic Circle to 80 degrees latitude, plusmore » two polar semicircular regions from 80 to 90 degrees latitude. The uncertainty is meant to describe the lack of knowledge rather than imprecision in the physical simulation because the emphasis is on unfalsified risk and its use to determine potential socioeconomic impacts. The full report is contained in 27 volumes.« less

Dansgaard-Oeschger cycles observed in the Greenland ReCAP ice core project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kjær, Helle Astrid; Vallelonga, Paul; Vinther, Bo; Simonsen, Marius; Maffezzoli, Niccoló; Gkinis, Vasileios; Svensson, Anders; Jensen, Camilla Marie; Dallmayr, Remi; Spolaor, Andrea; Edwards, Ross

2017-04-01

The new REnland ice CAP (RECAP) ice core was drilled in summer 2015 in Greenland and measured by means of Continuous flow analysis (CFA) during the last 3 months of 2015. The Renland ice core was obtained as part of the ReCAP project, extending 584.11 meters to the bottom of the Renland ice cap located in east Greenland. The unique position on a mountain saddle above 2000 meters altitude, but close to the coast, ensures that the Renland ice core offers high accumulation, but also reaches far back in time. Results show that despite the short length the RECAP ice core holds ice all the way back to the past warm interglacial period, the Eemian. The glacial section is strongly thinned and covers on 20 meters of the ReCAP core, but nonetheless due to the high resolution of the measurements all 25 expected DO events could be identified. The record was analyzed for multiple elements including the water isotopes, forest fire tracers NH4+ and black carbon, insoluble dust particles by means of Abakus laser particle counter and the dust ion Ca2+, sea salt Na+, and sea ice proxies as well as acidity useful for finding volcanic layers to date the core. Below the glacial section another 20 meters of warm Eemian ice have been analysed. Here we present the chemistry results as obtained by continuous flow analysis (CFA) and compare the glacial section with the chemistry profile from other Greenland ice cores.

Investigations of Spatial and Temporal Variability of Ocean and Ice Conditions in and Near the Marginal Ice Zone. The “Marginal Ice Zone Observations and Processes Experiment” (MIZOPEX) Final Campaign Summary

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

DeMott, P. J.; Hill, T. C.J.

Despite the significance of the marginal ice zones of the Arctic Ocean, basic parameters such as sea surface temperature (SST) and a range of sea-ice characteristics are still insufficiently understood in these areas, and especially so during the summer melt period. The field campaigns summarized here, identified collectively as the “Marginal Ice Zone Ocean and Ice Observations and Processes Experiment” (MIZOPEX), were funded by U.S. National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA) with the intent of helping to address these information gaps through a targeted, intensive observation field campaign that tested and exploited unique capabilities of multiple classes of unmanned aerialmore » systems (UASs). MIZOPEX was conceived and carried out in response to NASA’s request for research efforts that would address a key area of science while also helping to advance the application of UASs in a manner useful to NASA for assessing the relative merits of different UASs. To further exercise the potential of unmanned systems and to expand the science value of the effort, the field campaign added further challenges such as air deployment of miniaturized buoys and coordinating missions involving multiple aircraft. Specific research areas that MIZOPEX data were designed to address include relationships between ocean skin temperatures and subsurface temperatures and how these evolve over time in an Arctic environment during summer; variability in sea-ice conditions such as thickness, age, and albedo within the marginal ice zone (MIZ); interactions of SST, salinity, and ice conditions during the melt cycle; and validation of satellite-derived SST and ice concentration fields provided by satellite imagery and models.« less

Simulation of climate, ice sheets and CO2 evolution during the last four glacial cycles with an Earth system model of intermediate complexity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ganopolski, Andrey; Brovkin, Victor

2017-11-01

In spite of significant progress in paleoclimate reconstructions and modelling of different aspects of the past glacial cycles, the mechanisms which transform regional and seasonal variations in solar insolation into long-term and global-scale glacial-interglacial cycles are still not fully understood - in particular, in relation to CO2 variability. Here using the Earth system model of intermediate complexity CLIMBER-2 we performed simulations of the co-evolution of climate, ice sheets, and carbon cycle over the last 400 000 years using the orbital forcing as the only external forcing. The model simulates temporal dynamics of CO2, global ice volume, and other climate system characteristics in good agreement with paleoclimate reconstructions. These results provide strong support for the idea that long and strongly asymmetric glacial cycles of the late Quaternary represent a direct but strongly nonlinear response of the Northern Hemisphere ice sheets to orbital forcing. This response is strongly amplified and globalised by the carbon cycle feedbacks. Using simulations performed with the model in different configurations, we also analyse the role of individual processes and sensitivity to the choice of model parameters. While many features of simulated glacial cycles are rather robust, some details of CO2 evolution, especially during glacial terminations, are sensitive to the choice of model parameters. Specifically, we found two major regimes of CO2 changes during terminations: in the first one, when the recovery of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) occurs only at the end of the termination, a pronounced overshoot in CO2 concentration occurs at the beginning of the interglacial and CO2 remains almost constant during the interglacial or even declines towards the end, resembling Eemian CO2 dynamics. However, if the recovery of the AMOC occurs in the middle of the glacial termination, CO2 concentration continues to rise during the interglacial

Sunlight, Sea Ice, and the Ice Albedo Feedback in a Changing Artic Sea Ice Cover

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-11-30

information from the PIOMAS model [J. Zhang], melt pond coverage from MODIS [Rösel et al., 2012], and ice-age estimates [Maslanik et al., 2011] to...determined from MODIS satellite data using an artificial neural network, Cryosph., 6(2), 431–446, doi:10.5194/tc- 6-431-2012. PUBLICATIONS Carmack...from MODIS , and ice-age estimates to this dataset. We have used this extented dataset to build a climatology of the partitioning of solar heat between

Residential Mobility, Age, and the Life Cycle

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yee, William; Arsdol, Maurice D. Van, Jr.

1977-01-01

A life cycle explanation of residential mobility is presented. It posits that age-related events in a normative context influence moving probabilities for homogeneous populations who have relatively uniform socialization. (Author)

Antartic sea ice, 1973 - 1976: Satellite passive-microwave observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zwally, H. J.; Comiso, J. C.; Parkinson, C. L.; Campbell, W. J.; Carsey, F. D.; Gloersen, P.

1983-01-01

Data from the Electrically Scanning Microwave Radiometer (ESMR) on the Nimbus 5 satellite are used to determine the extent and distribution of Antarctic sea ice. The characteristics of the southern ocean, the mathematical formulas used to obtain quantitative sea ice concentrations, the general characteristics of the seasonal sea ice growth/decay cycle and regional differences, and the observed seasonal growth/decay cycle for individual years and interannual variations of the ice cover are discussed. The sea ice data from the ESMR are presented in the form of color-coded maps of the Antarctic and the southern oceans. The maps show brightness temperatures and concentrations of pack ice averaged for each month, 4-year monthly averages, and month-to-month changes. Graphs summarizing the results, such as areas of sea ice as a function of time in the various sectors of the southern ocean are included. The images demonstrate that satellite microwave data provide unique information on large-scale sea ice conditions for determining climatic conditions in polar regions and possible global climatic changes.

Modeling of Antarctic Sea Ice in a General Circulation Model.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Xingren; Simmonds, Ian; Budd, W. F.

1997-04-01

A dynamic-thermodynamic sea ice model is developed and coupled with the Melbourne University general circulation model to simulate the seasonal cycle of the Antarctic sea ice distribution. The model is efficient, rapid to compute, and useful for a range of climate studies. The thermodynamic part of the sea ice model is similar to that developed by Parkinson and Washington, the dynamics contain a simplified ice rheology that resists compression. The thermodynamics is based on energy conservation at the top surface of the ice/snow, the ice/water interface, and the open water area to determine the ice formation, accretion, and ablation. A lead parameterization is introduced with an effective partitioning scheme for freezing between and under the ice floes. The dynamic calculation determines the motion of ice, which is forced with the atmospheric wind, taking account of ice resistance and rafting. The simulated sea ice distribution compares reasonably well with observations. The seasonal cycle of ice extent is well simulated in phase as well as in magnitude. Simulated sea ice thickness and concentration are also in good agreement with observations over most regions and serve to indicate the importance of advection and ocean drift in the determination of the sea ice distribution.

Modeling of Antarctic sea ice in a general circulation model

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wu, Xingren; Budd, W.F.; Simmonds, I.

1997-04-01

A dynamic-thermodynamic sea ice model is developed and coupled with the Melbourne University general circulation model to simulate the seasonal cycle of the Antarctic sea ice distributions The model is efficient, rapid to compute, and useful for a range of climate studies. The thermodynamic part of the sea ice model is similar to that developed by Parkinson and Washington, the dynamics contain a simplified ice rheology that resists compression. The thermodynamics is based on energy conservation at the top surface of the ice/snow, the ice/water interface, and the open water area to determine the ice formation, accretion, and ablation. Amore » lead parameterization is introduced with an effective partitioning scheme for freezing between and under the ice floes. The dynamic calculation determines the motion of ice, which is forced with the atmospheric wind, taking account of ice resistance and rafting. The simulated sea ice distribution compares reasonably well with observations. The seasonal cycle of ice extent is well simulated in phase as well as in magnitude. Simulated sea ice thickness and concentration are also in good agreement with observations over most regions and serve to indicate the importance of advection and ocean drift in the determination of the sea ice distribution. 64 refs., 15 figs., 2 tabs.« less

Insolation-driven 100 kyr glacial cycles and millennial climate change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abe-Ouchi, A.; Saito, F.; Kawamura, K.; Raymo, M. E.; Okuno, J.; Takahashi, K.; Blatter, H.

2013-12-01

The waxing and waning of Northern Hemisphere ice sheets over the past one million years is dominated by an approximately 100-kyr periodicity and a sawtooth pattern (gradual growth and fast termination). Milankovitch theory proposes that summer insolation at high northern latitudes drives the glacial cycles, and statistical tests demonstrated that the glacial cycles are indeed linked to eccentricity, obliquity and precession cycles. However, insolation alone cannot explain the strong 100 kyr cycle which presumably arises through internal climatic feedbacks. Prior work with conceptual models, for example, showed that glacial terminations are associated with the build-up of Northern Hemisphere 'excess ice', but the physical mechanisms of 100-kyr cycle at work remain unclear. Here, using comprehensive climate and ice sheet models, we show that the ~100-kyr periodicity is explained by insolation and internal feedback amongst the climate, ice sheet and lithosphere/asthenosphere system (reference). We found that equilibrium states of ice sheets exhibit hysteresis responses to summer insolation, and that the shape and position of the hysteresis loop play a key role in determining the periodicities of glacial cycles. The hysteresis loop of the North American ice sheet is such that, after its inception, the ice sheet mass balance remains mostly positive or neutral through several precession cycles whose amplitude decreases towards an eccentricity minimum. The larger the ice sheet grows and extends towards lower latitudes, the smaller is the insolation required to turn the mass balance to negative. Therefore, once the large ice sheet is established, only a moderate increase in insolation can trigger a negative mass balance, leading to a complete retreat within several thousand years, due to the delayed isostatic rebound. The effect of ocean circulation and millennial scale climate change are not playing the dominant role for determing the 100kyr cycle, but are effective for

Seasonal-Scale Dating of a Shallow Ice Core From Greenland Using Oxygen Isotope Matching Between Data and Simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Furukawa, Ryoto; Uemura, Ryu; Fujita, Koji; Sjolte, Jesper; Yoshimura, Kei; Matoba, Sumito; Iizuka, Yoshinori

2017-10-01

A precise age scale based on annual layer counting is essential for investigating past environmental changes from ice core records. However, subannual scale dating is hampered by the irregular intraannual variabilities of oxygen isotope (δ18O) records. Here we propose a dating method based on matching the δ18O variations between ice core records and records simulated by isotope-enabled climate models. We applied this method to a new δ18O record from an ice core obtained from a dome site in southeast Greenland. The close similarity between the δ18O records from the ice core and models enables correlation and the production of a precise age scale, with an accuracy of a few months. A missing δ18O minimum in the 1995/1996 winter is an example of an indistinct δ18O seasonal cycle. Our analysis suggests that the missing δ18O minimum is likely caused by a combination of warm air temperature, weak moisture transport, and cool ocean temperature. Based on the age scale, the average accumulation rate from 1960 to 2014 is reconstructed as 1.02 m yr-1 in water equivalent. The annual accumulation rate shows an increasing trend with a slope of 3.6 mm yr-1, which is mainly caused by the increase in the autumn accumulation rate of 2.6 mm yr-1. This increase is likely linked to the enhanced hydrological cycle caused by the decrease in Arctic sea ice area. Unlike the strong seasonality of precipitation amount in the ERA reanalysis data in the southeast dome region, our reconstructed accumulation rate suggests a weak seasonality.

Tracking the seasonal cycle of coastal sea ice: Community-based observations and satellite remote sensing in service of societal needs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eicken, Hajo; Lee, Olivia A.; Johnson, Mark A.; Pulsifer, Peter; Danielsen, Finn

2017-04-01

Break-up and freeze-up of coastal sea ice determine the timing and extent of a number of human activities, ranging from ice use by Indigenous hunters to coastal shipping. Yet, while major reductions in the extent of Arctic summer sea ice have been well studied, changes in its seasonal cycle have received less attention. Here, we discuss decadal scale changes and interannual variability in the timing of spring break-up and fall freeze-up, with a focus on coastal communities in Arctic Alaska. Observations of ice conditions by Indigenous sea-ice experts since 2006 indicate significant interannual variability in both the character and timing of freeze-up and break-up in the region. To aid in the archival and sharing of such observations, we have developed a database for community ice observations (eloka-arctic.org/sizonet). Development of this database addressed key questions ranging from community guidance on different levels of data sharing and access to the development of protocols that may lend themselves for implementation in the context of operational programs such as Global Cryosphere Watch. The lessons learned and tools developed through this effort may help foster the emergence of common observation protocols and sharing practices across the Arctic, as explored jointly with the Greenlandic PISUNA initiative and the European INTAROS project. For the Arctic Alaska region, we developed an algorithm to extract the timing of break-up and freeze-up from passive microwave satellite data, drawing on community-based observations. Data from 1979 to 2013 show break-up start arriving earlier by 5-9 days per decade and freeze-up start arriving later by 7-14 days per decade in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas. The trends towards a shorter ice season observed over the past several decades point towards a substantial change in the winter ice regime by mid-century with incipient overlap of the end of the freeze-up and start of the break-up season as defined by coastal ice users.

Solving the riddle of interglacial temperatures over the last 1.5 million years with a future IPICS "Oldest Ice" ice core

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fischer, Hubertus

2014-05-01

The sequence of the last 8 glacial cycles is characterized by irregular 100,000 year cycles in temperature and sea level. In contrast, the time period between 1.5-1.2 million years ago is characterized by more regular cycles with an obliquity periodicity of 41,000 years. Based on a deconvolution of deep ocean temperature and ice volume contributions to benthic δ18O (Elderfield et al., Science, 2012), it is suggested that glacial sea level became progressively lower over the last 1.5 Myr, while glacial deep ocean temperatures were very similar. At the same time many interglacials prior to the Mid Brunhes event showed significantly cooler deep ocean temperatures than the Holocene, while at the same time interglacial ice volume remained essentially the same. In contrast, interglacial sea surface temperatures in the tropics changed little (Herbert et al., Science,2010) and proxy reconstructions of atmospheric CO2 using δ11B in planktic foraminifera (Hönisch et al., Science, 2009) suggest that prior to 900,000 yr before present interglacial CO2 levels did not differ substantially from those over the last 450,000 years. Accordingly, the conundrum arises how interglacials can differ in deep ocean temperature without any obvious change in ice volume or greenhouse gas forcing and what caused the change in cyclicity of glacial interglacial cycles over the Mid Pleistocene Transition. Probably the most important contribution to solve this riddle is the recovery of a 1.5 Myr old ice core from Antarctica, which among others would provide an unambiguous, high-resolution record of the greenhouse gas history over this time period. Accordingly, the international ice core community, as represented by the International Partnership for Ice Core Science (IPICS), has identified such an 'Oldest Ice' ice core as one of the most important scientific targets for the future (http://www.pages.unibe.ch/ipics/white-papers). However, finding stratigraphically undisturbed ice, which covers this

Water vapor, water-ice clouds, and dust in the North Polar Region

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tamppari, Leslie K.; Smith, Michael D.; Bass, Deborah S.; Hale, Amy S.

2006-01-01

The behavior of water vapor, water-ice and dust in the Martian atmosphere is important for understanding the overall Martian climate system, which is characterized by three main cycles: water, including water-ice, dust, and CO2. Understanding these cycles will lend insight into the behavior of the atmospheric dynamics, the atmosphere's ability to transport dust, water-ice, and vapor to different parts of the planet, and how that ability changes as a function of dust and water-ice loading.

Reassessment of ice-age cooling of the tropical ocean and atmosphere

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hostetler, S.W.; Mix, A.C.

1999-01-01

The CLIMAP project's reconstruction of past sea surface temperature inferred limited ice-age cooling in the tropical oceans. This conclusion has been controversial, however, because of the greater cooling indicated by other terrestrial and ocean proxy data. A new faunal sea surface temperature reconstruction, calibrated using the variation of foraminiferal species through time, better represents ice-age faunal assemblages and so reveals greater cooling than CLIMAP in the equatorial current systems of the eastern Pacific and tropical Atlantic oceans. Here we explore the climatic implications of this revised sea surface temperature field for the Last Glacial Maximum using an atmospheric general circulation model. Relative to model results obtained using CLIMAP sea surface temperatures, the cooler equatorial oceans modify seasonal air temperatures by 1-2??C or more across parts of South America, Africa and southeast Asia and cause attendant changes in regional moisture patterns. In our simulation of the Last Glacial Maximum, the Amazon lowlands, for example, are cooler and drier, whereas the Andean highlands are cooler and wetter than the control simulation. Our results may help to resolve some of the apparent disagreements between oceanic and continental proxy climate data. Moreover, they suggest a wind-related mechanism for enhancing the export of water vapour from the Atlantic to the Indo-Pacific oceans, which may link variations in deep-water production and high-latitude climate changes to equatorial sea surface temperatures.

Old age mortality and macroeconomic cycles.

PubMed

Rolden, Herbert J A; van Bodegom, David; van den Hout, Wilbert B; Westendorp, Rudi G J

2014-01-01

As mortality is more and more concentrated at old age, it becomes critical to identify the determinants of old age mortality. It has counter-intuitively been found that mortality rates at all ages are higher during short-term increases in economic growth. Work-stress is found to be a contributing factor to this association, but cannot explain the association for the older, retired population. Historical figures of gross domestic product (Angus Maddison) were compared with mortality rates (Human Mortality Database) of middle aged (40-44 years) and older people (70-74 years) in 19 developed countries for the period 1950-2008. Regressions were performed on the de-trended data, accounting for autocorrelation and aggregated using random effects models. Most countries show pro-cyclical associations between the economy and mortality, especially with regard to male mortality rates. On average, for every 1% increase in gross domestic product, mortality increases with 0.36% for 70-year-old to 74-year-old men (p<0.001) and 0.38% for 40-year-old to 44-year-old men (p<0.001). The effect for women is 0.18% for 70-year-olds to 74-year-olds (p=0.012) and 0.15% for 40-year-olds to 44-year-olds (p=0.118). In developed countries, mortality rates increase during upward cycles in the economy, and decrease during downward cycles. This effect is similar for the older and middle-aged population. Traditional explanations as work-stress and traffic accidents cannot explain our findings. Lower levels of social support and informal care by the working population during good economic times can play an important role, but this remains to be formally investigated.

An abrupt weakening of the subpolar gyre as trigger of Little Ice Age-type episodes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moreno-Chamarro, Eduardo; Zanchettin, Davide; Lohmann, Katja; Jungclaus, Johann H.

2017-02-01

We investigate the mechanism of a decadal-scale weakening shift in the strength of the subpolar gyre (SPG) that is found in one among three last millennium simulations with a state-of-the-art Earth system model. The SPG shift triggers multicentennial anomalies in the North Atlantic climate driven by long-lasting internal feedbacks relating anomalous oceanic and atmospheric circulation, sea ice extent, and upper-ocean salinity in the Labrador Sea. Yet changes throughout or after the shift are not associated with a persistent weakening of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation or shifts in the North Atlantic Oscillation. The anomalous climate state of the North Atlantic simulated after the shift agrees well with climate reconstructions from within the area, which describe a transition between a stronger and weaker SPG during the relatively warm medieval climate and the cold Little Ice Age respectively. However, model and data differ in the timing of the onset. The simulated SPG shift is caused by a rapid increase in the freshwater export from the Arctic and associated freshening in the upper Labrador Sea. Such freshwater anomaly relates to prominent thickening of the Arctic sea ice, following the cluster of relatively small-magnitude volcanic eruptions by 1600 CE. Sensitivity experiments without volcanic forcing can nonetheless produce similar abrupt events; a necessary causal link between the volcanic cluster and the SPG shift can therefore be excluded. Instead, preconditioning by internal variability explains discrepancies in the timing between the simulated SPG shift and the reconstructed estimates for the Little Ice Age onset.

The Relationship Between Arctic Sea Ice Albedo and the Geophysical Parameters of the Ice Cover

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Riihelä, A.

2015-12-01

The Arctic sea ice cover is thinning and retreating. Remote sensing observations have also shown that the mean albedo of the remaining ice cover is decreasing on decadal time scales, albeit with significant annual variability (Riihelä et al., 2013, Pistone et al., 2014). Attribution of the albedo decrease between its different drivers, such as decreasing ice concentration and enhanced surface melt of the ice, remains an important research question for the forecasting of future conditions of the ice cover. A necessary step towards this goal is understanding the relationships between Arctic sea ice albedo and the geophysical parameters of the ice cover. Particularly the question of the relationship between sea ice albedo and ice age is both interesting and not widely studied. The recent changes in the Arctic sea ice zone have led to a substantial decrease of its multi-year sea ice, as old ice melts and is replaced by first-year ice during the next freezing season. It is generally known that younger sea ice tends to have a lower albedo than older ice because of several reasons, such as wetter snow cover and enhanced melt ponding. However, the quantitative correlation between sea ice age and sea ice albedo has not been extensively studied to date, excepting in-situ measurement based studies which are, by necessity, focused on a limited area of the Arctic Ocean (Perovich and Polashenski, 2012).In this study, I analyze the dependencies of Arctic sea ice albedo relative to the geophysical parameters of the ice field. I use remote sensing datasets such as the CM SAF CLARA-A1 (Karlsson et al., 2013) and the NASA MeaSUREs (Anderson et al., 2014) as data sources for the analysis. The studied period is 1982-2009. The datasets are spatiotemporally collocated and analysed. The changes in sea ice albedo as a function of sea ice age are presented for the whole Arctic Ocean and for potentially interesting marginal sea cases. This allows us to see if the the albedo of the older sea

Genomic Evidence of Widespread Admixture from Polar Bears into Brown Bears during the Last Ice Age.

PubMed

Cahill, James A; Heintzman, Peter D; Harris, Kelley; Teasdale, Matthew D; Kapp, Joshua; Soares, Andre E R; Stirling, Ian; Bradley, Daniel; Edwards, Ceiridwen J; Graim, Kiley; Kisleika, Aliaksandr A; Malev, Alexander V; Monaghan, Nigel; Green, Richard E; Shapiro, Beth

2018-05-01

Recent genomic analyses have provided substantial evidence for past periods of gene flow from polar bears (Ursus maritimus) into Alaskan brown bears (Ursus arctos), with some analyses suggesting a link between climate change and genomic introgression. However, because it has mainly been possible to sample bears from the present day, the timing, frequency, and evolutionary significance of this admixture remains unknown. Here, we analyze genomic DNA from three additional and geographically distinct brown bear populations, including two that lived temporally close to the peak of the last ice age. We find evidence of admixture in all three populations, suggesting that admixture between these species has been common in their recent evolutionary history. In addition, analyses of ten fossil bears from the now-extinct Irish population indicate that admixture peaked during the last ice age, whereas brown bear and polar bear ranges overlapped. Following this peak, the proportion of polar bear ancestry in Irish brown bears declined rapidly until their extinction. Our results support a model in which ice age climate change created geographically widespread conditions conducive to admixture between polar bears and brown bears, as is again occurring today. We postulate that this model will be informative for many admixing species pairs impacted by climate change. Our results highlight the power of paleogenomics to reveal patterns of evolutionary change that are otherwise masked in contemporary data.

Deep-sea coral evidence for lower Southern Ocean surface nitrate concentrations during the last ice age

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Xingchen Tony; Sigman, Daniel M.; Prokopenko, Maria G.; Adkins, Jess F.; Robinson, Laura F.; Hines, Sophia K.; Chai, Junyi; Studer, Anja S.; Martínez-García, Alfredo; Chen, Tianyu; Haug, Gerald H.

2017-03-01

The Southern Ocean regulates the ocean’s biological sequestration of CO2 and is widely suspected to underpin much of the ice age decline in atmospheric CO2 concentration, but the specific changes in the region are debated. Although more complete drawdown of surface nutrients by phytoplankton during the ice ages is supported by some sediment core-based measurements, the use of different proxies in different regions has precluded a unified view of Southern Ocean biogeochemical change. Here, we report measurements of the 15N/14N of fossil-bound organic matter in the stony deep-sea coral Desmophyllum dianthus, a tool for reconstructing surface ocean nutrient conditions. The central robust observation is of higher 15N/14N across the Southern Ocean during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), 18-25 thousand years ago. These data suggest a reduced summer surface nitrate concentration in both the Antarctic and Subantarctic Zones during the LGM, with little surface nitrate transport between them. After the ice age, the increase in Antarctic surface nitrate occurred through the deglaciation and continued in the Holocene. The rise in Subantarctic surface nitrate appears to have had both early deglacial and late deglacial/Holocene components, preliminarily attributed to the end of Subantarctic iron fertilization and increasing nitrate input from the surface Antarctic Zone, respectively.

Deep-sea coral evidence for lower Southern Ocean surface nitrate concentrations during the last ice age

PubMed Central

Sigman, Daniel M.; Prokopenko, Maria G.; Adkins, Jess F.; Robinson, Laura F.; Hines, Sophia K.; Chai, Junyi; Studer, Anja S.; Martínez-García, Alfredo; Chen, Tianyu; Haug, Gerald H.

2017-01-01

The Southern Ocean regulates the ocean’s biological sequestration of CO2 and is widely suspected to underpin much of the ice age decline in atmospheric CO2 concentration, but the specific changes in the region are debated. Although more complete drawdown of surface nutrients by phytoplankton during the ice ages is supported by some sediment core-based measurements, the use of different proxies in different regions has precluded a unified view of Southern Ocean biogeochemical change. Here, we report measurements of the 15N/14N of fossil-bound organic matter in the stony deep-sea coral Desmophyllum dianthus, a tool for reconstructing surface ocean nutrient conditions. The central robust observation is of higher 15N/14N across the Southern Ocean during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), 18–25 thousand years ago. These data suggest a reduced summer surface nitrate concentration in both the Antarctic and Subantarctic Zones during the LGM, with little surface nitrate transport between them. After the ice age, the increase in Antarctic surface nitrate occurred through the deglaciation and continued in the Holocene. The rise in Subantarctic surface nitrate appears to have had both early deglacial and late deglacial/Holocene components, preliminarily attributed to the end of Subantarctic iron fertilization and increasing nitrate input from the surface Antarctic Zone, respectively. PMID:28298529

A toy model of sea ice growth

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thorndike, Alan S.

1992-01-01

My purpose here is to present a simplified treatment of the growth of sea ice. By ignoring many details, it is possible to obtain several results that help to clarify the ways in which the sea ice cover will respond to climate change. Three models are discussed. The first deals with the growth of sea ice during the cold season. The second describes the cycle of growth and melting for perennial ice. The third model extends the second to account for the possibility that the ice melts away entirely in the summer. In each case, the objective is to understand what physical processes are most important, what ice properties determine the ice behavior, and to which climate variables the system is most sensitive.

Climate hazards, adaptation and "resilience" of societies (early Little Ice Age, west of France).

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Athimon, Emmanuelle; Maanan, Mohamed

2016-04-01

Over the past ten to fifteen years, climate hazards and adaptation have received more attention due to the current climate change. Climate historians have gathered strong evidence that the world's climate has evolved over the past millennium and one of the most significant changes took place during the Little Ice Age. Recently, a set of questions has emerged: what were the effects of the Little Ice Age on human's societies? How did humans adapt to these climate changes? How did they react to extreme weather-related events? Using examples of climate hazards from the West of France during the beginning of the Little Ice Age (xivth-xviith centuries) such as storms, flooding, drought, harsh winters, the poster aims at showing how the past societies can constitute a source of inspiration for present ones. Through schemas, this research exposes the system's rebound capacity, points out the importance of the historical depth in research on human's adaptation and resilience and shows the value of integrating a historical approach. It reveals that History contributes to the knowledge of the relationship between societies and climate hazards. Data on climate hazards and adaptation of societies stem from historical sources such as chronicles, diaries, books of accounts, records of cities repairs. To protect themselves and their goods, medieval and modern societies had developed specific skills, practices and strategies. From the xivth to the xviiith century, there is an increase of defense by dikes in the low Loire, as for example the construction of those amongst Longué and Ponts-de-Cé between the early xivth century and 1407. The French kingdom's authorities also tried increasingly to provide technical, material, logistical and fiscal support: for instance, during the winter 1564-1565, several bridges have been destroyed by a river flooding in Nantes. The King Charles IX then offered to people of Nantes part of the funds from taxes on the main activities such as the

Low-velocity impact craters in ice and ice-saturated sand with implications for Martian crater count ages.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Croft, S.K.; Kieffer, S.W.; Ahrens, T.J.

1979-01-01

We produced a series of decimeter-sized impact craters in blocks of ice near 0oC and -70oC and in ice-saturated sand near -70oC as a preliminary investigation of cratering in materials analogous to those found on Mars and the outer solar satellites. Crater diameters in the ice-saturated sand were 2 times larger than craters in the same energy and velocity range in competent blocks of granite, basalt and cement. Craters in ice were c.3 times larger. Martian impact crater energy versus diameter scaling may thus be a function of latitude. -from Authors

Modeling Commercial Turbofan Engine Icing Risk With Ice Crystal Ingestion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jorgenson, Philip C. E.; Veres, Joseph P.

2013-01-01

The occurrence of ice accretion within commercial high bypass aircraft turbine engines has been reported under certain atmospheric conditions. Engine anomalies have taken place at high altitudes that have been attributed to ice crystal ingestion, partially melting, and ice accretion on the compression system components. The result was degraded engine performance, and one or more of the following: loss of thrust control (roll back), compressor surge or stall, and flameout of the combustor. As ice crystals are ingested into the fan and low pressure compression system, the increase in air temperature causes a portion of the ice crystals to melt. It is hypothesized that this allows the ice-water mixture to cover the metal surfaces of the compressor stationary components which leads to ice accretion through evaporative cooling. Ice accretion causes a blockage which subsequently results in the deterioration in performance of the compressor and engine. The focus of this research is to apply an engine icing computational tool to simulate the flow through a turbofan engine and assess the risk of ice accretion. The tool is comprised of an engine system thermodynamic cycle code, a compressor flow analysis code, and an ice particle melt code that has the capability of determining the rate of sublimation, melting, and evaporation through the compressor flow path, without modeling the actual ice accretion. A commercial turbofan engine which has previously experienced icing events during operation in a high altitude ice crystal environment has been tested in the Propulsion Systems Laboratory (PSL) altitude test facility at NASA Glenn Research Center. The PSL has the capability to produce a continuous ice cloud which are ingested by the engine during operation over a range of altitude conditions. The PSL test results confirmed that there was ice accretion in the engine due to ice crystal ingestion, at the same simulated altitude operating conditions as experienced previously in

Skylab floating ice experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Campbell, W. J. (Principal Investigator); Ramseier, R. O.; Weaver, R. J.; Weeks, W. F.

1975-01-01

The author has identified the following significant results. Coupling of the aircraft data with the ground truth observations proved to be highly successful with interesting results being obtained with IR and SLAR passive microwave techniques, and standard photography. Of particular interest were the results of the PMIS system which operated at 10.69 GHz with both vertical and horizontal polarizations. This was the first time that dual polarized images were obtained from floating ice. In both sea and lake ice, it was possible to distinguish a wide variety of thin ice types because of their large differences in brightness temperatures. It was found that the higher brightness temperature was invariably obtained in the vertically polarized mode, and as the age of the ice increases the brightness temperature increases in both polarizations. Associated with this change in age, the difference in temperature was observed as the different polarizations decreased. It appears that the horizontally polarized data is the most sensitive to variations in ice type for both fresh water and sea ice. The study also showed the great amount of information on ice surface roughness and deformation patterns that can be obtained from X-band SLAR observations.

Ice-dammed lateral lake and epishelf lake insights into Holocene dynamics of Marguerite Trough Ice Stream and George VI Ice Shelf, Alexander Island, Antarctic Peninsula

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davies, Bethan J.; Hambrey, Michael J.; Glasser, Neil F.; Holt, Tom; Rodés, Angél; Smellie, John L.; Carrivick, Jonathan L.; Blockley, Simon P. E.

2017-12-01

We present new data regarding the past dynamics of Marguerite Trough Ice Stream, George VI Ice Shelf and valley glaciers from Ablation Point Massif on Alexander Island, Antarctic Peninsula. This ice-free oasis preserves a geological record of ice stream lateral moraines, ice-dammed lakes, ice-shelf moraines and valley glacier moraines, which we dated using cosmogenic nuclide ages. We provide one of the first detailed sediment-landform assemblage descriptions of epishelf lake shorelines. Marguerite Trough Ice Stream imprinted lateral moraines against eastern Alexander Island at 120 m at Ablation Point Massif. During deglaciation, lateral lakes formed in the Ablation and Moutonnée valleys, dammed against the ice stream in George VI Sound. Exposure ages from boulders on these shorelines yielded ages of 13.9 to 9.7 ka. Following recession of the ice stream, George VI Ice Shelf formed in George VI Sound. An epishelf lake formed at 15-20 m asl in Ablation and Moutonnée valleys, dated from 9.4 to 4.6 ka, suggesting that the lake was stable and persistent for some 5000 years. Lake-level lowering occurred after this, with the lake level at 12 m at 3.1 ± 0.4 ka and at 5 m asl today. A readvance of the valley glaciers on Alexander Island at 4.4 ± 0.7 ka is recorded by valley glacier moraines overlying epishelf lake sediments. We speculate that the glacier readvance, which occurred during a period of warmth, may have been caused by a dynamic response of the glaciers to a lowering in surface elevation of George VI Ice Shelf.

Modeling haul-out behavior of walruses in Bering Sea ice

USGS Publications Warehouse

Udevitz, M.S.; Jay, C.V.; Fischbach, Anthony S.; Garlich-Miller, J. L.

2009-01-01

Understanding haul-out behavior of ice-associated pinnipeds is essential for designing and interpreting popula-tion surveys and for assessing effects of potential changes in their ice environments. We used satellite-linked transmitters to obtain sequential information about location and haul-out state for Pacific walruses, Odobenus rosmarus divergens (Il-liger, 1815), in the Bering Sea during April of 2004, 2005, and 2006. We used these data in a generalized mixed model of haul-out bout durations and a hierarchical Bayesian model of haul-out probabilities to assess factors related to walrus haul-out behavior, and provide the first predictive model of walrus haul-out behavior in sea ice habitat. Average haul-out bout duration was 9 h, but durations of haul-out bouts tended to increase with durations of preceding in-water bouts. On aver-age, tagged walruses spent only about 17% of their time hauled out on sea ice. Probability of being hauled out decreased with wind speed, increased with temperature, and followed a diurnal cycle with the highest values in the evening. Our haul-out probability model can be used to estimate the proportion of the population that is unavailable for detection in spring surveys of Pacific walruses on sea ice.

Space/Time Statistics of Polar Ice Motion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Emery, William J.; Fowler, Charles; Maslanik, James A.

2003-01-01

Ice motions have been computed from passive microwave imagery (SMMR and SSM/I) on a daily basis for both Polar Regions. In the Arctic these daily motions have been merged with daily motions from AVHRR imagery and the Arctic buoy program. In the Antarctic motion only from the AVHRR were available for merging with the passive microwave vectors. Long-term means, monthly means and weekly means have all been computed from the resulting 22-year time series of polar ice motion. Papers are in preparation that present the long term (22 year) means, their variability and show animations of the monthly means over this time period for both Polar Regions. These papers will have links to "enhanced objects" that allow the reader to view the animations as part of the paper. The first paper presents the ice motion results from each of the Polar Regions. The second paper looks only at ice motion in the Arctic in order to develop a time series of ice age in the Arctic. Starting with the first full SMMR year in 1979 we keep track of each individual "ice element" (resolution of the sensor) and track it in the subsequent monthly time series. After a year we "age" each "particle" and we thus can keep track of the age of the ice starting in 1979. We keep track of ice age classes between one and five years and thus we can see the evolution of the ice as it ages after the initial 5-year period. This calculation shows how we are losing the older ice through Fram Strait at a rather alarming rate particularly in the past 15 years. This loss of older ice has resulted in an overall decrease in the thickest, oldest ice, which is now limited to a region just north of the Canadian Archipelago with tongues extending out across the pole towards the Siberian Shelf. This loss of old ice is consistent with the effects of global warming which provides the heat needed to melt, move and disperse this oldest ice through Fram Strait. This is the first step in a progression that may eventually open the Arctic

Reconstructing the history of major Greenland glaciers since the Little Ice Age

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Csatho, B. M.; Schenk, A. F.; van der Veen, C. J.; Stearns, L.; Babonis, G. S.

2008-12-01

The Greenland Ice Sheet may have been responsible for rapid sea level rise during the last interglacial period and recent studies indicate that it is likely to make a faster contribution to sea-level rise than previously believed. Rapid thinning and velocity increase has been observed on most major outlet glaciers with terminus retreat that might lead to increased discharge from the interior and consequent further thinning and retreat. Potentially, such behavior could have serious implications for global sea level. However, the current thinning may simply be a manifestation of longer-term behavior of the ice sheet as it responds to the general warming following the Little Ice Age (LIA). Although Greenland outlet glaciers have been comprehensively monitored since the 1980s, studies of long-term changes mostly rely on records of the calving front position. Such records can be misleading because the glacier terminus, particularly if it is afloat, can either advance or retreat as ice further upstream thins and accelerates. To assess whether recent trends deviate from longer-term behavior, we examined three rapidly thinning and retreating outlet glaciers, Jakobshavn Isbrae in west, Kangerdlussuaq Glacier in east and Petermann Glacier in northwest Greenland. Glacier surface and trimline elevations, as well as terminus positions were measured using historical photographs and declassified satellite imagery acquired between the 1940s and 1985. These results were combined with data from historical records, ground surveys, airborne laser altimetry, satellite observations and field mapping of lateral moraines and trimlines, to reconstruct the history of changes since the (LIA) up to the present. We identified several episodes of rapid thinning and ice shelf break-up, including thinning episodes that occurred when the calving front was stationary. Coastal weather station data are used to assess the influence of air temperatures and intensity of surface melting, and to isolate

Improvement of Ice Hockey Players' On-Ice Sprint With Combined Plyometric and Strength Training.

PubMed

Dæhlin, Torstein E; Haugen, Ole C; Haugerud, Simen; Hollan, Ivana; Raastad, Truls; Rønnestad, Bent R

2017-08-01

Combined plyometric and strength training has previously been suggested as a strategy to improve skating performance in ice hockey players. However, the effects of combined plyometric and strength training have not previously been compared with the effects of strength training only. To compare the effects of combined plyometric and strength training on ice hockey players' skating sprint performance with those of strength training only. Eighteen participants were randomly assigned to 2 groups that completed 5 strength-training sessions/wk for 8 wk. One group included plyometric exercises at the start of 3 sessions/wk (PLY+ST), and the other group included core exercises in the same sessions (ST). Tests of 10- and 35-m skating sprints, horizontal jumping, 1-repetition-maximum (1 RM) squat, skating multistage aerobic test (SMAT), maximal oxygen consumption, repeated cycle sprints, and body composition were performed before and after the intervention. The participants increased their 1RM squat, lean mass, and body mass (P < .05), with no difference between the groups. Furthermore, they improved their 3×broad jump, repeated cycle sprint, and SMAT performance (P < .05), with no difference between the groups. PLY+ST gained a larger improvement in 10-m on-ice sprint performance than ST (P < .025). Combining plyometric and strength training for 8 wk was superior to strength training alone at improving 10-m on-ice sprint performance in high-level ice hockey players.

Biogeochemical Coupling between Ocean and Sea Ice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, S.; Jeffery, N.; Maltrud, M. E.; Elliott, S.; Wolfe, J.

2016-12-01

Biogeochemical processes in ocean and sea ice are tightly coupled at high latitudes. Ongoing changes in Arctic and Antarctic sea ice domain likely influence the coupled system, not only through physical fields but also biogeochemical properties. Investigating the system and its changes requires representation of ocean and sea ice biogeochemical cycles, as well as their coupling in Earth System Models. Our work is based on ACME-HiLAT, a new offshoot of the Community Earth System Model (CESM), including a comprehensive representation of marine ecosystems in the form of the Biogeochemical Elemental Cycling Module (BEC). A full vertical column sea ice biogeochemical module has recently been incorporated into the sea ice component. We have further introduced code modifications to couple key growth-limiting nutrients (N, Si, Fe), dissolved and particulate organic matter, and phytoplankton classes that are important in polar regions between ocean and sea ice. The coupling of ocean and sea ice biology-chemistry will enable representation of key processes such as the release of important climate active constituents or seeding algae from melting sea ice into surface waters. Sensitivity tests suggest sea ice and ocean biogeochemical coupling influences phytoplankton competition, biological production, and the CO2 flux. Sea ice algal seeding plays an important role in determining phytoplankton composition of Arctic early spring blooms, since different groups show various responses to the seeding biomass. Iron coupling leads to increased phytoplankton biomass in the Southern Ocean, which also affects carbon uptake via the biological pump. The coupling of macronutrients and organic matter may have weaker influences on the marine ecosystem. Our developments will allow climate scientists to investigate the fully coupled responses of the sea ice-ocean BGC system to physical changes in polar climate.

Comments on Hamaker's hypothesis of a coming CO/sub 2/-induced ice age

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

MacCracken, M.C.

1989-06-01

Over the past several years, John Hamaker and a number of followers have put forth a hypothesis that the imminent demise of the world's forests from lack of vital mineral nutrients will trigger an ice age. Their evidence in support of this hypothesis has recently appeared as a videotape entitled ''Stopping the Coming Ice Age.'' These comments were prepared in response to the arguments presented on this tape, which several people have suggested presents a highly important scientific analysis unfairly receiving too little attention. I will focus primarily on analysis of the climatic aspects of the Hamaker hypothesis. The videotapemore » attempts to put forth a coherent and appealing story, but does so by taking comments of some scientists out of context, by quoting some scientists out of their field of expertise, by skimming over some serious shortcomings, by facile assumptions not easily spotted by the non-specialist, and by mixing in many true statements (which makes it especially difficult for the lay listener to spot the problems). Overall, these actions combine to make the presentation of the hypothesis very appealing, but also very deceptive.« less

Antarctic Sea-Ice Freeboard and Estimated Thickness from NASA's ICESat and IceBridge Observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yi, Donghui; Kurtz, Nathan; Harbeck, Jeremy; Manizade, Serdar; Hofton, Michelle; Cornejo, Helen G.; Zwally, H. Jay; Robbins, John

2016-01-01

ICESat completed 18 observational campaigns during its lifetime from 2003 to 2009. Data from all of the 18 campaign periods are used in this study. Most of the operational periods were between 34 and 38 days long. Because of laser failure and orbit transition from 8-day to 91-day orbit, there were four periods lasting 57, 16, 23, and 12 days. IceBridge data from 2009, 2010, and 2011 are used in this study. Since 2009, there are 19 Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) campaigns, and eight Land, Vegetation, and Ice Sensor (LVIS) campaigns over the Antarctic sea ice. Freeboard heights are derived from ICESat, ATM and LVIS elevation and waveform data. With nominal densities of snow, water, and sea ice, combined with snow depth data from AMSR-E/AMSR2 passive microwave observation over the southern ocean, sea-ice thickness is derived from the freeboard. Combined with AMSR-E/AMSR2 ice concentration, sea-ice area and volume are also calculated. During the 2003-2009 period, sea-ice freeboard and thickness distributions show clear seasonal variations that reflect the yearly cycle of the growth and decay of the Antarctic pack ice. We found no significant trend of thickness or area for the Antarctic sea ice during the ICESat period. IceBridge sea ice freeboard and thickness data from 2009 to 2011 over the Weddell Sea and Amundsen and Bellingshausen Seas are compared with the ICESat results.

A Transient Initialization Routine of the Community Ice Sheet Model for the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van der Laan, Larissa; van den Broeke, Michiel; Noël, Brice; van de Wal, Roderik

2017-04-01

The Community Ice Sheet Model (CISM) is to be applied in future simulations of the Greenland Ice Sheet under a range of climate change scenarios, determining the sensitivity of the ice sheet to individual climatic forcings. In order to achieve reliable results regarding ice sheet stability and assess the probability of future occurrence of tipping points, a realistic initial ice sheet geometry is essential. The current work describes and evaluates the development of a transient initialization routine, using NGRIP 18O isotope data to create a temperature anomaly field. Based on the latter, surface mass balance components runoff and precipitation are perturbed for the past 125k years. The precipitation and runoff fields originate from a downscaled 1 km resolution version of the regional climate model RACMO2.3 for the period 1961-1990. The result of the initialization routine is a present-day ice sheet with a transient memory of the last glacial-interglacial cycle, which will serve as the future runs' initial condition.

Sensitivity study of a dynamic thermodynamic sea ice model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holland, David M.; Mysak, Lawrence A.; Manak, Davinder K.; Oberhuber, Josef M.

1993-02-01

A numerical simulation of the seasonal sea ice cover in the Arctic Ocean and the Greenland, Iceland, and Norwegian seas is presented. The sea ice model is extracted from Oberhuber's (1990) coupled sea ice-mixed layer-isopycnal general circulation model and is written in spherical coordinates. The advantage of such a model over previous sea ice models is that it can be easily coupled to either global atmospheric or ocean general circulation models written in spherical coordinates. In this model, the thermodynamics are a modification of that of Parkinson and Washington (1979), while the dynamics use the full Hibler (1979) viscous-plastic rheology. Monthly thermodynamic and dynamic forcing fields for the atmosphere and ocean are specified. The simulations of the seasonal cycle of ice thickness, compactness, and velocity, for a control set of parameters, compare favorably with the known seasonal characteristics of these fields. A sensitivity study of the control simulation of the seasonal sea ice cover is presented. The sensitivity runs are carried out under three different themes, namely, numerical conditions, parameter values, and physical processes. This last theme refers to experiments in which physical processes are either newly added or completely removed from the model. Approximately 80 sensitivity runs have been performed in which a change from the control run environment has been implemented. Comparisons have been made between the control run and a particular sensitivity run based on time series of the seasonal cycle of the domain-averaged ice thickness, compactness, areal coverage, and kinetic energy. In addition, spatially varying fields of ice thickness, compactness, velocity, and surface temperature for each season are presented for selected experiments. A brief description and discussion of the more interesting experiments are presented. The simulation of the seasonal cycle of Arctic sea ice cover is shown to be robust.

Tidal Modulation of Ice-shelf Flow: a Viscous Model of the Ross Ice Shelf

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brunt, Kelly M.; MacAyeal, Douglas R.

2014-01-01

Three stations near the calving front of the Ross Ice Shelf, Antarctica, recorded GPS data through a full spring-neap tidal cycle in November 2005. The data revealed a diurnal horizontal motion that varied both along and transverse to the long-term average velocity direction, similar to tidal signals observed in other ice shelves and ice streams. Based on its periodicity, it was hypothesized that the signal represents a flow response of the Ross Ice Shelf to the diurnal tides of the Ross Sea. To assess the influence of the tide on the ice-shelf motion, two hypotheses were developed. The first addressed the direct response of the ice shelf to tidal forcing, such as forces due to sea-surface slopes or forces due to sub-ice-shelf currents. The second involved the indirect response of ice-shelf flow to the tidal signals observed in the ice streams that source the ice shelf. A finite-element model, based on viscous creep flow, was developed to test these hypotheses, but succeeded only in falsifying both hypotheses, i.e. showing that direct tidal effects produce too small a response, and indirect tidal effects produce a response that is not smooth in time. This nullification suggests that a combination of viscous and elastic deformation is required to explain the observations.

The Antarctica component of postglacial rebound model ICE-6G_C (VM5a) based on GPS positioning, exposure age dating of ice thicknesses, and relative sea level histories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Argus, Donald F.; Peltier, W. R.; Drummond, R.; Moore, Angelyn W.

2014-07-01

A new model of the deglaciation history of Antarctica over the past 25 kyr has been developed, which we refer to herein as ICE-6G_C (VM5a). This revision of its predecessor ICE-5G (VM2) has been constrained to fit all available geological and geodetic observations, consisting of: (1) the present day uplift rates at 42 sites estimated from GPS measurements, (2) ice thickness change at 62 locations estimated from exposure-age dating, (3) Holocene relative sea level histories from 12 locations estimated on the basis of radiocarbon dating and (4) age of the onset of marine sedimentation at nine locations along the Antarctic shelf also estimated on the basis of 14C dating. Our new model fits the totality of these data well. An additional nine GPS-determined site velocities are also estimated for locations known to be influenced by modern ice loss from the Pine Island Bay and Northern Antarctic Peninsula regions. At the 42 locations not influenced by modern ice loss, the quality of the fit of postglacial rebound model ICE-6G_C (VM5A) is characterized by a weighted root mean square residual of 0.9 mm yr-1. The Southern Antarctic Peninsula is inferred to be rising at 2 mm yr-1, requiring there to be less Holocene ice loss there than in the prior model ICE-5G (VM2). The East Antarctica coast is rising at approximately 1 mm yr-1, requiring ice loss from this region to have been small since Last Glacial Maximum. The Ellsworth Mountains, at the base of the Antarctic Peninsula, are inferred to be rising at 5-8 mm yr-1, indicating large ice loss from this area during deglaciation that is poorly sampled by geological data. Horizontal deformation of the Antarctic Plate is minor with two exceptions. First, O'Higgins, at the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, is moving southeast at a significant 2 mm yr-1 relative to the Antarctic Plate. Secondly, the margins of the Ronne and Ross Ice Shelves are moving horizontally away from the shelf centres at an approximate rate of 0.8 mm yr-1, in

The Search for Eight Glacial Cycles of Deep-Water Temperatures and Global ice Volume From the Southern Hemisphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferretti, P.; Elderfield, H.; Greaves, M.; McCave, N.

2007-12-01

It has been recently suggested "a substantial portion of the marine 100-ky cycle that has been object of so much attention over the past quarter of a century is, in reality, a deep-water temperature signal and not an ice volume signal" (Shackleton, 2000). There are currently few records available of deep-water temperature variations during the Pleistocene and most of our understanding is inferred from the oxygen isotopic composition (δ18O) of benthic foraminifera from deep-sea sediments. However, variations in benthic δ18O reflect some combination of local to regional changes in water mass properties (largely deep- water temperature) as well as global changes in seawater δ18O (δ18Osw) resulting from the growth and decay of continental ice. Recent studies suggest that benthic foraminiferal Mg/Ca may be useful in reconstructing deep-water temperature changes, but the application of this method to benthic species has been hampered by a number of unresolved issues, such as uncertainties related to the calibration for benthic Mg at the coldest temperatures. Here we present deep-sea Mg/Ca and δ18O records for the past eight glacial cycles in benthic foraminiferal ( Uvigerina spp.) calcite from a marine sediment core recovered in the mid Southern latitudes. Ocean Drilling Program Site 1123 was retrieved from Chatham Rise, east of New Zealand in the Southwest Pacific Ocean (3290 m water depth). This site lies under the Deep Western Boundary Current (DWBC) that flows into the Pacific Ocean, and is responsible for most of the deep water in that ocean; DWBC strength is directly related to processes occurring around Antarctica. Temperatures derived via pore fluid modeling of the last glacial maximum are available from Site 1123 and represent an important tool to constrain deep-water temperatures estimates using Mg/Ca. In selected time slices, we measured B/Ca ratios in Uvigerina in order to gain information on the deep-water carbonate saturation state and have data of Mg

Interannual Variability of Snow and Ice and Impact on the Carbon Cycle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yung, Yuk L.

2004-01-01

The goal of this research is to assess the impact of the interannual variability in snow/ice using global satellite data sets acquired in the last two decades. This variability will be used as input to simulate the CO2 interannual variability at high latitudes using a biospheric model. The progress in the past few years is summarized as follows: 1) Albedo decrease related to spring snow retreat; 2) Observed effects of interannual summertime sea ice variations on the polar reflectance; 3) The Northern Annular Mode response to Arctic sea ice loss and the sensitivity of troposphere-stratosphere interaction; 4) The effect of Arctic warming and sea ice loss on the growing season in northern terrestrial ecosystem.

A longitudinal study of ice hockey in boys aged 8--12.

PubMed

MacNab, R B

1979-03-01

A group of fifteen boys (experimental or competitive) were studied over a five year period of competitive ice hockey beginning at age 8. The subjects were members of a team which averaged 66 games per year, ranging from 50 at age 8 to 78 at age 12. In addition, they practiced twice a week with heavy stress on skating and individual puck handling skills. A second group of eleven boys (control or less competitive) were studied from age 10 to 12. The latter subjects played an average of 25 games per year and practiced once a week. All subjects were measured each year on skating and puck control skills, fitness-performance tests, grip strength, physical work capacity as well as height and weight. The results demonstrate learning curves for skating and puck control tests which, while typical in nature, show extremely high levels of achievement. Fitness-Performance, grip strength and physical work capacity levels of the competitive group are extremely high in comparison with data from other countries.

Sea Ice on the Southern Ocean

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jacobs, Stanley S.

1998-01-01

Year-round satellite records of sea ice distribution now extend over more than two decades, providing a valuable tool to investigate related characteristics and circulations in the Southern Ocean. We have studied a variety of features indicative of oceanic and atmospheric interactions with Antarctic sea ice. In the Amundsen & Bellingshausen Seas, sea ice extent was found to have decreased by approximately 20% from 1973 through the early 1990's. This change coincided with and probably contributed to recently warmer surface conditions on the west side of the Antarctic Peninsula, where air temperatures have increased by approximately 0.5 C/decade since the mid-1940's. The sea ice decline included multiyear cycles of several years in length superimposed on high interannual variability. The retreat was strongest in summer, and would have lowered the regional mean ice thickness, with attendant impacts upon vertical heat flux and the formation of snow ice and brine. The cause of the regional warming and loss of sea ice is believed to be linked to large-scale circulation changes in the atmosphere and ocean. At the eastern end of the Weddell Gyre, the Cosmonaut Polyna revealed greater activity since 1986, a recurrence pattern during recent winters and two possible modes of formation. Persistence in polynya location was noted off Cape Ann, where the coastal current can interact more strongly with the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. As a result of vorticity conservation, locally enhanced upwelling brings warmer deep water into the mixed layer, causing divergence and melting. In the Ross Sea, ice extent fluctuates over periods of several years, with summer minima and winter maxima roughly in phase. This leads to large interannual cycles of sea ice range, which correlate positively with meridinal winds, regional air temperatures and subsequent shelf water salinities. Deep shelf waters display considerable interannual variability, but have freshened by approximately 0.03/decade

Rapid changes in ice core gas records - Part 1: On the accuracy of methane synchronisation of ice cores

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Köhler, P.

2010-08-01

Methane synchronisation is a concept to align ice core records during rapid climate changes of the Dansgaard/Oeschger (D/O) events onto a common age scale. However, atmospheric gases are recorded in ice cores with a log-normal-shaped age distribution probability density function, whose exact shape depends mainly on the accumulation rate on the drilling site. This age distribution effectively shifts the mid-transition points of rapid changes in CH4 measured in situ in ice by about 58% of the width of the age distribution with respect to the atmospheric signal. A minimum dating uncertainty, or artefact, in the CH4 synchronisation is therefore embedded in the concept itself, which was not accounted for in previous error estimates. This synchronisation artefact between Greenland and Antarctic ice cores is for GRIP and Byrd less than 40 years, well within the dating uncertainty of CH4, and therefore does not calls the overall concept of the bipolar seesaw into question. However, if the EPICA Dome C ice core is aligned via CH4 to NGRIP this synchronisation artefact is in the most recent unified ice core age scale (Lemieux-Dudon et al., 2010) for LGM climate conditions of the order of three centuries and might need consideration in future gas chronologies.

Toward unified ice core chronologies with the DatIce tool

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toye Mahamadou Kele, H.; Lemieux-Dudon, B.; Blayo, E.

2012-04-01

Antarctic and Greenland ice cores provide a means to study the phase relationships of climate changes in both hemispheres. They also enable to study the timing between climate, and greenhouse gases or orbital forcings. One key step for such studies is to improve the absolute and relative precisions of ice core age scales (for ice and trapped gas), and beyond that, to try to reach the best consistency between chronologies of paleo records of any kind. The DatIce tool is designed to increase the consistency between pre-existing (also called background) core chronologies. It formulates a variational inverse problem which aims at correcting three key quantities that uniquely define the core age scales: the accumulation rate, the total thinning function, and the close-off depth. For that purpose, it integrates paleo data constraints of many types among which age markers (with for instance documented volcanoes eruptions), and stratigraphic links (with for instance abrupt changes in methane concentration). A cost function is built that enables to calculate new chronologies by making a trade-off between all the constraints (background chronologies and paleo data). The method presented in Lemieux-Dudon et al (2010) has already been applied simultaneously to EPICA EDML and EDC, Vostok and NGRIP. Currently, on going works are conducted at LSCE Saclay and LGGE Grenoble laboratories to construct unified Antarctic chronologies by applying the DatIce tool with new ice cores and new sets of paleo measurements. We here present the DatIce tool, the underlying methodology, and its potential applications. We further show some improvements that have been made recently. We especially adress the issue related to the calibration of the error of pre-existing core chronologies. They are inputs that may have a strong impact on the results. However these uncertainties are uneasy to analyze, since prior chronologies are most of the time assessed on the basis of glaciological models (firn

Geochronology and paleoclimatic implications of the last deglaciation of the Mauna Kea Ice Cap, Hawaii

USGS Publications Warehouse

Anslow, Faron S.; Clark, P.U.; Kurz, M.D.; Hostetler, S.W.

2010-01-01

We present new 3He surface exposure ages on moraines and bedrock near the summit of Mauna Kea, Hawaii, which refine the age of the Mauna Kea Ice Cap during the Local Last Glacial Maximum (LLGM) and identify a subsequent fluctuation of the ice margin. The 3He ages, when combined with those reported previously, indicate that the local ice-cap margin began to retreat from its LLGM extent at 20.5??2.5ka, in agreement with the age of deglaciation determined from LLGM moraines elsewhere in the tropics. The ice-cap margin receded to a position at least 3km upslope for ~4.5-5.0kyr before readvancing nearly to its LLGM extent. The timing of this readvance at ~15.4ka corresponds to a large reduction of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) following Heinrich Event 1. Subsequent ice-margin retreat began at 14.6??1.9ka, corresponding to a rapid resumption of the AMOC and onset of the B??lling warm interval, with the ice cap melting rapidly to complete deglaciation. Additional 3He ages obtained from a flood deposit date the catastrophic outburst of a moraine-dammed lake roughly coeval with the Younger Dryas cold interval, suggesting a more active hydrological cycle on Mauna Kea at this time. A coupled mass balance and ice dynamics model is used to constrain the climate required to generate ice caps of LLGM and readvance sizes. The depression of the LLGM equilibrium line altitude requires atmospheric cooling of 4.5??1??C, whereas the mass balance modeling indicates an accompanying increase in precipitation of as much as three times that of present. We hypothesize (1) that the LLGM temperature depression was associated with global cooling, (2) that the temperature depression that contributed to the readvance occurred in response to an atmospheric teleconnection to the North Atlantic, and (3) that the precipitation enhancement associated with both events occurred in response to a southward shift in the position of the inter-tropical convergence zone (ITCZ). Such a

Paraglacial dynamics in Little Ice Age glaciated environments in the Iberian Peninsula

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oliva, Marc; Serrano, Enrique; Ruiz-Fernández, Jesús; Gómez-Ortiz, Antonio; Palacios, David

2017-04-01

Three Iberian mountain ranges encompassed glaciers during the Little Ice Age (LIA): the Pyrenees, Cantabrian Mountains and Sierra Nevada. The gradual warming trend initiated during the second half of the XIX century promoted the progressive shrinking of these glaciers, which completely melted during the first half of the 20th century in the Cantabrian Mountains and Sierra Nevada and reduced by 80% of their LIA extent in the Pyrenees. Currently, the formerly glaciated environments are located within the periglacial belt and still present to a major or lesser degree signs of paraglacial activity. LIA moraines are devoid of vegetation and composed of highly unstable sediments that are being intensely mobilized by slope processes. Inside the moraines, different landforms and processes generated following LIA glacial retreat have generated: (i) buried ice trapped within rock debris supplied from the cirque walls, which has also generated rock glaciers and protalus lobes; (ii) semi-permanent snow fields distributed above the ice-patches remnants of the LIA glaciers, and (iii) small periglacial features such as frost mounds, sorted circles and solifluction landforms generated by processes such as solifluction and cryoturbation. Present-day morphodynamics is mostly related to seasonal frost conditions, though patches of permafrost have formed in some areas in contact with the buried ice. This 'geomorphic permafrost' is undergoing a process of degradation since it is not balanced with present-day climate conditions. This is reflected in the occurrence of multiple collapses and subsidences of the debris cover where the frozen bodies sit. In the highest areas of the Pyrenees there is a permafrost belt next to the small glaciated environments in the highest massifs. Finally, we propose a model for paraglacial activity in Iberian mountain ranges and compare it to other mid-latitude mountain environments as well as to other past deglaciation stages.

Crustacea in Arctic and Antarctic sea ice: distribution, diet and life history strategies.

PubMed

Arndt, Carolin E; Swadling, Kerrie M

2006-01-01

This review concerns crustaceans that associate with sea ice. Particular emphasis is placed on comparing and contrasting the Arctic and Antarctic sea ice habitats, and the subsequent influence of these environments on the life history strategies of the crustacean fauna. Sea ice is the dominant feature of both polar marine ecosystems, playing a central role in physical processes and providing an essential habitat for organisms ranging in size from viruses to whales. Similarities between the Arctic and Antarctic marine ecosystems include variable cover of sea ice over an annual cycle, a light regimen that can extend from months of total darkness to months of continuous light and a pronounced seasonality in primary production. Although there are many similarities, there are also major differences between the two regions: The Antarctic experiences greater seasonal change in its sea ice extent, much of the ice is over very deep water and more than 80% breaks out each year. In contrast, Arctic sea ice often covers comparatively shallow water, doubles in its extent on an annual cycle and the ice may persist for several decades. Crustaceans, particularly copepods and amphipods, are abundant in the sea ice zone at both poles, either living within the brine channel system of the ice-crystal matrix or inhabiting the ice-water interface. Many species associate with ice for only a part of their life cycle, while others appear entirely dependent upon it for reproduction and development. Although similarities exist between the two faunas, many differences are emerging. Most notable are the much higher abundance and biomass of Antarctic copepods, the dominance of the Antarctic sea ice copepod fauna by calanoids, the high euphausiid biomass in Southern Ocean waters and the lack of any species that appear fully dependent on the ice. In the Arctic, the ice-associated fauna is dominated by amphipods. Calanoid copepods are not tightly associated with the ice, while harpacticoids and

Ecology of southern ocean pack ice.

PubMed

Brierley, Andrew S; Thomas, David N

2002-01-01

Around Antarctica the annual five-fold growth and decay of sea ice is the most prominent physical process and has a profound impact on marine life there. In winter the pack ice canopy extends to cover almost 20 million square kilometres--some 8% of the southern hemisphere and an area larger than the Antarctic continent itself (13.2 million square kilometres)--and is one of the largest, most dynamic ecosystems on earth. Biological activity is associated with all physical components of the sea-ice system: the sea-ice surface; the internal sea-ice matrix and brine channel system; the underside of sea ice and the waters in the vicinity of sea ice that are modified by the presence of sea ice. Microbial and microalgal communities proliferate on and within sea ice and are grazed by a wide range of proto- and macrozooplankton that inhabit the sea ice in large concentrations. Grazing organisms also exploit biogenic material released from the sea ice at ice break-up or melt. Although rates of primary production in the underlying water column are often low because of shading by sea-ice cover, sea ice itself forms a substratum that provides standing stocks of bacteria, algae and grazers significantly higher than those in ice-free areas. Decay of sea ice in summer releases particulate and dissolved organic matter to the water column, playing a major role in biogeochemical cycling as well as seeding water column phytoplankton blooms. Numerous zooplankton species graze sea-ice algae, benefiting additionally because the overlying sea-ice ceiling provides a refuge from surface predators. Sea ice is an important nursery habitat for Antarctic krill, the pivotal species in the Southern Ocean marine ecosystem. Some deep-water fish migrate to shallow depths beneath sea ice to exploit the elevated concentrations of some zooplankton there. The increased secondary production associated with pack ice and the sea-ice edge is exploited by many higher predators, with seals, seabirds and whales

Influence of sea ice on Arctic precipitation

PubMed Central

Kopec, Ben G.; Feng, Xiahong; Michel, Fred A.; Posmentier, Eric S.

2016-01-01

Global climate is influenced by the Arctic hydrologic cycle, which is, in part, regulated by sea ice through its control on evaporation and precipitation. However, the quantitative link between precipitation and sea ice extent is poorly constrained. Here we present observational evidence for the response of precipitation to sea ice reduction and assess the sensitivity of the response. Changes in the proportion of moisture sourced from the Arctic with sea ice change in the Canadian Arctic and Greenland Sea regions over the past two decades are inferred from annually averaged deuterium excess (d-excess) measurements from six sites. Other influences on the Arctic hydrologic cycle, such as the strength of meridional transport, are assessed using the North Atlantic Oscillation index. We find that the independent, direct effect of sea ice on the increase of the percentage of Arctic sourced moisture (or Arctic moisture proportion, AMP) is 18.2 ± 4.6% and 10.8 ± 3.6%/100,000 km2 sea ice lost for each region, respectively, corresponding to increases of 10.9 ± 2.8% and 2.7 ± 1.1%/1 °C of warming in the vapor source regions. The moisture source changes likely result in increases of precipitation and changes in energy balance, creating significant uncertainty for climate predictions. PMID:26699509

Contrasts in Sea Ice Formation and Production in the Arctic Seasonal and Perennial Ice Zones

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kwok, R.

2006-01-01

Four years (1997-2000) of RADARSAT Geophysical Processor System (RGPS) data are used to contrast the sea ice deformation and production regionally, and in the seasonal (SIZ) and perennial (PIZ) ice zones. Ice production is of seasonal ice in openings during the winter. 3-day estimates of these quantities are provided within Lagrangian elements initially 10 km on a side. A distinct seasonal cycle is seen in both zones with these estimates highest in the late fall and with seasonal minimums in the mid-winter. Regional divergence over the winter could be up to 30%. Spatially, the highest deformation is in the SIZ north of coastal Alaska. Both ice deformation and production are higher in the SIZ: deformation-related ice production in the SIZ (approx.0.5 m) is 1.5-2.3 times that of the PIZ (approx.0.3 m) - this is connected to ice strength and thickness. Atmospheric forcing and boundary layer structure contribute to only the seasonal and interannual variability. Seasonal ice growth in ice fractures accounts for approx.25-40% of the total ice production of the Arctic Ocean. By itself, this deformation-ice production relationship could be considered a negative feedback when thickness is perturbed. However, the overall effect on ice production in the face of increasing seasonal and thinner/weaker ice coverage could be modified by: local destabilization of the water column promoting overturning of warmer water due to increased brine rejection; and, the upwelling of the pynocline associated with increased occurrence of large shear motion in sea ice.

On the nature of the dirty ice at the bottom of the GISP2 ice core

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bender, Michael L.; Burgess, Edward; Alley, Richard B.; Barnett, Bruce; Clow, Gary D.

2010-01-01

We present data on the triple Ar isotope composition in trapped gas from clean, stratigraphically disturbed ice between 2800 and 3040m depth in the GISP2 ice core, and from basal dirty ice from 3040 to 3053m depth. We also present data for the abundance and isotopic composition of O2 and N2, and abundance of Ar, in the basal dirty ice. The Ar/N2 ratio of dirty basal ice, the heavy isotope enrichment (reflecting gravitational fractionation), and the total gas content all indicate that the gases in basal dirty ice originate from the assimilation of clean ice of the overlying glacier, which comprises most of the ice in the dirty bottom layer. O2 is partly to completely depleted in basal ice, reflecting active metabolism. The gravitationally corrected ratio of 40Ar/38Ar, which decreases with age in the global atmosphere, is compatible with an age of 100-250ka for clean disturbed ice. In basal ice, 40Ar is present in excess due to injection of radiogenic 40Ar produced in the underlying continental crust. The weak depth gradient of 40Ar in the dirty basal ice, and the distribution of dirt, indicate mixing within the basal ice, while various published lines of evidence indicate mixing within the overlying clean, disturbed ice. Excess CH4, which reaches thousands of ppm in basal dirty ice at GRIP, is virtually absent in overlying clean disturbed ice, demonstrating that mixing of dirty basal ice into the overlying clean ice, if it occurs at all, is very slow. Order-of-magnitude estimates indicate that the mixing rate of clean ice into dirty ice is sufficient to maintain a steady thickness of dirty ice against thinning from the mean ice flow. The dirty ice appears to consist of two or more basal components in addition to clean glacial ice. A small amount of soil or permafrost, plus preglacial snow, lake or ground ice could explain the observations.

Bioprecipitation: a feedback cycle linking earth history, ecosystem dynamics and land use through biological ice nucleators in the atmosphere.

PubMed

Morris, Cindy E; Conen, Franz; Alex Huffman, J; Phillips, Vaughan; Pöschl, Ulrich; Sands, David C

2014-02-01

Landscapes influence precipitation via the water vapor and energy fluxes they generate. Biologically active landscapes also generate aerosols containing microorganisms, some being capable of catalyzing ice formation and crystal growth in clouds at temperatures near 0 °C. The resulting precipitation is beneficial for the growth of plants and microorganisms. Mounting evidence from observations and numerical simulations support the plausibility of a bioprecipitation feedback cycle involving vegetated landscapes and the microorganisms they host. Furthermore, the evolutionary history of ice nucleation-active bacteria such as Pseudomonas syringae supports that they have been part of this process on geological time scales since the emergence of land plants. Elucidation of bioprecipitation feedbacks involving landscapes and their microflora could contribute to appraising the impact that modified landscapes have on regional weather and biodiversity, and to avoiding inadvertent, negative consequences of landscape management. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Effect of ageing of K-feldspar on its ice nucleating efficiency in immersion, deposition and contact freezing modes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peckhaus, Andreas; Bachmann, Felix; Hoffmann, Nadine; Koch, Michael; Kiselev, Alexei; Leisner, Thomas

2015-04-01

Recently K-feldspar was identified as one of the most active atmospheric ice nucleating particles (INP) of mineral origin [1]. Seeking the explanation to this phenomena we have conducted extensive experimental investigation of the ice nucleating efficiency of K-feldspar in three heterogeneous freezing modes. The immersion freezing of K-feldspar was investigated with the cold stage using arrays of nanoliter-size droplets containing aqueous suspension of polydisperse feldspar particles. For contact freezing, the charged droplets of supercooled water were suspended in the laminar flow of the DMA-selected feldspar-containing particles, allowing for determination of freezing probability on a single particle-droplet contact [2]. The nucleation and growth of ice via vapor deposition on the crystalline surfaces of macroscopic feldspar particles have been investigated in the Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope (ESEM) under humidified nitrogen atmosphere. The ice nucleation experiments were supplemented with measurements of effective surface area of feldspar particles and ion chromatography (IC) analysis of the leached framework cations (K+, Na+, Ca2+, Mg2+). In this contribution we focus on the role of surface chemistry influencing the IN efficiency of K-feldspar, in particular the connection between the degree of surface hydroxylation and its ability to induce local structural ordering in the interfacial layer in water molecules (as suggested by recent modeling efforts). We mimic the natural process of feldspar ageing by suspending it in water or weak aqueous solution of carbonic acid for different time periods, from minutes to months, and present its freezing efficiency as a function of time. Our immersion freezing experiments show that ageing have a nonlinear effect on the freezing behavior of feldspar within the investigated temperature range (-40°C to -10°C). On the other hand, deposition nucleation of ice observed in the ESEM reveals clear different pattern

Sea Ice Prediction Has Easy and Difficult Years

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hamilton, Lawrence C.; Bitz, Cecilia M.; Blanchard-Wrigglesworth, Edward; Cutler, Matthew; Kay, Jennifer; Meier, Walter N.; Stroeve, Julienne; Wiggins, Helen

2014-01-01

Arctic sea ice follows an annual cycle, reaching its low point in September each year. The extent of sea ice remaining at this low point has been trending downwards for decades as the Arctic warms. Around the long-term downward trend, however, there is significant variation in the minimum extent from one year to the next. Accurate forecasts of yearly conditions would have great value to Arctic residents, shipping companies, and other stakeholders and are the subject of much current research. Since 2008 the Sea Ice Outlook (SIO) (http://www.arcus.org/search-program/seaiceoutlook) organized by the Study of Environmental Arctic Change (SEARCH) (http://www.arcus.org/search-program) has invited predictions of the September Arctic sea ice minimum extent, which are contributed from the Arctic research community. Individual predictions, based on a variety of approaches, are solicited in three cycles each year in early June, July, and August. (SEARCH 2013).

Glacial-interglacial cycles in detrital sediment supply to the Amundsen Sea: Implications for West Antarctic Ice Sheet dynamics during the Late Pleistocene

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simoes Pereira, P.; van de Flierdt, T.; Hillenbrand, C. D.; Hemming, S. R.; Kuhn, G.

2017-12-01

The West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) plays a key role in the global climate system and its collapse could contribute up to 4.3 m of sea-level rise. Mass loss of this marine-based ice sheet is largely caused by ocean-driven melting of ice shelves. This is confimed by modern observational data which show significant glacier thinning and retreat of grounding lines, particularly in the Amundsen Sea area. We here apply an integrated approach to determine provenance of marine sediments, which enables us to trace erosion of different bedrock lithologies, ultimately tied to the location of the eroding ice through time. We present provenance analysis on detrital Holocene seafloor sediments from the Amundsen Sea Embayment as well as from two marine cores PS58/254 (69°19´S, 108°27´W) and PC493 (71°09´S, 119°57´W), located on the continental rise of the Amundsen Sea and covering glacial-interglacial cycles of the past 800 kyrs. We use strontium (Sr) and neodymium (Nd) isotopic compositions of fine terrigenous grains (<63μm), and 40Ar/39Ar ages on ice-rafted (>150μm) hornblende and biotite grains. Our Holocene mapping results reveal drainage pathways with distinct signatures in the eastern and western Amundsen Sea Embayment. The western embayment records a homogenous provenance signature, pointing to a local source area in the hinterland, while the eastern embayment shows a range of compositions indicating erosion of the eastern coastal margin and a distinct, but unexposed source lithology under Pine Island Glacier and/or its drainage basin. Systematic isotope variations are detected between glacial and interglacial stages in both downcore records. Core PS58/254 exhibits a radiogenic fingerprint throughout the Late Pleistocene and systematic glacial-interglacial fluctuations in the order of three ɛNd units. They correlate with physical properties of the sediments (i.e. magnetic susceptibility) and trend towards lower values during interglacials, notably during Marine

Growth of plants on the Late Weichselian ice-sheet during Greenland interstadial-1?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zale, R.; Huang, Y.-T.; Bigler, C.; Wood, J. R.; Dalén, L.; Wang, X.-R.; Segerström, U.; Klaminder, J.

2018-04-01

Unglaciated forelands and summits protruding from ice-sheets are commonly portrayed as areas where plants first establish at the end of glacial cycles. But is this prevailing view of ice-free refugia too simplistic? Here, we present findings suggesting that surface debris supported plant communities far beyond the rim of the Late Weichselian Ice-sheet during Greenland interstadial 1 (GI-1 or Bølling-Allerød interstadial). We base our interpretations upon findings from terrigenous sediments largely resembling 'plant-trash' deposits in North America (known to form as vegetation established on stagnant ice became buried along with glacial debris during the deglaciation). In our studied deposit, we found macrofossils (N = 10) overlapping with the deglaciation period of the area (9.5-10 cal kyr BP) as well as samples (N = 2) with ages ranging between 12.9 and 13.3 cal kyr BP. The latter ages indicate growth of at least graminoids during the GI-1 interstadial when the site was near the geographic center of the degrading ice-sheet. We suggest that exposure of englacial material during GI-1 created patches of supraglacial debris capable of supporting vascular plants three millennia before deglaciation. The composition and resilience of this early plant community remain uncertain. Yet, the younger group of macrofossils, in combination with pollen and ancient DNA analyses of inclusions, imply that shrubs (Salix sp., Betula sp. and Ericaceae sp) and even tree species (Larix) were present in the debris during the final deglaciation stage.

Age of the Pineo Ridge System: Implications for behavior of the Laurentide Ice Sheet in eastern Maine, U.S.A., during the last deglaciation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hall, Brenda L.; Borns, Harold W.; Bromley, Gordon R. M.; Lowell, Thomas V.

2017-08-01

The Laurentide Ice Sheet was a major driver of global sea-level change during the last deglaciation and may have impacted both atmospheric and oceanic circulation. An understanding of past changes in the ice sheet is important for constraining its interaction with other components of the climate system. Here, we present the geologic context and chronology for ice-sheet fluctuations in eastern Maine, adjacent to the North Atlantic Ocean, thought to be a key player in the termination of the last ice age. Retreat of the Laurentide Ice Sheet through coastal Maine first produced a series of lobate grounding-line moraines, followed by deposition of the prominent Pineo Ridge System, which crosscut the earlier moraine set and which is characterized by extensive ice-contact deltas, closely spaced parallel moraines, and association with eskers. Our new 10Be surface exposure ages indicate that the Pineo Ridge System, which extends for more than 100 km in eastern Maine and Atlantic Canada, dates to ∼15.3 ka, ∼800 years older than recent estimates. Our data are in accord with inboard minimum-limiting radiocarbon ages of terrestrial materials, which indicate deglaciation as early as 15.3 ka, as well as of marine shells that are as old as 15.0 ka. Both the deglaciation that produced the lobate moraines and the short-lived readvance that led to the Pineo Ridge System occurred during Heinrich Stadial 1. Given that faunal and isotopic evidence indicates that the ocean remained cold during deglaciation of coastal Maine, we infer that ice recession was due to rising summer air temperatures that gave way briefly to cooling to allow minor readvance. Glacial deposits north of the Pineo Ridge System display evidence of ice stagnation and downwasting, suggesting rapid ice retreat following deposition of the delta-moraine complex, coincident with the onset of the Bølling.

Insight to Marine Isotope Stage 13 using Late Pleistocene relaxation models of ice volume and carbon cycle change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lisiecki, L. E.; Herrero, C.; García-Olivares, A.

2016-12-01

The Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 13 interglacial is unusual in that warm Northern Hemisphere conditions were accompanied by relatively cool Southern Hemisphere conditions and because it was preceded by a mild glaciation (MIS 14) with less ice volume and higher CO2 levels than the two preceding glacial maxima. Here we investigate Late Pleistocene glacial cycles, and MIS 13 in particular, using two relaxation models from García-Olivares & Herrero [2013] that describe the relationships between global ice volume (V), atmospheric CO2 (C) and the extent of the Antarctic ice shelves (A). The two models differ in parameterizing deep ocean stratification as either a function of V and A (model 3τ) or as a function of C and A (model LS). Note that global ice volume, V, is most closely related to Northern hemisphere climate, whereas C and A are most closely related to Antarctic climate. Here we present the results of using a sea level stack [Spratt & Lisiecki, 2016] as the ice volume tuning target instead of benthic δ18O. We find that tuning to the sea level stack dramatically improves the simulation of MIS 13 in the 3τ model. With the sea level stack, 3τ correctly reproduces the weak amplitudes of MIS 13 and 14 and a double peak in CO2 during MIS 13, whereas the LS model does not reproduce these features using either tuning target. The first peak in CO2 follows a minor ice volume decrease at 530 kyr but significantly precedes a second, larger sea level rise at 500 kyr. The later sea level rise coincides with a second benthic δ18O decrease and likely triggered the second CO2 peak. This two-step transition to peak interglacial conditions might be caused by deep ocean stratification and Antarctic ice cover acting out of phase: weakened stratification produced an initial pulse of CO2 from the deep ocean, but because Antarctic warming was unusually weak, the Antarctic ice shelf remained relatively wide and less CO2 than usual was released from the deep ocean. Because ocean

Near-surface ice-rich regolith in mid Utopia Planitia, Mars, and its formation by thaw-freeze cycling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Soare, R. J.; Conway, S. J.

2012-12-01

We have used all relevant HiRISE, MOC, THEMIS and CTX images of mid Utopia Planitia (UP; ~30-600N; ~65-1010E) to identify and then map the spatial association of flat-floored and scalloped depressions, small-sized (~150m) polygonal patterned-ground and polygon-junction/trough pits. In periglacial regions on Earth such as northern Yakutia and Alaska, similar landscape-assemblages comprised of thermokarst lakes or alases, ice-wedge polygons and polygon-junction ponds are markers of ice-rich permafrost (dominated by lens-like segregation ice). The distribution of these Martian putative periglacial-landforms (PPLs) cross cuts geological units that have a wide range of ages and types, i.e. HBU1 (early Hesperian, lava) - AEta (late Hesperian, fluvial) - ABa (late Amazonian, aeolian), and suggests that a previously unidentified periglacial unit (PUPU) exists in the region. Regardless of whether the PPLs form by means of sublimation or thaw, questions concerning the origin of the hypothesised ice-rich permafrost itself have been largely overlooked in the literature. Based on our most recent observations and findings, we propose five things. First, the PUPU is tens of metres deep, regional in spatial extent, shows sub-horizontal banding, and is an ice-enriched loess-like (or fine-grained) unit comprised principally of segregated ice. Second, the PUPU is distinct from and underlies a regional high-albedo mantle that does not show periglacial landscape modification or features. Heretofore, numerous workers have hypothesised that the scalloped depressions, small-sized polygons and polygon-junction/trough pits that are ubiquitous in the region are the product of mantle degradation by sublimation. Third, the fact that the PUPU is overlain by a mantle not modified by periglacial processes leads one to believe that the formation of a periglacial landscape in mid UP is not as recent as some workers have thought. Fourth, the loess-like material could comprise weathered and eroded

Cosmogenic 10Be ages from the Meirs and Garwood Valleys, Denton Hills, West Antarctica, suggest an absence in LGM Ice Sheet expansion.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fink, David; Joy, Kurt; Storey, Bryan

2014-05-01

It has been hypothesised that during interglacials, thinning of the Ross Ice Shelf allowed a more open water environment with increased local precipitation. This resulted in outlet glaciers, which drain the Transantarctic Mountains and fed by the East Antarctic Ice Sheet, advancing during moist warmer periods, apparently out of phase with colder arid dry periods. Significantly the ice core record during these warm periods also shows increased accumulation continent wide The geomorphology of the Denton Hills in the Royal Society Range, West Antarctica, is a result of Miocene fluvial incision reworked by subsequent glacial advances throughout the Quaternary. The Garwood and Miers glacial valleys drain ice across the Denton Hills into the Shelf, and should thus show maximum extent during interstadials. To understand the chronology of late Quaternary glaciations, 15 granitic boulders from terminal moraines were sampled for 10Be and 26Al cosmogenic dating. Obtaining reliable exposure ages of erratics within moraines that represent timing of deposition (i.e. glacial advances) is problematic in polar regions, where glacial activity is principally controlled by ice sheet dynamics. Recycling of previously exposed debris, uncertainty in provenance of glacially transported boulders and a lack of a post-depositional hydrologic process to remove previously exposed material from a valley system, leads to ambiguities in multiple exposure ages from a single coeval glacial landform. More importantly, cold-based ice advance can leave a landform unmodified resulting in young erratics deposited on bedrock that shows weathering and/or inconsistent age-altitude relationships. Primarily, inheritance becomes a difficulty in qualifying exposure ages from polar regions. Preliminary results from the Garwood and Miers Valleys indicate that glaciers in the Denton Hills had begun to retreat from their last maximum positions no later than 23-37 ka, and thus the local last glacial maximum

Precooling With Crushed Ice: As Effective as Heat Acclimation at Improving Cycling Time-Trial Performance in the Heat.

PubMed

Zimmermann, Matthew; Landers, Grant; Wallman, Karen; Kent, Georgina

2018-02-01

This study compared the effects of precooling (ice ingestion) and heat-acclimation training on cycling time-trial (CTT) performance in the heat. Fifteen male cyclists/triathletes completed two 800-kJ CTTs in the heat, with a 12-d training program in between. Initially, all participants consumed 7 g/kg of water (22°C) in 30 min before completing an 800-kJ CTT in hot, humid conditions (pre-CTT) (35°C, 50% relative humidity [RH]). Participants were then split into 2 groups, with the precooling group (n = 7) training in thermoneutral conditions and then undergoing precooling with ice ingestion (7 g/kg, 1°C) prior to the final CTT (post-CTT) and the heat-acclimation group (n = 8) training in hot conditions (35°C, 50% RH) and consuming water (7 g/kg) prior to post-CTT. After training in both conditions, improvement in CTT time was deemed a likely positive benefit (precooling -166 ± 133 s, heat acclimation -105 ± 62 s), with this result being similar between conditions (d = 0.22, -0.68-1.08 90% confidence interval [CI]). Core temperature for post-CTT was lower in precooling than in heat acclimation from 20 min into the precooling period until the 100-kJ mark of the CTT (d > 0.98). Sweat onset occurred later in precooling (250 ± 100 s) than in heat acclimation (180 ± 80 s) for post-CTT (d = 0.65, -0.30-1.50 90% CI). Thermal sensation was lower at the end of the precooling period prior to post-CTT for the precooling trial than with heat acclimation (d = 1.24, 0.90-1.58 90% CI). Precooling with ice ingestion offers an alternative method of improving endurance-cycling performance in hot conditions if heat acclimation cannot be attained.

Holocene Fluctuations of North Ice Cap, a Proxy for Climate Conditions along the Northwestern Margin of the Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kelly, M. A.; Osterberg, E. C.; Lasher, G. E.; Farnsworth, L. B.; Howley, J. A.; Axford, Y.; Zimmerman, S. R. H.

2015-12-01

North Ice Cap (~76.9°N, 68°W, summit elevation 1322 m asl), a small, independent ice cap in northwestern Greenland, is located within ~25 km of the Greenland Ice Sheet margin and Harald Molkte Bræ outlet glacier. We present geochronological, geomorphic and sedimentological data constraining the Holocene extents of North Ice Cap and suggest that its past fluctuations can be used as a proxy for climate conditions along the northwestern margin of the Greenland Ice Sheet. Prior work by Goldthwait (1960) used glacial geomorphology and radiocarbon ages of subfossil plants emerging along shear planes in the ice cap margin to suggest that that North Ice Cap was not present during the early Holocene and nucleated in the middle to late Holocene time, with the onset of colder conditions. Subfossil plants emerging at shear planes in the North Ice Cap margin yield radiocarbon ages of ~4.8-5.9 cal kyr BP (Goldthwait, 1960) and ~AD 1000-1350 (950-600 cal yr BP), indicating times when the ice cap was smaller than at present. In situ subfossil plants exposed by recent ice cap retreat date to ~AD 1500-1840 (450-110 cal yr BP) and indicate small fluctuations of the ice cap margin. 10Be ages of an unweathered, lichen-free drift <100 m from the present North Ice Cap margin range from ~500 to 8000 yrs ago. We suggest that the drift was deposited during the last ~500 yrs and that the older 10Be ages are influenced by 10Be inherited from a prior period of exposure. We also infer ice cap fluctuations using geochemical data from a Holocene-long sediment core from Deltasø, a downstream lake that currently receives meltwater from North Ice Cap. The recent recession of the North Ice Cap margin influenced a catastrophic drainage of a large proglacial lake, Søndre Snesø, that our field team documented in August 2012. To our knowledge, this is the first significant lowering of Søndre Snesø in historical time.

A geochemical record of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) during the late Paleozoic Ice Age: The relationship between atmospheric pCO2, climate and fire.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hren, M. T.; Harris, G.; Montanez, I. P.; DiMichele, W.; Eley, Y.; White, J. D.; Wilson, J. P.; McElwain, J.; Poulsen, C. J.

2017-12-01

The late Paleozoic Ice Age (LPIA) represents a dynamic period of widespread glacial/interglacial cycling as the earth underwent a major transition from an icehouse to greenhouse climate. During this transition period, pCO2 is shown to have varied by several hundred ppm and within the predicted range for anthropogenic change. Glacial/interglacial changes in atmospheric pCO2 during this time are associated with restructuring of tropical forests and carbon cycle dynamics. At present however, there is considerable debate over the potential hydrologic and fire-frequency feedbacks associated with this climatic variability. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are produced from the incomplete combustion of organic matter and are shown to be preserved over hundreds of millions of years. Thus, these organic compounds provide a potential record of the feedbacks between global biogeochemical systems and fire. We analyzed sedimentary organic matter from the Illinois Basin spanning the late Carboniferous glacial-interglacial cycles to assess the evolution of fire during this period. Our data show a decrease in the overall abundance of high molecular weight PAHs (HMW) from 312 to 304 Myr with significant variability that is coincident with the general timing of pCO2 cycling. Decreasing PAH abundance is also coincident with a proposed long-term change in pO2 and may reflect the influence of atmospheric oxygen in regulating fire occurrence and hydrologic cycling in tropical ecosystems in the late Carboniferous.

Coating Reduces Ice Adhesion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Trent; Prince, Michael; DwWeese, Charles; Curtis, Leslie

2008-01-01

The Shuttle Ice Liberation Coating (SILC) has been developed to reduce the adhesion of ice to surfaces on the space shuttle. SILC, when coated on a surface (foam, metal, epoxy primer, polymer surfaces), will reduce the adhesion of ice by as much as 90 percent as compared to the corresponding uncoated surface. This innovation is a durable coating that can withstand several cycles of ice growth and removal without loss of anti-adhesion properties. SILC is made of a binder composed of varying weight percents of siloxane(s), ethyl alcohol, ethyl sulfate, isopropyl alcohol, and of fine-particle polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). The combination of these components produces a coating with significantly improved weathering characteristics over the siloxane system alone. In some cases, the coating will delay ice formation and can reduce the amount of ice formed. SILC is not an ice prevention coating, but the very high water contact angle (greater than 140 ) causes water to readily run off the surface. This coating was designed for use at temperatures near -170 F (-112 C). Ice adhesion tests performed at temperatures from -170 to 20 F (-112 to -7 C) show that SILC is a very effective ice release coating. SILC can be left as applied (opaque) or buffed off until the surface appears clear. Energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) data show that the coating is still present after buffing to transparency. This means SILC can be used to prevent ice adhesion even when coating windows or other objects, or items that require transmission of optical light. Car windshields are kept cleaner and SILC effectively mitigates rain and snow under driving conditions.

The Greenland Ice Sheet's surface mass balance in a seasonally sea ice-free Arctic

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Day, J. J.; Bamber, J. L.; Valdes, P. J.

2013-09-01

General circulation models predict a rapid decrease in sea ice extent with concurrent increases in near-surface air temperature and precipitation in the Arctic over the 21st century. This has led to suggestions that some Arctic land ice masses may experience an increase in accumulation due to enhanced evaporation from a seasonally sea ice-free Arctic Ocean. To investigate the impact of this phenomenon on Greenland Ice Sheet climate and surface mass balance (SMB), a regional climate model, HadRM3, was used to force an insolation-temperature melt SMB model. A set of experiments designed to investigate the role of sea ice independently from sea surface temperature (SST) forcing are described. In the warmer and wetter SI + SST simulation, Greenland experiences a 23% increase in winter SMB but 65% reduced summer SMB, resulting in a net decrease in the annual value. This study shows that sea ice decline contributes to the increased winter balance, causing 25% of the increase in winter accumulation; this is largest in eastern Greenland as the result of increased evaporation in the Greenland Sea. These results indicate that the seasonal cycle of Greenland's SMB will increase dramatically as global temperatures increase, with the largest changes in temperature and precipitation occurring in winter. This demonstrates that the accurate prediction of changes in sea ice cover is important for predicting Greenland SMB and ice sheet evolution.

Antarctic Ocean Nutrient Conditions During the Last Two Glacial Cycles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Studer, A.; Sigman, D. M.; Martinez-Garcia, A.; Benz, V.; Winckler, G.; Kuhn, G.; Esper, O.; Lamy, F.; Jaccard, S.; Wacker, L.; Oleynik, S.; Gersonde, R.; Haug, G. H.

2014-12-01

The high concentration of the major nutrients nitrate and phosphate in the Antarctic Zone of the Southern Ocean dictates the nature of Southern Ocean ecosystems and permits these nutrients to be carried from the deep ocean into the nutrient-limited low latitudes. Incomplete nutrient consumption in the Antarctic also allows the leakage of deeply sequestered carbon dioxide (CO2) back to the atmosphere, and changes in this leakage may have driven glacial/interglacial cycles in atmospheric CO2. In a sediment core from the Pacific sector of the Antarctic Ocean, we report diatom-bound N isotope (δ15Ndb) records for total recoverable diatoms and two assemblages of diatom species. These data indicate tight coupling between the degree of nitrate consumption and Antarctic climate across the last two glacial cycles, with δ15Ndb (and thus the degree of nitrate consumption) increasing at each major Antarctic cooling event. Measurements in the same sediment core indicate that export production was reduced during ice ages, pointing to an ice age reduction in the supply of deep ocean-sourced nitrate to the Antarctic Ocean surface. The reduced export production of peak ice ages also implies a weaker winter-to-summer decline (i.e. reduced seasonality) in mixed layer nitrate concentration, providing a plausible explanation for an observed reduction in the inter-assemblage δ15Ndb difference during these coldest times. Despite the weak summertime productivity, the reduction in wintertime nitrate supply from deep waters left the Antarctic mixed layer with a low nitrate concentration, and this wintertime change also would have reduced the outgassing of CO2. Relief of light limitation fails to explain the intermediate degree of nitrate consumption that characterizes early glacial conditions, as improved light limitation coincident with reduced nitrate supply would drive nitrate consumption to completion. Thus, the data favor iron availability as the dominant control on annual Antarctic

Implementation of an all-ages mandatory helmet policy for ice skating.

PubMed

Thibault-Halman, Ginette; Fenerty, Lynne; Wheadon-Hore, Kathie; Walling, Simon; Cusimano, Michael D; Clarke, David B

2015-12-01

Ice skaters sustain a significant number of head injuries each winter. We are the first to implement an all-ages helmet policy at a university-based Canadian arena. We report our experience from a cross-sectional observational study as well as the policy's consequences on helmet use and skating participation. Educational programming was provided prior to policy implementation. Observations of helmet use, falls and skater demographics were conducted prior to education/implementation and after policy implementation. The number of skaters observed was essentially unchanged by the policy; 361 skaters were observed pre-implementation, while 358 were observed post-implementation during the same number of observation-hours. Pre-implementation, helmet use ranged from 97% among children under 12 to 10% among adults; post-implementation use in all skaters was 99%. Falls were observed among all age groups, with preponderance among those aged 4-12. An all-ages helmet policy was successful both in achieving helmet use among all skaters and in maintaining participation rates. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Raman spectroscopic study of hydrogen ordered ice XIII and of its reversible phase transition to disordered ice V.

PubMed

Salzmann, Christoph G; Hallbrucker, Andreas; Finney, John L; Mayer, Erwin

2006-07-14

Raman spectra of recovered ordered H(2)O (D(2)O) ice XIII doped with 0.01 M HCl (DCl) recorded in vacuo at 80 K are reported in the range 3600-200 cm(-1). The bands are assigned to the various types of modes on the basis of isotope ratios. On thermal cycling between 80 and 120 K, the reversible phase transition to disordered ice V is observed. The remarkable effect of HCl (DCl) on orientational ordering in ice V and its phase transition to ordered ice XIII, first reported in a powder neutron diffraction study of DCl doped D(2)O ice V (C. G. Salzmann, P. G. Radaelli, A. Hallbrucker, E. Mayer, J. L. Finney, Science, 2006, 311, 1758), is demonstrated by Raman spectroscopy and discussed. The dopants KOH and HF have only a minor effect on hydrogen ordering in ice V, as shown by the Raman spectra.

Greenhouse Gas Concentration Records Extended Back to 800,000 Years From the EPICA Dome C Ice Core

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chappellaz, J.; Luethi, D.; Loulergue, L.; Barnola, J.; Bereiter, B.; Blunier, T.; Jouzel, J.; Lefloch, M.; Lemieux, B.; Masson-Delmotte, V.; Raynaud, D.; Schilt, A.; Siegenthaler, U.; Spahni, R.; Stocker, T.

2007-12-01

The deep ice core recovered from Dome Concordia in the framework of EPICA, the European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica, has extended the record of Antarctic climate history back to 800,000 years [Jouzel et al., 2007]. We present the current status of measurements of CO2, CH4 and N2O on air trapped in the bubbles of the Dome C ice core. CO2 is measured in two laboratories using different techniques (laser absorption spectroscopy or gas chromatography on samples of 8 and 40 g of ice which are mechanically crushed or milled, respectively). CH4 and N2O are extracted using a melt-refreeze technique and then measured by gas chromatography (in two laboratories for CH4). The greenhouse gas concentrations have now been measured on the lowest 200 m of the Dome C core, going back to Marine Isotope Stage 20 (MIS 20) as verified by a consistent gas age/ice age difference determined at termination IX [Jouzel et al., 2007]. The atmospheric CO2 concentration mostly lagged the Antarctic temperature with a rather strong correlation throughout the eight and a half glacial cycles, but with significantly lower CO2 values between 650 and 750 kyr BP. Its lowest level ever measured in ice cores (172 ppmv) is observed during MIS 16 (minimum centered at 667 kyr BP according to the EDC3 chronology) redetermining the natural span of CO2 to 172-300 ppmv. With 2245 individual measurements, the CH4 concentration is now reconstructed over 800,000 years from a single core, with an average time resolution of 380 years. Spectral analyses of the CH4 signal show an increasing contribution of precession during the last four climatic cycles compared with the four older ones, suggesting an increasing impact of low latitudes sources/sinks. Millennial scale features in this very detailed signal allows us to compare their occurrence with ice volume reconstructions and the isotopic composition of precipitation over the East Antarctic plateau. N2O is still affected by glaciological artefacts involving

Comparative Study of Probiotic Ice Cream and Probiotic Drink on Salivary Streptococcus mutans Levels in 6-12 Years Age Group Children.

PubMed

Mahantesha, Taranatha; Reddy, K M Parveen; Kumar, N H Praveen; Nara, Asha; Ashwin, Devasya; Buddiga, Vinutna

2015-09-01

Dental caries is one of the most common health problems in the world. Probiotics are one the various preventive methods to reduce dental caries. The aim of this study is to compare the effectiveness of probiotic ice cream and drink on salivary Streptococcus mutans levels in children of 6-12 years age group. A three phase study was carried out in children (n = 50) of 6-12 years age with zero decayed missing filled teeth (dmft)/DMFT. They were randomly divided into two equal groups. Saliva samples were collected before the consumptions of probiotic ice cream and probiotic drink. Colony count obtained was recorded as baseline data. For both groups probiotic ice cream and drink was given randomly for 7 days and a washout period of 90 days were given and then the saliva samples were collected and colony counting was done. Statistical analysis was performed using Student's paired t-test and multiple comparisons by Tukey's honest significant difference test which showed, there is a significant reduction in salivary S. mutans level in both groups after 7 days period. However, after washout period only probiotic ice cream showed reduction whereas drink did not. Also, there was no significant difference between probiotic ice cream and drink. Probiotic organisms definitely have a role in reducing the salivary S. mutans level and ice cream would be a better choice than drink. However, the prolonged use of the agents and their effects on caries is still to be determined.

Long time management of fossil fuel resources to limit global warming and avoid ice age onsets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shaffer, Gary

2009-02-01

There are about 5000 billion tons of fossil fuel carbon in accessible reserves. Combustion of all this carbon within the next few centuries would force high atmospheric CO2 content and extreme global warming. On the other hand, low atmospheric CO2 content favors the onset of an ice age when changes in the Earth's orbit lead to low summer insolation at high northern latitudes. Here I present Earth System Model projections showing that typical reduction targets for fossil fuel use in the present century could limit ongoing global warming to less than one degree Celcius above present. Furthermore, the projections show that combustion pulses of remaining fossil fuel reserves could then be tailored to raise atmospheric CO2 content high and long enough to parry forcing of ice age onsets by summer insolation minima far into the future. Our present interglacial period could be extended by about 500,000 years in this way.

Contrasts in Sea Ice Deformation and Production in the Arctic Seasonal and Perennial Ice Zones

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kwok, K.

2006-01-01

Four years (1997-2000) of RADARSAT Geophysical Processor System (RGPS) data are used to contrast the sea ice deformation and production regionally, and in the seasonal (SIZ) and perennial (PIZ) ice zones. Ice production is of seasonal ice in openings during the winter. Three-day estimates of these quantities are provided within Lagrangian elements initially 10 km on a side. A distinct seasonal cycle is seen in both zones with these estimates highest in the late fall and with seasonal minimums in the midwinter. Regional divergence over the winter could be up to 30%. Spatially, the highest deformation is seen in the SIZ north of coastal Alaska. Both ice deformation and production are higher in the SIZ: deformation-related ice production in the SIZ (approx.0.5 m) is 1.5-2.3 times that of the PIZ (approx.0.3 m): this is connected to ice strength and thickness. Atmospheric forcing and boundary layer structure contribute to only the seasonal and interannual variability. Seasonal ice growth in ice fractures accounts for approx.25-40% of the total ice production of the Arctic Ocean. Uncertainties in these estimates are discussed. By itself, this deformation-ice production relationship could be considered a negative feedback when thickness is perturbed. However, the overall effect on ice production in the face of increasing seasonal and thinner/weaker ice coverage could be modified by local destabilization of the water column promoting overturning of warmer water due to increased brine rejection; and the upwelling of the pynocline associated with increased occurrence of large shear motion in sea ice. Divergence is shown to be negligibly correlated to cyclonic motion in summer and winter in both ice zones.

The genetic history of Ice Age Europe

PubMed Central

Fu, Qiaomei; Posth, Cosimo; Hajdinjak, Mateja; Petr, Martin; Mallick, Swapan; Fernandes, Daniel; Furtwängler, Anja; Haak, Wolfgang; Meyer, Matthias; Mittnik, Alissa; Nickel, Birgit; Peltzer, Alexander; Rohland, Nadin; Slon, Viviane; Talamo, Sahra; Lazaridis, Iosif; Lipson, Mark; Mathieson, Iain; Schiffels, Stephan; Skoglund, Pontus; Derevianko, Anatoly P.; Drozdov, Nikolai; Slavinsky, Vyacheslav; Tsybankov, Alexander; Cremonesi, Renata Grifoni; Mallegni, Francesco; Gély, Bernard; Vacca, Eligio; González Morales, Manuel R.; Straus, Lawrence G.; Neugebauer-Maresch, Christine; Teschler-Nicola, Maria; Constantin, Silviu; Moldovan, Oana Teodora; Benazzi, Stefano; Peresani, Marco; Coppola, Donato; Lari, Martina; Ricci, Stefano; Ronchitelli, Annamaria; Valentin, Frédérique; Thevenet, Corinne; Wehrberger, Kurt; Grigorescu, Dan; Rougier, Hélène; Crevecoeur, Isabelle; Flas, Damien; Semal, Patrick; Mannino, Marcello A.; Cupillard, Christophe; Bocherens, Hervé; Conard, Nicholas J.; Harvati, Katerina; Moiseyev, Vyacheslav; Drucker, Dorothée G.; Svoboda, Jiří; Richards, Michael P.; Caramelli, David; Pinhasi, Ron; Kelso, Janet; Patterson, Nick; Krause, Johannes; Pääbo, Svante; Reich, David

2016-01-01

Modern humans arrived in Europe ~45,000 years ago, but little is known about their genetic composition before the start of farming ~8,500 years ago. We analyze genome-wide data from 51 Eurasians from ~45,000-7,000 years ago. Over this time, the proportion of Neanderthal DNA decreased from 3–6% to around 2%, consistent with natural selection against Neanderthal variants in modern humans. Whereas the earliest modern humans in Europe did not contribute substantially to present-day Europeans, all individuals between ~37,000 and ~14,000 years ago descended from a single founder population which forms part of the ancestry of present-day Europeans. A ~35,000 year old individual from northwest Europe represents an early branch of this founder population which was then displaced across a broad region, before reappearing in southwest Europe during the Ice Age ~19,000 years ago. During the major warming period after ~14,000 years ago, a new genetic component related to present-day Near Easterners appears in Europe. These results document how population turnover and migration have been recurring themes of European pre-history. PMID:27135931

The genetic history of Ice Age Europe.

PubMed

Fu, Qiaomei; Posth, Cosimo; Hajdinjak, Mateja; Petr, Martin; Mallick, Swapan; Fernandes, Daniel; Furtwängler, Anja; Haak, Wolfgang; Meyer, Matthias; Mittnik, Alissa; Nickel, Birgit; Peltzer, Alexander; Rohland, Nadin; Slon, Viviane; Talamo, Sahra; Lazaridis, Iosif; Lipson, Mark; Mathieson, Iain; Schiffels, Stephan; Skoglund, Pontus; Derevianko, Anatoly P; Drozdov, Nikolai; Slavinsky, Vyacheslav; Tsybankov, Alexander; Cremonesi, Renata Grifoni; Mallegni, Francesco; Gély, Bernard; Vacca, Eligio; Morales, Manuel R González; Straus, Lawrence G; Neugebauer-Maresch, Christine; Teschler-Nicola, Maria; Constantin, Silviu; Moldovan, Oana Teodora; Benazzi, Stefano; Peresani, Marco; Coppola, Donato; Lari, Martina; Ricci, Stefano; Ronchitelli, Annamaria; Valentin, Frédérique; Thevenet, Corinne; Wehrberger, Kurt; Grigorescu, Dan; Rougier, Hélène; Crevecoeur, Isabelle; Flas, Damien; Semal, Patrick; Mannino, Marcello A; Cupillard, Christophe; Bocherens, Hervé; Conard, Nicholas J; Harvati, Katerina; Moiseyev, Vyacheslav; Drucker, Dorothée G; Svoboda, Jiří; Richards, Michael P; Caramelli, David; Pinhasi, Ron; Kelso, Janet; Patterson, Nick; Krause, Johannes; Pääbo, Svante; Reich, David

2016-06-09

Modern humans arrived in Europe ~45,000 years ago, but little is known about their genetic composition before the start of farming ~8,500 years ago. Here we analyse genome-wide data from 51 Eurasians from ~45,000-7,000 years ago. Over this time, the proportion of Neanderthal DNA decreased from 3-6% to around 2%, consistent with natural selection against Neanderthal variants in modern humans. Whereas there is no evidence of the earliest modern humans in Europe contributing to the genetic composition of present-day Europeans, all individuals between ~37,000 and ~14,000 years ago descended from a single founder population which forms part of the ancestry of present-day Europeans. An ~35,000-year-old individual from northwest Europe represents an early branch of this founder population which was then displaced across a broad region, before reappearing in southwest Europe at the height of the last Ice Age ~19,000 years ago. During the major warming period after ~14,000 years ago, a genetic component related to present-day Near Easterners became widespread in Europe. These results document how population turnover and migration have been recurring themes of European prehistory.

Eastern Ross Ice Sheet Deglacial History inferred from the Roosevelt Island Ice Core

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fudge, T. J.; Buizert, C.; Lee, J.; Waddington, E. D.; Bertler, N. A. N.; Conway, H.; Brook, E.; Severinghaus, J. P.

2017-12-01

The Ross Ice Sheet drains large portions of both West and East Antarctica. Understanding the retreat of the Ross Ice Sheet following the Last Glacial Maximum is particularly difficult in the eastern Ross area where there is no exposed rock and the Ross Ice Shelf prevents extensive bathymetric mapping. Coastal domes, by preserving old ice, can be used to infer the establishment of grounded ice and be used to infer past ice thickness. Here we focus on Roosevelt Island, in the eastern Ross Sea, where the Roosevelt Island Climate Evolution project recently completed an ice core to bedrock. Using ice-flow modeling constrained by the depth-age relationship and an independent estimate of accumulation rate from firn-densification measurements and modeling, we infer ice thickness histories for the LGM (20ka) to present. Preliminary results indicate thinning of 300m between 15ka and 12ka is required. This is similar to the amount and timing of thinning inferred at Siple Dome, in the central Ross Sea (Waddington et al., 2005; Price et al., 2007) and supports the presence of active ice streams throughout the Ross Ice Sheet advance during the LGM.

Modeling North American Ice Sheet Response to Changes in Precession and Obliquity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tabor, C.; Poulsen, C. J.; Pollard, D.

2012-12-01

Milankovitch theory proposes that changes in insolation due to orbital perturbations dictate the waxing and waning of the ice sheets (Hays et al., 1976). However, variations in solar forcing alone are insufficient to produce the glacial oscillations observed in the climate record. Non-linear feedbacks in the Earth system likely work in concert with the orbital cycles to produce a modified signal (e.g. Berger and Loutre, 1996), but the nature of these feedbacks remain poorly understood. To gain a better understand of the ice dynamics and climate feedbacks associated with changes in orbital configuration, we use a complex Earth system model consisting of the GENESIS GCM and land surface model (Pollard and Thompson, 1997), the Pennsylvania State University ice sheet model (Pollard and DeConto, 2009), and the BIOME vegetation model (Kaplan et al., 2001). We began this study by investigating ice sheet sensitivity to a range of commonly used ice sheet model parameters, including mass balance and albedo, to optimize simulations for Pleistocene orbital cycles. Our tests indicate that choice of mass balance and albedo parameterizations can lead to significant differences in ice sheet behavior and volume. For instance, use of an insolation-temperature mass balance scheme (van den Berg, 2008) allows for a larger ice sheet response to orbital changes than the commonly employed positive degree-day method. Inclusion of a large temperature dependent ice albedo, representing phenomena such as melt ponds and dirty ice, also enhances ice sheet sensitivity. Careful tuning of mass balance and albedo parameterizations can help alleviate the problem of insufficient ice sheet retreat during periods of high summer insolation (Horton and Poulsen, 2007) while still accurately replicating the modern climate. Using our optimized configuration, we conducted a series of experiments with idealized transient orbits in an asynchronous coupling scheme to investigate the influence of obliquity and

The De-Icing Comparison Experiment (D-ICE): A campaign for improving data retention rates of radiometric measurements under icing conditions in cold regions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cox, C. J.; Morris, S. M.

2017-12-01

assessed by comparing ice-mitigated and unmitigated systems. The project is a community effort led by NOAA in collaboration with the BSRN Cold Climates Issues Working Group (CCIWG) in partnership with industry representatives and research institutes. The campaign will operate for a full annual cycle from August 2017 through 2018.

The carbon cycle since the LGM in the University of Victoria Earth System Climate Model: Implications of marine ice shelves and late-Holocene deforestation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simmons, C. T.; Mysak, L. A.; Matthews, D.

2012-12-01

The University of Victoria Earth System Climate Model (version v.9) is used to investigate carbon cycle dynamics from the Last Glacial Maximum (21000 years Before Present (BP)) to the beginning of the Industrial Revolution (150 BP). A series of simulations with prescribed and freely-evolving CO2 infer that a combination of two factors, a faster overturning of the oceans during the interglacial and a release of carbon from deep-sea sediments, are likely responsible for a substantial proportion of the glacial-interglacial CO2 increase from 190 (23000 BP) to 280 ppm (150 BP). The simulations also indicate that a realistic glacial-interglacial change in the meridional overturning circulation can be generated without accounting for runoff from melting ice sheets. A series of model experiments also investigated the mechanisms behind the Holocene increase in CO2 after 8000 BP. Without the explicit representation of peatlands, permafrost, coral reefs, or human land use, the UVic model simulation of the natural carbon cycle over the period produced a decline in the atmospheric CO2 from 260 to around 250 ppm, in contrast to the increase from 260 to 280 ppm actually observed. Surprisingly, sensitivity simulations with global deforestation actually yielded lower CO2 concentrations (249-254 ppm) at 150 BP than the same simulations with no deforestation; however, deforestation of certain vegetation types lead to higher concentrations (~270 ppm). Even without deforestation, the decrease in CO2 is highly sensitive to the configuration of land ice shelves near Antarctica, with more extensive land ice leading to deeper local circulation in the Southern Ocean, less Antarctic-generated bottom waters globally, and a higher atmospheric CO2 concentrations (260 ppm) at 150 BP. The 5-8 ppm contribution of ice shelf extent may well be an important contributor to the higher analogue CO2 levels during the Holocene interglacial, as current data and reconstructions suggests that these ice

Summer 2007 and 2008 Arctic Sea Ice Loss in Context: OUTLOOK 2008

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Overland, J. E.; Eicken, H.; Wiggins, H. V.

2008-12-01

The Arctic is changing faster than the publication cycle for new information. In response, the SEARCH and DAMOCLES Programs initiated an OUTLOOK 2008 to provide broad-based communication and assessment within the arctic science community on the causes of rapid summer sea ice loss, synthesizing information from Arctic observing networks and model simulations. The question for summer 2008 was whether the previous loss of multi-year sea ice and delay in sea ice formation in autumn 2007 would still allow sufficient winter growth of sea ice thickness to last through the summer 2008, potentially allowing for recovery from the 2007 minimum. The answer is no; summer 2008 was a second sequential year of extremely low minimum sea ice extent. To organize OUTLOOK 2008, respondents were asked in May, June and July to provide a rationale and semi-quantitative assessment of arctic sea ice extent anticipated for September 2008. OUTLOOK 2008 supplemented information maintained by ice centers, universities and other data providers. Using a range of methods, all of the approximately 20 groups responded that summer sea ice would not return to climatological mean conditions, with a median response near the 2007 extent. The range of responses depended on the relative weight given to "initial conditions," e.g., age and thickness of sea ice at the end of spring, versus whether summer winds in 2008 would be as supportive for ice loss as in 2007. Initial conditions turned out to be a primary factor for summer 2008, with implications for continued sea ice loss in future years. OUTLOOK 2008 highlighted aspects of the observation and modeling efforts that require further attention such as interpretation of summer microwave signatures, in situ buoy measurements, and data assimilation in models. We appreciate the contributions from respondents and reviewers who made OUTLOOK 2008 a success.

Methane excess in Arctic surface water-triggered by sea ice formation and melting.

PubMed

Damm, E; Rudels, B; Schauer, U; Mau, S; Dieckmann, G

2015-11-10

Arctic amplification of global warming has led to increased summer sea ice retreat, which influences gas exchange between the Arctic Ocean and the atmosphere where sea ice previously acted as a physical barrier. Indeed, recently observed enhanced atmospheric methane concentrations in Arctic regions with fractional sea-ice cover point to unexpected feedbacks in cycling of methane. We report on methane excess in sea ice-influenced water masses in the interior Arctic Ocean and provide evidence that sea ice is a potential source. We show that methane release from sea ice into the ocean occurs via brine drainage during freezing and melting i.e. in winter and spring. In summer under a fractional sea ice cover, reduced turbulence restricts gas transfer, then seawater acts as buffer in which methane remains entrained. However, in autumn and winter surface convection initiates pronounced efflux of methane from the ice covered ocean to the atmosphere. Our results demonstrate that sea ice-sourced methane cycles seasonally between sea ice, sea-ice-influenced seawater and the atmosphere, while the deeper ocean remains decoupled. Freshening due to summer sea ice retreat will enhance this decoupling, which restricts the capacity of the deeper Arctic Ocean to act as a sink for this greenhouse gas.

Holocene history of North Ice Cap, northwestern Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Corbett, L. B.; Kelly, M. A.; Osterberg, E. C.; Axford, Y.; Bigl, M.; Roy, E. P.; Thompson, J. T.

2013-12-01

Although much research has focused on the past extents of the Greenland Ice Sheet, less is known about the smaller ice caps on Greenland and how they have evolved over time. These small ice caps respond sensitively to summer temperatures and, to a lesser extent, winter precipitation, and provide valuable information about climatic conditions along the Greenland Ice Sheet margins. Here, we investigate the Holocene history of North Ice Cap (76°55'N 68°00'W), located in the Nunatarssuaq region near Thule, northwest Greenland. Our results are based on glacial geomorphic mapping, 10Be dating, and analyses of sediment cores from a glacially fed lake. Fresh, unweathered and unvegetated boulders comprise moraines and drift that mark an extent of North Ice Cap ~25 m outboard of the present ice margin. It is likely that these deposits were formed during late Holocene time and we are currently employing 10Be surface exposure dating to examine this hypothesis. Just outboard of the fresh moraines and drift, boulders and bedrock show significant weathering and are covered with lichen. Based on glacial geomorphic mapping and detailed site investigations, including stone counts, we suggest that the weathered boulders and bedrock were once covered by erosive Greenland Ice Sheet flow from southeast to northwest over the Nunatarssuaq region. Five 10Be ages from the more weathered landscape only 100-200 m outboard of the modern North Ice Cap margin are 52 and 53 ka (bedrock) and 16, 23, and 31 ka (boulders). These ages indicate that recent ice cover has likely been cold-based and non-erosive, failing to remove inherited cosmogenic nuclides from previous periods of exposure, although the youngest boulder may provide a maximum limiting deglaciation age. Sediment cores collected from Delta Sø, a glacially-fed lake ~1.5 km outside of the modern North Ice Cap margin, contain 130 cm of finely laminated sediments overlying coarse sands and glacial till. Radiocarbon ages from just above

Beyond debuttressing: Mechanics of paraglacial rock slope damage during repeat glacial cycles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grämiger, Lorenz M.; Moore, Jeffrey R.; Gischig, Valentin S.; Ivy-Ochs, Susan; Loew, Simon

2017-04-01

Cycles of glaciation impose mechanical stresses on underlying bedrock as glaciers advance, erode, and retreat. Fracture initiation and propagation constitute rock mass damage and act as preparatory factors for slope failures; however, the mechanics of paraglacial rock slope damage remain poorly characterized. Using conceptual numerical models closely based on the Aletsch Glacier region of Switzerland, we explore how in situ stress changes associated with fluctuating ice thickness can drive progressive rock mass failure preparing future slope instabilities. Our simulations reveal that glacial cycles as purely mechanical loading and unloading phenomena produce relatively limited new damage. However, ice fluctuations can increase the criticality of fractures in adjacent slopes, which may in turn increase the efficacy of fatigue processes. Bedrock erosion during glaciation promotes significant new damage during first deglaciation. An already weakened rock slope is more susceptible to damage from glacier loading and unloading and may fail completely. We find that damage kinematics are controlled by discontinuity geometry and the relative position of the glacier; ice advance and retreat both generate damage. We correlate model results with mapped landslides around the Great Aletsch Glacier. Our result that most damage occurs during first deglaciation agrees with the relative age of the majority of identified landslides. The kinematics and dimensions of a slope failure produced in our models are also in good agreement with characteristics of instabilities observed in the field. Our results extend simplified assumptions of glacial debuttressing, demonstrating in detail how cycles of ice loading, erosion, and unloading drive paraglacial rock slope damage.

Possible Sea Ice Impacts on Oceanic Deep Convection

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parkinson, C. L.

1984-01-01

Many regions of the world ocean known or suspected to have deep convection are sea-ice covered for at least a portion of the annual cycle. As this suggests that sea ice might have some impact on generating or maintaining this phenomenon, several mechanisms by which sea ice could exert an influence are presented in the following paragraphs. Sea ice formation could be a direct causal factor in deep convection by providing the surface density increase necessary to initiate the convective overturning. As sea ice forms, either by ice accretion or by in situ ice formation in open water or in lead areas between ice floes, salt is rejected to the underlying water. This increases the water salinity, thereby increasing water density in the mixed layer under the ice. A sufficient increase in density will lead to mixing with deeper waters, and perhaps to deep convection or even bottom water formation. Observations are needed to establish whether this process is actually occurring; it is most likely in regions with extensive ice formation and a relatively unstable oceanic density structure.

The sea-level fingerprints of ice-sheet collapse during interglacial periods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hay, Carling; Mitrovica, Jerry X.; Gomez, Natalya; Creveling, Jessica R.; Austermann, Jacqueline; E. Kopp, Robert

2014-03-01

Studies of sea level during previous interglacials provide insight into the stability of polar ice sheets in the face of global climate change. Commonly, these studies correct ancient sea-level highstands for the contaminating effect of isostatic adjustment associated with past ice age cycles, and interpret the residuals as being equivalent to the peak eustatic sea level associated with excess melting, relative to present day, of ancient polar ice sheets. However, the collapse of polar ice sheets produces a distinct geometry, or fingerprint, of sea-level change, which must be accounted for to accurately infer peak eustatic sea level from site-specific residual highstands. To explore this issue, we compute fingerprints associated with the collapse of the Greenland Ice Sheet, West Antarctic Ice Sheet, and marine sectors of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet in order to isolate regions that would have been subject to greater-than-eustatic sea-level change for all three cases. These fingerprints are more robust than those associated with modern melting events, when applied to infer eustatic sea level, because: (1) a significant collapse of polar ice sheets reduces the sensitivity of the computed fingerprints to uncertainties in the geometry of the melt regions; and (2) the sea-level signal associated with the collapse will dominate the signal from steric effects. We evaluate these fingerprints at a suite of sites where sea-level records from interglacial marine isotopes stages (MIS) 5e and 11 have been obtained. Using these results, we demonstrate that previously discrepant estimates of peak eustatic sea level during MIS5e based on sea-level markers in Australia and the Seychelles are brought into closer accord.

Holocene Accumulation and Ice Flow near the West Antarctic Ice Sheet Divide Ice Core Site

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Koutnik, Michelle R.; Fudge, T.J.; Conway, Howard; Waddington, Edwin D.; Neumann, Thomas A.; Cuffey, Kurt M.; Buizert, Christo; Taylor, Kendrick C.

2016-01-01

The West Antarctic Ice Sheet Divide Core (WDC) provided a high-resolution climate record from near the Ross-Amundsen Divide in Central West Antarctica. In addition, radar-detected internal layers in the vicinity of the WDC site have been dated directly from the ice core to provide spatial variations in the age structure of the region. Using these two data sets together, we first infer a high-resolution Holocene accumulation-rate history from 9.2 thousand years of the ice-core timescale and then confirm that this climate history is consistent with internal layers upstream of the core site. Even though the WDC was drilled only 24 kilometers from the modern ice divide, advection of ice from upstream must be taken into account. We evaluate histories of accumulation rate by using a flowband model to generate internal layers that we compare to observed layers. Results show that the centennially averaged accumulation rate was over 20 percent lower than modern at 9.2 thousand years before present (B.P.), increased by 40 percent from 9.2 to 2.3 thousand years B.P., and decreased by at least 10 percent over the past 2 thousand years B.P. to the modern values; these Holocene accumulation-rate changes in Central West Antarctica are larger than changes inferred from East Antarctic ice-core records. Despite significant changes in accumulation rate, throughout the Holocene the regional accumulation pattern has likely remained similar to today, and the ice-divide position has likely remained on average within 5 kilometers of its modern position. Continent-scale ice-sheet models used for reconstructions of West Antarctic ice volume should incorporate this accumulation history.

Using gait parameters to detect fatigue and responses to ice slurry during prolonged load carriage.

PubMed

Tay, Cheryl S; Lee, Jason K W; Teo, Ya S; Foo, Phildia Q Z; Tan, Pearl M S; Kong, Pui W

2016-01-01

This study examined (1) if changes in gait characteristics could indicate the exertional heat stress experienced during prolonged load carriage, and (2) if gait characteristics were responsive to a heat mitigation strategy. In an environmental chamber replicating tropical climatic conditions (ambient temperature 32°C, 70% relative humidity), 16 males aged 21.8 (1.2) years performed two trials of a work-rest cycle protocol consisting two bouts of 4-km treadmill walks with 30-kg load at 5.3km/h separated by a 15-min rest period. Ice slurry (ICE) or room temperature water (29°C) as a control (CON) was provided in 200-ml aliquots. The fluids were given 10min before the start, at the 15(th) and 30(th) min of each work cycle, and during each rest period. Spatio-temporal gait characteristics were obtained at the start and end of each work-rest cycle using a floor-based photocell system (OptoGait) and a high-speed video camera at 120Hz. Repeated-measure analysis of variance (trial×time) showed that with time, step width decreased (p=.024) while percent crossover steps increased (p=.008) from the 40(th) min onwards. Reduced stance time variability (-11.1%, p=.029) step width variability (-8.2%, p=.001), and percent crossover step (-18.5%, p=.010) were observed in ICE compared with CON. No differences in step length and most temporal variables were found. In conclusion, changes in frontal plane gait characteristics may indicate exertional heat stress during prolonged load carriage, and some of these changes may be mitigated with ice slurry ingestion. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Assessing the Response of Alaska's Glaciers to Post-Little Ice Age Climate Change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Molnia, B. F.

2001-12-01

A comprehensive survey of the eleven mountain ranges and three island areas in Alaska that presently support glaciers was conducted to determine how glaciers in each area have responded to post-Little Ice Age (LIA) climate change. Today, glaciers cover 5 percent of Alaska, about 75,000 sq. km., range in elevation from 6,000 m to below sea level, and span latitudes from south of 55 degrees N to north of 69 degrees N. During the LIA, Alaskan glaciers expanded significantly, covering 10 percent more area than today. Many different types of data were used to construct baselines and determine glacier change. These include: published descriptions of glaciers (1794 - 2000), historic and modern maps (1794 - 2000), aerial photography (1926 - 2001), ground photography (1884 - 2001), airborne radar (1981 - 1991), satellite radar (1978 - 1998), space photography (1984 - 1994), multi-spectral satellite imagery (1972 - 2001), aerial reconnaissance and field observations by the author (1968 - 2001), and various types of proxy data. Data available varied for each region and glacier. Every mountain range and island group investigated is characterized by significant glacier retreat, thinning, and/or stagnation, especially at lower elevations. At some locations, glaciers have completely disappeared during the twentieth century. In other areas, retreat that started as early as the early eighteenth century, has continued into the twenty-first century. Ironically, in several areas, retreat is resulting in the number of glaciers is actually increasing, but the volume and area of ice is decreasing. The key survey findings are: ALEXANDER ARCHIPELAGO, KODIAK ISLAND, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: every glacier examined showed evidence of thinning and retreat. Some have disappeared since last being mapped in the mid-twentieth century; COAST MOUNTAINS, ST. ELIAS MOUNTAINS, CHUGACH MOUNTAINS, KENAI MOUNTAINS, WRANGELL MOUNTAINS, ALASKA RANGE, AND THE ALEUTIAN RANGE: more than 95 percent of glaciers ending

Simulating Extraterrestrial Ices in the Laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berisford, D. F.; Carey, E. M.; Hand, K. P.; Choukroun, M.

2017-12-01

Several ongoing experiments at JPL attempt to simulate the ice environment for various regimes associated with icy moons. The Europa Penitent Ice Experiment (EPIX) simulates the surface environment of an icy moon, to investigate the physics of ice surface morphology growth. This experiment features half-meter-scale cryogenic ice samples, cryogenic radiative sink environment, vacuum conditions, and diurnal cycling solar simulation. The experiment also includes several smaller fixed-geometry vacuum chambers for ice simulation at Earth-like and intermediate temperature and vacuum conditions for development of surface morphology growth scaling relations. Additionally, an ice cutting facility built on a similar platform provides qualitative data on the mechanical behavior of cryogenic ice with impurities under vacuum, and allows testing of ice cutting/sampling tools relevant for landing spacecraft. A larger cutting facility is under construction at JPL, which will provide more quantitative data and allow full-scale sampling tool tests. Another facility, the JPL Ice Physics Laboratory, features icy analog simulant preparation abilities that range icy solar system objects such as Mars, Ceres and the icy satellites of Saturn and Jupiter. In addition, the Ice Physics Lab has unique facilities for Icy Analog Tidal Simulation and Rheological Studies of Cryogenic Icy Slurries, as well as equipment to perform thermal and mechanical properties testing on icy analog materials and their response to sinusoidal tidal stresses.

Plio-Pleistocene time evolution of the 100-ky cycle in marine paleoclimate records

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Park, Jeffrey; Maasch, Kirk A.

1992-01-01

To constrain theories for the dynamical evolution of global ice mass through the late Neogene, it is important to determine whether major changes in the record were gradual or rapid. Of particular interest is the evolution of the near 100-ky ice age cycle in the middle Pleistocene. We have applied a new technique based on multiple taper spectrum analysis which allows us to model the time evolution of quasi-periodic signals. This technique uses both phase and amplitude information, and enables us to address the question of abrupt versus gradual onset of the 100-ky periodicity in the middle Pleistocene.

LIVVkit: An extensible, python-based, land ice verification and validation toolkit for ice sheet models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kennedy, Joseph H.; Bennett, Andrew R.; Evans, Katherine J.; Price, Stephen; Hoffman, Matthew; Lipscomb, William H.; Fyke, Jeremy; Vargo, Lauren; Boghozian, Adrianna; Norman, Matthew; Worley, Patrick H.

2017-06-01

To address the pressing need to better understand the behavior and complex interaction of ice sheets within the global Earth system, significant development of continental-scale, dynamical ice sheet models is underway. Concurrent to the development of the Community Ice Sheet Model (CISM), the corresponding verification and validation (V&V) process is being coordinated through a new, robust, Python-based extensible software package, the Land Ice Verification and Validation toolkit (LIVVkit). Incorporated into the typical ice sheet model development cycle, it provides robust and automated numerical verification, software verification, performance validation, and physical validation analyses on a variety of platforms, from personal laptops to the largest supercomputers. LIVVkit operates on sets of regression test and reference data sets, and provides comparisons for a suite of community prioritized tests, including configuration and parameter variations, bit-for-bit evaluation, and plots of model variables to indicate where differences occur. LIVVkit also provides an easily extensible framework to incorporate and analyze results of new intercomparison projects, new observation data, and new computing platforms. LIVVkit is designed for quick adaptation to additional ice sheet models via abstraction of model specific code, functions, and configurations into an ice sheet model description bundle outside the main LIVVkit structure. Ultimately, through shareable and accessible analysis output, LIVVkit is intended to help developers build confidence in their models and enhance the credibility of ice sheet models overall.

The coastal oasis: ice age springs on emerged continental shelves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Faure, Hugues; Walter, Robert C.; Grant, Douglas R.

2002-06-01

As ice caps expanded during each of the last five glaciations, sea level fell at least 120 m below current levels, exposing continental shelves worldwide to create vast areas of new land. As a result of this exposure, the ecology, climate, pedology, and geology of global shorelines were dramatically transformed, which in turn altered the carbon cycle and biodynamics of this new landmass. In this paper, we focus on a little-known hydrogeological phenomenon that may have had profound influences on biodiversity, human evolution, and carbon storage during periods of severe climatic stress of the Pleistocene Ice Ages. We propose that freshwater springs appeared on emerged continental shelves because falling sea level not only drew down and steepened the coastal water table gradient, thus increasing the hydrostatic head on inland groundwater aquifers, but also removed up to 120 m of hydrostatic pressure on the shelf, further enhancing groundwater flow. We call this phenomenon the "coastal oasis", a model based on three well-established facts. (1) In all coastal areas of the world, continental aquifers discharge a continuous flow of fresh water to the oceans. (2) Many submarine sedimentary and morphological features, as well as seepages and flow of fresh water, are known on and below the shelves from petroleum explorations, deep-sea drilling programs, and mariners' observations. (3) Hydraulic principles (Darcy's law) predict increased groundwater flow at the coast when sea level drops because the piezometric head increases by the equivalent depth of sea-level lowering. Sea level is presently in a relatively high interglacial position. Direct observation and verification of our model is difficult and must rely on explorations of terrain that are now deeply submerged on continental shelves. For this reason, we draw parallels between our predicted model and simple, well-exposed terrestrial hydrological systems, such as present-day springs that appear on the exposed shores of

What Lies Below a Martian Ice Cap

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

[figure removed for brevity, see original site] Click on image for larger annotated version

This image (top) taken by the Shallow Radar instrument on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter reveals the layers of ice, sand and dust that make up the north polar ice cap on Mars. It is the most detailed look to date at the insides of this ice cap. The colored map below the radar picture shows the topography of the corresponding Martian terrain (red and white represent higher ground, and green and yellow lower).

The radar image reveals four never-before-seen thick layers of ice and dust separated by layers of nearly pure ice. According to scientists, these thick ice-free layers represent approximately one-million-year-long cycles of climate change on Mars caused by variations in the planet's tilted axis and its eccentric orbit around the sun. Adding up the entire stack of ice gives an estimated age for the north polar ice cap of about 4 million years a finding that agrees with previous theoretical estimates. The ice cap is about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) thick.

The radar picture also shows that the boundary between the ice layers and the surface of Mars underneath is relatively flat (bottom white line on the right). This implies that the surface of Mars is not sagging, or bending, under the weight of the ice cap and this, in turn, suggests that the planet's lithosphere, a combination of the crust and the strong parts of the upper mantle, is thicker than previously thought.

A thicker lithosphere on Mars means that temperatures increase more gradually with depth toward the interior. Temperatures warm enough for water to be liquid are therefore deeper than previously thought. Likewise, if liquid water does exist in aquifers below the surface of Mars, and if there are any organisms living in that water, they would have to be located deeper in the planet.

The topography data are from Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter, which was flown on NASA's Mars Global

Dancing on Thinning Ice: Choreography and Science in the Chukchi Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sperling, J.

2016-12-01

In 2014, Jody Sperling was the first-ever choreographer in residence to participate in a polar science mission, thanks to an invitation from Dr. Robert Pickart (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution). This 43-day mission (SUBICE) aboard the USCGC Healy traveled to the Chukchi Sea with Sperling serving as part of an outreach team on climate science communication. Since the mission, Sperling has shared her Arctic experience with more than 4,200 people through dozens of live performances, lectures and workshops, plus press coverage across the US. Her film "Ice Floe," created during SUBICE, won a Creative Climate Award and has been aired on Alaska Public Television reaching thousands more. While Arctic sea ice is vitally important to the global climate system, the public knows little about its function (other than as a habitat for polar bears) or its precipitous decline. Sperling's research during the mission focused on sea ice and had three components: 1) As a contributor to SUBICE's Ice Watch Survey, she learned the descriptive nomenclature for sea ice and its processes of formation to transport its dynamics and aesthetics to the stage. This information served as critical inspiration for the creation of her dance work "Ice Cycle" (2015); 2) Sperling collected media samples of sea ice that were subsequently used in performances of "Ice Cycle" as well as her frequent public lectures; 3) Sperling danced on sea ice at a dozen ice stations. In collaboration with the WHOI outreach team, the SUBICE science party and the Healy crew, she created the dance film short "Ice Floe". Sperling's dance company, Time Lapse Dance, has performed "Ice Cycle" as part of the larger program "Bringing the Arctic Home" at many venues nationally and the work has been mounted on students at Brenau University in Georgia. Wherever she performs, Sperling programs talkbacks, lectures and panels with scientists, artists and climate educators, with the aim of increasing awareness of sea ice, the rapid

Diminishing sea ice in the western Arctic Ocean

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stone, R.S.; Belchansky, G.I.; Drobot, Sheldon; Douglas, David C.; Levinson, D.H.; Waple, A.M.

2004-01-01

Since the advent of satellite passive microwave radiometry (1978), variations in sea ice extent and concentration have been carefully monitored from space. An estimated 7.4% decrease in sea ice extent has occurred in the last 25 yr (Johannessen et al. 2004), with recent record minima (e.g., Maslanik et al. 1999; Serreze et al. 2003) accounting for much of the decline. Comparisons between the time series of Arctic sea ice melt dynamics and snowmelt dates at the NOAA–CMDL Barrow Observatory (BRW) reveal intriguing correlations.Melt-onset dates over sea ice (Drobot and Anderson 2001) were cross correlated with the melt-date time series from BRW, and a prominent region of high correlation between snowmelt onset over sea ice and the BRW record of melt dates was approximately aligned with the climatological center of the Beaufort Sea Anticyclone (BSA). The BSA induces anticyclonic ice motion in the region, effectively forcing the Beaufort gyre. A weak gyre caused by a breakdown of the BSA diminishes transport of multiyear ice into this region (Drobot and Maslanik 2003). Similarly, the annual snow cycle at BRW varies with the position and intensity of the BSA (Stone et al. 2002, their Fig. 6). Thus, variations in the BSA appear to have far-reaching effects on the annual accumulation and subsequent melt of snow over a large region of the western Arctic.A dramatic increase in melt season duration (Belchansky et al. 2004) was also observed within the same region of high correlation between onset of melt over the ice pack and snowmelt at BRW (Fig. 5.7). By inference, this suggests linkages between factors that modulate the annual cycle of snow on land and processes that influence melting of snow and ice in the western Arctic Ocean.

The influence of the hydrologic cycle on the extent of sea ice with climatic implications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dean, Kenneson G.; Stringer, William J.; Searcy, Craig

1993-01-01

Multi-temporal satellite images, field observations, and field measurements were used to investigate the mechanisms by which sea ice melts offshore from the Mackenzie River delta. Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) satellite data recorded in 1986 were analyzed. The satellite data were geometrically corrected and radiometrically calibrated so that albedo and temperature values could be extracted. The investigation revealed that sea ice melted approximately 2 weeks earlier offshore from the Mackenzie River delta than along coasts where river discharge is minimal or non-existent. There is significant intra-delta variability in the timing and patterns of ice melt. An estimation of energy flux indicates that 30 percent more of the visible wavelength energy and 25 percent more of the near-infrared wavelength energy is absorbed by water offshore of the delta compared to coastal areas with minimal river discharge. The analysis also revealed that the removal of sea ice involves the following: over-ice-flooding along the coast offshore from river delta channels; under-ice flow of 'warm' river water; melting and calving of the fast ice; and, the formation of a bight in the pack ice edge. Two stages in the melting of sea ice were identified: (1) an early stage where heat is supplied to overflows largely by solar radiation, and (2) a later stage where heat is supplied by river discharge in addition to solar radiation. A simple thermodynamic model of the thaw process in the fast ice zone was developed and parameterized based on events recorded by the satellite images. The model treats river discharge as the source of sensible heat at the base of the ice cover. The results of a series of sensitivity tests to assess the influence of river discharge on the near shore ice are presented.

Chronological framework for the deglaciation of the Lake Michigan lobe of the Laurentide ice sheet from ice-walled lake deposits

USGS Publications Warehouse

Curry, B.; Petras, J.

2011-01-01

A revised chronological framework for the deglaciation of the Lake Michigan lobe of the south-central Laurentide Ice Sheet is presented based on radiocarbon ages of plant macrofossils archived in the sediments of low-relief ice-walled lakes. We analyze the precision and accuracy of 15 AMS 14C ages of plant macrofossils obtained from a single ice-walled lake deposit. The semi-circular basin is about 0.72km wide and formed of a 4- to 16-m-thick succession of loess and lacustrine sediment inset into till. The assayed material was leaves, buds and stems of Salix herbacea (snowbed willow). The pooled mean of three ages from the basal lag facies was 18 270??50 14C a BP (21 810cal. a BP), an age that approximates the switch from active ice to stagnating conditions. The pooled mean of four ages for the youngest fossil-bearing horizon was 17 770??40 14C a BP (21 180cal. a BP). Material yielding the oldest and youngest ages may be obtained from sediment cores located at any place within the landform. Based on the estimated settling times of overlying barren, rhythmically bedded sand and silt, the lacustrine environment persisted for about 50 more years. At a 67% confidence level, the dated part of the ice-walled lake succession persisted for between 210 and 860cal. a (modal value: 610cal. a). The deglacial age of five moraines or morainal complexes formed by the fluctuating margin of the Lake Michigan lobe have been assessed using this method. There is no overlap of time intervals documenting when ice-walled lakes persisted on these landforms. The rapid readvances of the lobe during deglaciation after the last glacial maximum probably occurred at some point between the periods of ice-walled lake sedimentation. ?? 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Samarium-Neodymium model age and Geochemical (Sr-Nd) signature of a bedrock inclusion from lake Vostok accretion ice.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Delmonte, B.; Petit, J. R.; Michard, A.; Basile-Doelsch, I.; Lipenkov, V.

2003-04-01

We investigated properties of the basal ice from Vostok ice core as well as the sediment inclusions within the accreted ice. The Vostok ice core preserves climatic information for the last 420 kyrs down to 3310m depth, but below this depth the horizontal layers of the climatic record are disrupted by the glacier dynamics. From 3450 m to 3538 m depth thin bedrock particles, as glacial flour, are entrapped. Glacial flour is released in the northern area lake, where glacier mostly melts and contributes to sediment accumulation. In the southern area, close to Vostok station, the lake water freezes and the upstream glacial flour does not contribute to sedimentation. The accreted ice contains visible sediment inclusions down to 3608 m (accretion ice 1), while below this depth and likely down to the water interface (˜3750 m), the ice is clear (accretion ice 2). The fine inclusions (1-2mm in diameter) from Accretion Ice 1 mostly consist of fine clays and quartz aggregates and we suggest they are entrained into ice as the glacier floats over shallow depth bay then it grounds against a relief rise. Afterward the glacier freely floats over the deep lake before reaching Vostok, and accreted ice 2 is clean. Sm-Nd dating of one of two inclusions at 3570 m depth gives 1.88 (+/-0.13)Ga (DM model age), corresponding to 1.47 Ga (TCHUR), suggesting a Precambrian origin. Also the isotopic signature of such inclusion (87Sr/86Sr= 0.8232 and eNd= -16) and that of a second one (87Sr/86Sr= 0.7999 and eNd= -15) are coherent with the nature of an old continental shield. Sediments that may initially accumulate in the shallow bay prior the Antarctic glaciation, should have been eroded and exported out of the lake by the glacier movement, this assuming processes for ice accretion and for sediment entrapping operate since a long time. As the glacial flour from upstream does not contribute to sedimentation, sediments need to be renewed at the surface of the bedrock rising question about the way

Evidence for smaller extents of the northwestern Greenland Ice Sheet and North Ice Cap during the Holocene

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kelly, M. A.; Osterberg, E. C.; Axford, Y.; Bigl, M.; Birkel, S. D.; Corbett, L. B.; Roy, E. P.; Thompson, J. T.; Whitecloud, S.

2013-12-01

The Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) and local glaciers on Greenland are responding dynamically to warming temperatures with widespread retreat. GRACE satellite data (e.g., Kahn et al., 2010) and the Petermann Glacier calving events document the recent expansion of ice loss into northwestern Greenland. To improve the ability to estimate future ice loss in a warming climate, we are developing records of the response of the northwestern Greenlandic cryosphere to Holocene climatic conditions, with a focus on past warm periods. Our ongoing research includes analyses of glacial geology, sub-fossil vegetation, lake sediment cores, chironomid assemblages and ice cores combined with glaciological modeling. To constrain past ice extents that were as small as, or smaller than, at present, we recovered sub-fossil vegetation exposed at the receding margins of the GrIS and North Ice Cap (NIC) in the Nunatarssuaq region (~76.7°N, 67.4°W) and of the GrIS near Thule (~76.5°N, 68.7°W). We present vegetation types and radiocarbon ages of 30 plant samples collected in August 2012. In the Nunatarssuaq region, five ages of in situ (rooted) vegetation including Polytrichum moss, Saxifraga nathorstii and grasses located <5 m outboard of the GrIS margin are ~120-200 cal yr BP (range of medians of the 2-sigma calibrated age ranges). Nine ages of in situ Polytrichum, Saxifraga oppositafolia and grasses from ~1-5 m inboard of the NIC margin (excavated from beneath ice) range from ~50 to 310 cal yr BP. The growth of these plants occurred when the GrIS and NIC were at least as small as at present and their ages suggest that ice advances occurred in the last 50-120 yrs. In addition to the in situ samples, we collected plants from well-preserved ground material exposed along shear planes in the GrIS margins. In Nunatarssuaq, two Polytrichum mosses rooted in ground material and exposed along a shear plane in the GrIS margin date to 4680 and 4730 cal yr BP. Near Thule, three ages of Salix arctica

Arctic sea-ice melting: Effects on hydroclimatic variability and on UV-induced carbon cycling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sulzberger, Barbara

2016-04-01

change on biogeochemical cycling: interactions and feedbacks, Photochemical & Photobiological Sciences, 14(1), 127-148. Francis, J. A., S. J. Vavrus (2012), Evidence linking Arctic amplification to extreme weather in mid-latitudes, Geophysical Research Letters, 39, doi: 10.1029/2012GL051000. Haaland, S., D. Hongve, H. Laudon, G. Riise, R. D. Vogt (2010), Quantifying the drivers of the increasing colored organic matter in boreal surface waters, Environmental Science & Technology, 44(8), 2975-2980. IPCC Climate Change 2013 - The Physical Science Bases (2013). Schubert, S., H. Wang, M. Suarez (2011), Warm season subseasonal variability and climate extremes in the Northern Hemisphere: The role of stationary Rossby waves, Journal of Climate, 24(18), 4773-4792. Screen, J. A. (2013), Influence of Arctic sea ice on European summer precipitation, Environmental Research Letters, 8(4), doi: 10.1088/1748-9326/8/4/044015. Sulzberger, B., E. Durisch-Kaiser (2009), Chemical characterization of dissolved organic matter (DOM): A prerequisite for understanding UV-induced changes of DOM absorption properties and bioavailability, Aquatic Sciences, 71(2), 104-126.

Balance of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

For several decades, measurements of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet showed it to be retreating rapidly. But new data derived from satellite-borne radar sensors show the ice sheet to be growing. Changing Antarctic ice sheets remains an area of high scientific interest, particularly in light of recent global warming concerns. These new findings are significant because scientists estimate that sea level would rise 5-6 meters (16-20 feet) if the ice sheet collapsed into the sea. Do these new measurements signal the end of the ice sheet's 10,000-year retreat? Or, are these new satellite data simply much more accurate than the sparse ice core and surface measurements that produced the previous estimates? Another possibility is that the ice accumulation may simply indicate that the ice sheet naturally expands and retreats in regular cycles. Cryologists will grapple with these questions, and many others, as they examine the new data. The image above depicts the region of West Antarctica where scientists measured ice speed. The fast-moving central ice streams are shown in red. Slower tributaries feeding the ice streams are shown in blue. Green areas depict slow-moving, stable areas. Thick black lines depict the areas that collect snowfall to feed their respective ice streams. Reference: Ian Joughin and Slawek Tulaczyk Science Jan 18 2002: 476-480. Image courtesy RADARSAT Antarctic Mapping Project

One hundred years of Arctic ice cover variations as simulated by a one-dimensional, ice-ocean model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hakkinen, S.; Mellor, G. L.

1990-09-01

A one-dimensional ice-ocean model consisting of a second moment, turbulent closure, mixed layer model and a three-layer snow-ice model has been applied to the simulation of Arctic ice mass and mixed layer properties. The results for the climatological seasonal cycle are discussed first and include the salt and heat balance in the upper ocean. The coupled model is then applied to the period 1880-1985, using the surface air temperature fluctuations from Hansen et al. (1983) and from Wigley et al. (1981). The analysis of the simulated large variations of the Arctic ice mass during this period (with similar changes in the mixed layer salinity) shows that the variability in the summer melt determines to a high degree the variability in the average ice thickness. The annual oceanic heat flux from the deep ocean and the maximum freezing rate and associated nearly constant minimum surface salinity flux did not vary significantly interannually. This also implies that the oceanic influence on the Arctic ice mass is minimal for the range of atmospheric variability tested.

CO2 cycle

USGS Publications Warehouse

Titus, Timothy N.; Byrne, Shane; Colaprete, Anthony; Forget, Francois; Michaels, Timothy I.; Prettyman, Thomas H.

2017-01-01

This chapter discusses the use of models, observations, and laboratory experiments to understand the cycling of CO2 between the atmosphere and seasonal Martian polar caps. This cycle is primarily controlled by the polar heat budget, and thus the emphasis here is on its components, including solar and infrared radiation, the effect of clouds (water- and CO2-ice), atmospheric transport, and subsurface heat conduction. There is a discussion about cap properties including growth and regression rates, albedos and emissivities, grain sizes and dust and/or water-ice contamination, and curious features like cold gas jets and araneiform (spider-shaped) terrain. The nature of the residual south polar cap is discussed as well as its long-term stability and ability to buffer atmospheric pressures. There is also a discussion of the consequences of the CO2 cycle as revealed by the non-condensable gas enrichment observed by Odyssey and modeled by various groups.

Atmospheric aging of dust ice nucleating particles - a combined laboratory and field approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boose, Yvonne; Rodríguez, Sergio; García, M. Isabel; Linke, Claudia; Schnaiter, Martin; Zipori, Assaf; Crawford, Ian; Lohmann, Ulrike; Kanji, Zamin A.; Sierau, Berko

2016-04-01

than the rather fresh dust at Izaña. This suggests that atmospheric aging and processing decreases the ice nucleation efficiency of Saharan dust during advection to Central Europe.

Using Ice Predictions to Guide Submarines

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-01-01

the Arctic Cap Nowcast/ Forecast System (ACNFS) in September 2013. The ACNFS consists of a coupled ice -ocean model that assimilates available real...of the ice cover. The age of the sea ice serves as an indicator of its physical properties including surface roughness, melt pond coverage, and...the Arctic Cap Nowcast/Forecast System (ACNFS). Ice thickness is in meters for 11 September 2015. Thickness ranges from zero to five meters as shown

Influence of Sea Ice Crack Formation on the Spatial Distribution of Nutrients and Microalgae in Flooded Antarctic Multiyear Ice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nomura, Daiki; Aoki, Shigeru; Simizu, Daisuke; Iida, Takahiro

2018-02-01

Cracks are common and natural features of sea ice formed in the polar oceans. In this study, a sea ice crack in flooded, multiyear, land-fast Antarctic sea ice was examined to assess its influence on biological productivity and the transport of nutrients and microalgae into the upper layers of neighboring sea ice. The water inside the crack and the surrounding host ice were characterized by a strong discoloration (brown color), an indicator of a massive algal bloom. Salinity and oxygen isotopic ratio measurements indicated that 64-84% of the crack water consisted of snow meltwater supplied during the melt season. Measurements of nutrient and chlorophyll a concentrations within the slush layer pool (the flooded layer at the snow-ice interface) revealed the intrusion of water from the crack, likely forced by mixing with underlying seawater during the tidal cycle. Our results suggest that sea ice crack formation provides conditions favorable for algal blooms by directly exposing the crack water to sunlight and supplying nutrients from the under-ice water. Subsequently, constituents of the crack water modified by biological activity were transported into the upper layer of the flooded sea ice. They were then preserved in the multiyear ice column formed by upward growth of sea ice caused by snow ice formation in areas of significant snow accumulation.

Calcium carbonate as ikaite crystals in Antarctic sea ice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dieckmann, Gerhard S.; Nehrke, Gernot; Papadimitriou, Stathys; Göttlicher, Jörg; Steininger, Ralph; Kennedy, Hilary; Wolf-Gladrow, Dieter; Thomas, David N.

2008-04-01

We report on the discovery of the mineral ikaite (CaCO3.6H2O) in sea-ice from the Southern Ocean. The precipitation of CaCO3 during the freezing of seawater has previously been predicted from thermodynamic modelling, indirect measurements, and has been documented in artificial sea ice during laboratory experiments but has not been reported for natural sea-ice. It is assumed that CaCO3 formation in sea ice may be important for a sea ice-driven carbon pump in ice-covered oceanic waters. Without direct evidence of CaCO3 precipitation in sea ice, its role in this and other processes has remained speculative. The discovery of CaCO3.6H2O crystals in natural sea ice provides the necessary evidence for the evaluation of previous assumptions and lays the foundation for further studies to help elucidate the role of ikaite in the carbon cycle of the seasonally sea ice-covered regions

Medieval Warm Period and Little Ice Age Signatures in the Distribution of Modern Ocean Temperatures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gebbie, G.; Huybers, P. J.

2017-12-01

It is well established both that global temperatures have varied overthe last millenium and that the interior ocean reflects surfaceproperties inherited over these timescales. Signatures of theMedieval Warm Period and Little Ice Age are thus to be expected in themodern ocean state, though the magnitude of these effects and whetherthey are detectable is unclear. Analysis of changes in temperatureacross those obtained in the 1870s as part of the theH.M.S. Challenger expedition, the 1990s World Ocean CirculationExperiment, and recent Argo observations shows a consistent pattern:the upper ocean and Atlantic have warmed, but the oldest waters inthe deep Pacific appear to have cooled. The implications of pressureeffects on the H.M.S. Challenger thermometers and uncertainties indepth of observations are non-negligible but do not appear tofundamentally alter this pattern. Inversion of the modern hydrographyusing ocean transport estimates derived from passive tracer andradiocarbon observations indicates that deep Pacific cooling could bea vestige of the Medieval Warm Period, and that warming elsewhere reflects thecombined effects of emergence from the Little Ice Age and modernanthropogenic warming. Implications for longterm variations in oceanheat uptake and separating natural and anthropogenic contributions to themodern energy imbalance are discussed.

The Seasonal Evolution of Sea Ice Floe Size Distribution

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-09-30

the summer breakup of the ice cover . Large-scale, lower resolution imagery from MODIS and other platforms will also be analyzed to determine changes...control number. 1. REPORT DATE 30 SEP 2013 2. REPORT TYPE 3. DATES COVERED 00-00-2013 to 00-00-2013 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE The Seasonal Evolution...appearance and morphology of the Arctic sea ice cover over and annual cycle. These photos were taken over the pack ice near SHEBA in May (left) and

High-resolution chronology for deglaciation of the Patagonian Ice Sheet at Lago Buenos Aires (46.5°S) revealed through varve chronology and Bayesian age modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bendle, Jacob M.; Palmer, Adrian P.; Thorndycraft, Varyl R.; Matthews, Ian P.

2017-12-01

Glaciolacustrine varves offer the potential to construct continuous, annually-resolved chronologies for ice-sheet deglaciation, and improved understanding of glacier retreat dynamics. This paper investigates laminated glaciolacustrine sediments deposited around the waning margins of the Patagonian Ice Sheet, following the local Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Detailed macro- and microfacies analyses confirm an annual (varve) structure within these sediments. The correlation of annual layers (varves) across five sites in eastern Lago Buenos Aires yields a 994 ± 36 varve-year (vyr) chronology and thickness record. The floating chronology has been anchored to the calendar-year timescale through identification of the Ho tephra (17,378 ± 118 cal a BP) in the varve sequences. Using a Bayesian age model to integrate the new varve chronology with published moraine ages, the onset of deglaciation at 46.5°S is dated to 18,086 ± 214 cal a BP. New age estimates for deglacial events are combined with high-resolution analysis of varve thickness trends, and new lithostratigraphic data on ice-margin position(s), to reconstruct ice-margin retreat rates for the earliest ca. 1000 years of ice-sheet demise. Glacier retreat rates were moderate (5.3-10.3 m yr-1) until 17,322 ± 115 cal a BP, but subsequently accelerated (15.4-18.0 m yr-1). Sustained influxes of ice-rafted debris (IRD) after 17,145 ± 122 cal a BP suggest retreat rates were enhanced by calving after ice contracted into deeper lake waters. Ice persisted in eastern Lago Buenos Aires until at least 16,934 ± 116 cal a BP, after which the glacier started to retreat towards the Patagonian mountains.

The Medieval Climate Anomaly and Little Ice Age in Chesapeake Bay and the North Atlantic Ocean

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cronin, T. M.; Hayo, K.; Thunell, R.C.; Dwyer, G.S.; Saenger, C.; Willard, D.A.

2010-01-01

A new 2400-year paleoclimate reconstruction from Chesapeake Bay (CB) (eastern US) was compared to other paleoclimate records in the North Atlantic region to evaluate climate variability during the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA) and Little Ice Age (LIA). Using Mg/Ca ratios from ostracodes and oxygen isotopes from benthic foraminifera as proxies for temperature and precipitation-driven estuarine hydrography, results show that warmest temperatures in CB reached 16-17. ??C between 600 and 950. CE (Common Era), centuries before the classic European Medieval Warm Period (950-1100. CE) and peak warming in the Nordic Seas (1000-1400. CE). A series of centennial warm/cool cycles began about 1000. CE with temperature minima of ~. 8 to 9. ??C about 1150, 1350, and 1650-1800. CE, and intervening warm periods (14-15. ??C) centered at 1200, 1400, 1500 and 1600. CE. Precipitation variability in the eastern US included multiple dry intervals from 600 to 1200. CE, which contrasts with wet medieval conditions in the Caribbean. The eastern US experienced a wet LIA between 1650 and 1800. CE when the Caribbean was relatively dry. Comparison of the CB record with other records shows that the MCA and LIA were characterized by regionally asynchronous warming and complex spatial patterns of precipitation, possibly related to ocean-atmosphere processes. ?? 2010.

There goes the sea ice: following Arctic sea ice parcels and their properties.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tschudi, M. A.; Tooth, M.; Meier, W.; Stewart, S.

2017-12-01

Arctic sea ice distribution has changed considerably over the last couple of decades. Sea ice extent record minimums have been observed in recent years, the distribution of ice age now heavily favors younger ice, and sea ice is likely thinning. This new state of the Arctic sea ice cover has several impacts, including effects on marine life, feedback on the warming of the ocean and atmosphere, and on the future evolution of the ice pack. The shift in the state of the ice cover, from a pack dominated by older ice, to the current state of a pack with mostly young ice, impacts specific properties of the ice pack, and consequently the pack's response to the changing Arctic climate. For example, younger ice typically contains more numerous melt ponds during the melt season, resulting in a lower albedo. First-year ice is typically thinner and more fragile than multi-year ice, making it more susceptible to dynamic and thermodynamic forcing. To investigate the response of the ice pack to climate forcing during summertime melt, we have developed a database that tracks individual Arctic sea ice parcels along with associated properties as these parcels advect during the summer. Our database tracks parcels in the Beaufort Sea, from 1985 - present, along with variables such as ice surface temperature, albedo, ice concentration, and convergence. We are using this database to deduce how these thousands of tracked parcels fare during summer melt, i.e. what fraction of the parcels advect through the Beaufort, and what fraction melts out? The tracked variables describe the thermodynamic and dynamic forcing on these parcels during their journey. This database will also be made available to all interested investigators, after it is published in the near future. The attached image shows the ice surface temperature of all parcels (right) that advected through the Beaufort Sea region (left) in 2014.

Correcting anthropogenic ocean heat uptake estimates for the Little Ice Age

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gebbie, Geoffrey

2017-04-01

Estimates of anthropogenic ocean heat uptake typically assume that the ocean was in equilibrium during the pre-industrial era. Recent reconstructions of the Common Era, however, show a multi-century surface cooling trend before the Industrial Revolution. Using a time-evolving state estimation method, we find that the 1750 C.E. ocean must have been out of equilibrium in order to fit the H.M.S. Challenger, WOCE, and Argo hydrographic data. When the disequilibrated ocean conditions are taken into account, the inferred ocean heat uptake from 1750-2014 C.E. is revised due to the deep ocean memory of Little Ice Age surface forcing. These effects of ocean disequilibrium should also be considered when interpreting climate sensitivity estimates.

Krebs cycle intermediates regulate DNA and histone methylation: epigenetic impact on the aging process.

PubMed

Salminen, Antero; Kauppinen, Anu; Hiltunen, Mikko; Kaarniranta, Kai

2014-07-01

Many aging theories have proposed that mitochondria and energy metabolism have a major role in the aging process. There are recent studies indicating that Krebs cycle intermediates can shape the epigenetic landscape of chromatin by regulating DNA and histone methylation. A growing evidence indicates that epigenetics plays an important role in the regulation of healthspan but also is involved in the aging process. 2-Oxoglutarate (α-ketoglutarate) is a key metabolite in the Krebs cycle but it is also an obligatory substrate for 2-oxoglutarate-dependent dioxygenases (2-OGDO). The 2-OGDO enzyme family includes the major enzymes of DNA and histone demethylation, i.e. Ten-Eleven Translocation (TETs) and Jumonji C domain containing (JmjC) demethylases. In addition, 2-OGDO members can regulate collagen synthesis and hypoxic responses in a non-epigenetical manner. Interestingly, succinate and fumarate, also Krebs cycle intermediates, are potent inhibitors of 2-OGDO enzymes, i.e. the balance of Krebs cycle reactions can affect the level of DNA and histone methylation and thus control gene expression. We will review the epigenetic mechanisms through which Krebs cycle intermediates control the DNA and histone methylation. We propose that age-related disturbances in the Krebs cycle function induce stochastic epigenetic changes in chromatin structures which in turn promote the aging process. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Limited Artificial and Natural Icing Tests Production UH-60A Helicopter (Re-Evaluation).

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-08-01

parameters , and definitions of icing types and severities are presented in appendix D. 2 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION GENERAL 9. Artificial and natural icing flight...anti-ice off, the system may be reactivated by cycling the appropriate windshield anti-ice switch. The windshield anti-ice system is fully operational...is off, then the fault monitor illuminates the respective PWR light on its front panel. The light informs the crew that further action is requied to

LIVVkit: An extensible, python-based, land ice verification and validation toolkit for ice sheet models

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kennedy, Joseph H.; Bennett, Andrew R.; Evans, Katherine J.

To address the pressing need to better understand the behavior and complex interaction of ice sheets within the global Earth system, significant development of continental-scale, dynamical ice sheet models is underway. Concurrent to the development of the Community Ice Sheet Model (CISM), the corresponding verification and validation (V&V) process is being coordinated through a new, robust, Python-based extensible software package, the Land Ice Verification and Validation toolkit (LIVVkit). Incorporated into the typical ice sheet model development cycle, it provides robust and automated numerical verification, software verification, performance validation, and physical validation analyses on a variety of platforms, from personal laptopsmore » to the largest supercomputers. LIVVkit operates on sets of regression test and reference data sets, and provides comparisons for a suite of community prioritized tests, including configuration and parameter variations, bit-for-bit evaluation, and plots of model variables to indicate where differences occur. LIVVkit also provides an easily extensible framework to incorporate and analyze results of new intercomparison projects, new observation data, and new computing platforms. LIVVkit is designed for quick adaptation to additional ice sheet models via abstraction of model specific code, functions, and configurations into an ice sheet model description bundle outside the main LIVVkit structure. Furthermore, through shareable and accessible analysis output, LIVVkit is intended to help developers build confidence in their models and enhance the credibility of ice sheet models overall.« less

LIVVkit: An extensible, python-based, land ice verification and validation toolkit for ice sheet models

DOE PAGES

Kennedy, Joseph H.; Bennett, Andrew R.; Evans, Katherine J.; ...

2017-03-23

To address the pressing need to better understand the behavior and complex interaction of ice sheets within the global Earth system, significant development of continental-scale, dynamical ice sheet models is underway. Concurrent to the development of the Community Ice Sheet Model (CISM), the corresponding verification and validation (V&V) process is being coordinated through a new, robust, Python-based extensible software package, the Land Ice Verification and Validation toolkit (LIVVkit). Incorporated into the typical ice sheet model development cycle, it provides robust and automated numerical verification, software verification, performance validation, and physical validation analyses on a variety of platforms, from personal laptopsmore » to the largest supercomputers. LIVVkit operates on sets of regression test and reference data sets, and provides comparisons for a suite of community prioritized tests, including configuration and parameter variations, bit-for-bit evaluation, and plots of model variables to indicate where differences occur. LIVVkit also provides an easily extensible framework to incorporate and analyze results of new intercomparison projects, new observation data, and new computing platforms. LIVVkit is designed for quick adaptation to additional ice sheet models via abstraction of model specific code, functions, and configurations into an ice sheet model description bundle outside the main LIVVkit structure. Furthermore, through shareable and accessible analysis output, LIVVkit is intended to help developers build confidence in their models and enhance the credibility of ice sheet models overall.« less

Towards multi-decadal to multi-millennial ice core records from coastal west Greenland ice caps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Das, Sarah B.; Osman, Matthew B.; Trusel, Luke D.; McConnell, Joseph R.; Smith, Ben E.; Evans, Matthew J.; Frey, Karen E.; Arienzo, Monica; Chellman, Nathan

2017-04-01

The Arctic region, and Greenland in particular, is undergoing dramatic change as characterized by atmospheric warming, decreasing sea ice, shifting ocean circulation patterns, and rapid ice sheet mass loss, but longer records are needed to put these changes into context. Ice core records from the Greenland ice sheet have yielded invaluable insight into past climate change both regionally and globally, and provided important constraints on past surface mass balance more directly, but these ice cores are most often from the interior ice sheet accumulation zone, at high altitude and hundreds of kilometers from the coast. Coastal ice caps, situated around the margins of Greenland, have the potential to provide novel high-resolution records of local and regional maritime climate and sea surface conditions, as well as contemporaneous glaciological changes (such as accumulation and surface melt history). But obtaining these records is extremely challenging. Most of these ice caps are unexplored, and thus their thickness, age, stratigraphy, and utility as sites of new and unique paleoclimate records is largely unknown. Access is severely limited due to their high altitude, steep relief, small surface area, and inclement weather. Furthermore, their relatively low elevation and marine moderated climate can contribute to significant surface melting and degradation of the ice stratigraphy. We recently targeted areas near the Disko Bay region of central west Greenland where maritime ice caps are prevalent but unsampled, as potential sites for new multi-decadal to multi-millennial ice core records. In 2014 & 2015 we identified two promising ice caps, one on Disko Island (1250 m. asl) and one on Nuussuaq Peninsula (1980 m. asl) based on airborne and ground-based geophysical observations and physical and glaciochemical stratigraphy from shallow firn cores. In spring 2015 we collected ice cores at both sites using the Badger-Eclipse electromechanical drill, transported by a medley

A method to precisely measure Ar isotopes and Xe/Kr ratios in air trapped in ice cores for simultaneous ice core dating and mean ocean temperature reconstruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, Y.; Ng, J.; Higgins, J. A.; Kurbatov, A.; Clifford, H.; Spaulding, N. E.; Mayewski, P. A.; Brook, E.; Bender, M. L.; Severinghaus, J. P.

2017-12-01

Antarctic efforts are underway to find and retrieve ice cores older than 800 thousand years (kyr) by both shallow drilling in "blue ice" areas and classic deep ice coring. Ice stratigraphy at "blue ice" sites is typically disordered, and the high cost of deep drilling mandates rapid reconnaissance drilling (e.g. RAID) with very small sample size. Both approaches therefore require methods of absolute dating on a single piece of ice without stratigraphic context. Here we present a dating method modified from Bender et al. (2008; PNAS) to precisely measure the isotopic composition of argon (36Ar, 38Ar, and 40Ar) in air bubbles trapped in the ice, which changes over time in a known way. Our method has an analytical uncertainty of 110 kyr (1σ) or 10% of the age of the sample, whichever is greater. We measured Ar isotopes from the Allan Hills blue ice areas, East Antarctica, where 1 Ma ice was previously found by Higgins et al. (2015; PNAS). Results show ice as old as 2.7±0.3 million years, but the ice column is stratigraphically disturbed. Hence Allan Hills ice core records should be viewed as a series of "climate snapshots" rather than a continuum. Xenon-to-krypton (Xe/Kr) ratios are also measured in the same aliquot of extracted gas to reconstruct mean ocean temperature (Shackleton et al., 2016; Fall AGU). Preliminary mean ocean temperature in ice older than 1 Ma ranges from -0.3 to -1.2 deg. colder than present with an uncertainty of 0.24 deg., which agrees well with other Pleistocene ocean temperature records (e.g. Rohling et al., 2014; Nature and Elderfield et al., 2012; Science). The observed range is 40% of the glacial-interglacial variability in the 100-kyr climate cycles ( 2 deg.), close to the 50% reduction in the glacial-interglacial δ18O amplitude across the Mid-Pleistocene Transition. Finally, Xe/Kr ratios are found to correlate positively with δD of the ice, implying a coupling between the global ocean temperature and Antarctic temperature throughout

Capabilities and performance of Elmer/Ice, a new-generation ice sheet model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gagliardini, O.; Zwinger, T.; Gillet-Chaulet, F.; Durand, G.; Favier, L.; de Fleurian, B.; Greve, R.; Malinen, M.; Martín, C.; Råback, P.; Ruokolainen, J.; Sacchettini, M.; Schäfer, M.; Seddik, H.; Thies, J.

2013-08-01

The Fourth IPCC Assessment Report concluded that ice sheet flow models, in their current state, were unable to provide accurate forecast for the increase of polar ice sheet discharge and the associated contribution to sea level rise. Since then, the glaciological community has undertaken a huge effort to develop and improve a new generation of ice flow models, and as a result a significant number of new ice sheet models have emerged. Among them is the parallel finite-element model Elmer/Ice, based on the open-source multi-physics code Elmer. It was one of the first full-Stokes models used to make projections for the evolution of the whole Greenland ice sheet for the coming two centuries. Originally developed to solve local ice flow problems of high mechanical and physical complexity, Elmer/Ice has today reached the maturity to solve larger-scale problems, earning the status of an ice sheet model. Here, we summarise almost 10 yr of development performed by different groups. Elmer/Ice solves the full-Stokes equations, for isotropic but also anisotropic ice rheology, resolves the grounding line dynamics as a contact problem, and contains various basal friction laws. Derived fields, like the age of the ice, the strain rate or stress, can also be computed. Elmer/Ice includes two recently proposed inverse methods to infer badly known parameters. Elmer is a highly parallelised code thanks to recent developments and the implementation of a block preconditioned solver for the Stokes system. In this paper, all these components are presented in detail, as well as the numerical performance of the Stokes solver and developments planned for the future.

Comprehensive Examination of Bottom Ash, Soil Dust, and Direct Emissions and Aging of Laboratory Biomass Burning as Potential Sources of Ice Nucleating Particles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Polen, M.; Jahl, L.; Jahn, L.; Somers, J.; Sullivan, R. C.

2017-12-01

Recent laboratory and field studies have found that biomass burning can produce ice nucleating particles (INP) with varying efficiencies depending on fuel and burn conditions. Few studies have examined the ice nucleating potential of bottom ash, which has the potential to be lofted during intense burning events. To date, no publications have examined the impact of atmospheric aging or lofted soil particles on INP emitted from biomass burning. This study investigated each of these aspects through laboratory biomass fuel combustion studies. We burned a number of grasses from different locations, and collected filter samples of fresh and photochemically aged biomass burning aerosol, as well as bottom ash collected after the burn. Some burns included soil that the grasses grew in to test for the importance of soil dust to INP emissions lofting during intense fires. The composition and mixing state of the aerosol was determined using a suite of online and offline single-particle techniques. Our findings suggest that bottom ash is a relatively weak INP, but all samples froze consistently at -20 °C < T < -25 °C. We also found that oxidation of the biomass burning aerosol typically enhances ice nucleating activity over fresh, unaged particles, increasing the ice active site surface density by up to a factor of 3 at T = -25 °C. Lastly, the presence of soil dust can greatly enhance INP concentrations for biomass burning events with an increase in the freezing temperature spectrum by > 3 °C. Detailed analysis of these samples aims to provide a clearer understanding of what components of biomass burning increase the ambient concentrations of ice nucleation active particles, and how their ice nucleation properties evolve during atmospheric aging.

Carbon and hydrogen isotopic systematics of dissolved methane in small seasonally ice-covered lakes near the margin of the Greenland ice sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cadieux, S. B.; White, J. R.; Pratt, L. M.; Peng, Y.; Young, S. A.

2013-12-01

Northern lakes contribute from 6-16% of annual methane inputs to Earth's atmosphere, yet little is known about the seasonal biogeochemistry of CH4 cycling, particularly for lakes in the Arctic. Studies during ice-free conditions have been conducted in Alaskan, Swedish and Siberian lakes. However, there is little information on CH4 cycling under ice-covered conditions, and few stable isotopic measurements, which can help elucidate production and consumption pathways. In order to better understand methane dynamics of ice-covered Arctic lakes, 4 small lakes (surface area <1 km2) within a narrow valley extending from the Russells Glacier to Søndre Strømfjord in Southwestern Greenland were examined during summer stratification and winter ice-cover. Lakes in the study area are ice-covered from mid-September to mid-June. In both seasons, variations in the concentrations and isotopic composition of methane with depth were related to redox fluctuations. During late winter under~2 m of ice, the entire water column was anoxic with wide variation in methane concentrationsand isotopic composition from lake to lake. In three of the lakes, CH4 concentrations and δ13C were relatively stable over the depth of the water column, averaging from 120 to 480μM, with δ13CH4 values from -56‰ to -66‰, respectively. Methane concentrations in the other lake increased with depth from <1 μM below the ice to 800 μM at the sediment/water interface, while δ13C decreased by 30‰ from -30‰ to -70‰ over this depth. In all the lakes, δ13C of sediment porewater was lighter than the overlying water by at least 10‰. The δD-CH4 in the water column ranged from -370‰ to -50‰, exhibiting covariance with δ13C consistent with significant methanotrophic activity. In the sediment, δD-CH4 values ranged from -330‰ to -275‰, and were inversely correlated with δ13C. We will present detailed information on redox dynamics as a controlling factor in methane cycling, and explore the

Allan Hills Pleistocene Ice Project (PIP)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kurbatov, A.; Brook, E.; Campbell, S. W.; Conway, H.; Dunbar, N. W.; Higgins, J. A.; Iverson, N. A.; Kehrl, L. M.; McIntosh, W. C.; Spaulding, N. E.; Yan, Y.; Mayewski, P. A.

2016-12-01

A major international effort to identify at least 1.5 Ma old ice for paleoclimate reconstructions has successfully resulted in the selection of several potential drill sites in East Antarctica. At this point it is indisputable that the Antarctic ice sheet captures a continuous envinronmental record of the Earth that spans the Mid Pleistocene Transition (MPT). In addition to traditional ice coring approaches, the oldest ice can also be recovered in Antarctic Blue Ice Areas (BIA). We have already successfully demonstrated that the Allan Hills (AH) BIA captures a regional climate signal and robust record of 1Ma atmosphere that can be studied with a relatively uncomplicated logistical imprint and essentially unlimited sampling volume. The attractiveness of unlimited sampling of known age ice is the basis for the "ice park" concept proposed earlier by our research team. The idea is that, once the age of ice exposed along the flow line at the surface of BIA is mapped, it could be sampled for numerous research projects as needed. Here we propose an intermediate ( 1,150 m deep) ice core drill site, located only 240 km away from McMurdo base that will help to develop a, continuous, high quality regional paleoclimate record that is at least 1Ma old. We will introduce and discuss the glaciological settings, paleoclimate signals and possible limitations and advantages of the 1 Ma AH BIA regional paleoclimate record. The research was funded by NSF Division of Polar Programs.

The Seasonal Evolution of Sea Ice Floe Size Distribution

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-09-30

summer breakup of the ice cover . Large-scale, lower resolution imagery from MODIS and other platforms will also be analyzed to determine changes in floe...number. 1. REPORT DATE 30 SEP 2014 2. REPORT TYPE 3. DATES COVERED 00-00-2014 to 00-00-2014 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE The Seasonal Evolution of Sea...morphology of the Arctic sea ice cover over and annual cycle. These photos were taken over the pack ice near SHEBA in May (left) and August (right

Modulation of the Seasonal Cycle of Antarctic Sea Ice Extent Related to the Southern Annular Mode

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Doddridge, Edward W.; Marshall, John

2017-10-01

Through analysis of remotely sensed sea surface temperature (SST) and sea ice concentration data, we investigate the impact of winds related to the Southern Annular Mode (SAM) on sea ice extent around Antarctica. We show that positive SAM anomalies in the austral summer are associated with anomalously cold SSTs that persist and lead to anomalous ice growth in the following autumn, while negative SAM anomalies precede warm SSTs and a reduction in sea ice extent during autumn. The largest effect occurs in April, when a unit change in the detrended summertime SAM is followed by a 1.8±0.6 ×105 km2 change in detrended sea ice extent. We find no evidence that sea ice extent anomalies related to the summertime SAM affect the wintertime sea ice extent maximum. Our analysis shows that the wind anomalies related to the negative SAM during the 2016/2017 austral summer contributed to the record minimum Antarctic sea ice extent observed in March 2017.

Glacier History of the Northern Antarctic Peninsula Region Since the End of the Last Ice Age and Implications for Southern Hemisphere Westerly-Climate Changes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaplan, M. R.; Schaefer, J. M.; Strelin, J. A.; Peltier, C.; Southon, J. R.; Lepper, K. E.; Winckler, G.

2017-12-01

For the area around James Ross Island, we present new cosmogenic 10Be exposure ages on glacial deposits, and 14C ages on associated fossil materials. These data allow us to reconstruct in detail when and how the Antarctic Peninsula Ice Sheet retreated around the Island as the last Ice Age ended, and afterward when local land-based glaciers fluctuated. Similar to other studies, we found widespread deglaciation during the earliest Holocene, with fjords and bays becoming ice free between about 11,000 and 8,000 years ago. After 7,000 years ago, neoglacial type advances initiated. Then, both expansions and ice free periods occurred from the middle to late Holocene. We compare the new glacier record to those in southern Patagonia, which is on the other side of the Drake Passage, and published Southern Ocean marine records, in order to infer past middle to high latitude changes in the Southern Hemisphere Westerlies. Widespread warmth in the earliest Holocene, to the north and south of the Drake Passage, led to small glacier systems in Patagonia and wide-ranging glacier recession around the northern Antarctic Peninsula. We infer that this early Holocene period of overall glacier recession - from Patagonia to the northern Peninsula - was caused by a persistent far-southerly setting of the westerlies and accompanying warm climates. Subsequently, during the middle Holocene renewed glacier expansions occurred on both sides of the Drake Passage, which reflects that the Westerlies and associated colder climate systems were generally more equatorward. From the middle to late Holocene, glacier expansions and ice free periods (and likely related ice shelf behavior) document how the Westerlies and associated higher-latitude climate systems varied.

"Ice out": the contribution of citizen scientists to our understanding of climate change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Patterson, R. Timothy; Swindles, Graeme T.

2016-04-01

Long-term trends in spring 'ice out' dates (1836-2013) for twelve lakes in Maine, New Brunswick and New Hampshire, in eastern North America reveal a remarkable coherency across the region (rs=0.462-0.933, p<0.01). These data have been compiled since the early 19th century, primarily by amateur citizen scientists, for a variety of purposes, including determining fishing seasons, estimating the spring opening of ferry boat routes, community contests, and general curiosity. Ice out dates correlate closely with late-winter/early-spring, March-April (MA), instrumental temperature records from across the region (rs=0.488-0.816, p<0.01). This correlation permits use of ice out dates as a proxy to extend the shorter MA instrumental record (1876-2013). Mean ice out dates trended progressively earlier during the recovery from the Little Ice Age through to the 1940s, and gradually became later again through to the late 1970s, when ice out dates had returned to values more typical of the late nineteenth century. Post-1970's ice out dates resumed trending toward earlier dates, with the twenty-first century being characterized by the earliest ice out dates on record. Spectral and wavelet time series analysis indicate that ice out is influenced by several teleconnections including the Quasi-biennial Oscillation, El Niño-Southern Oscillation, North Atlantic Oscillation, Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation as well as a significant correlation between inland lake records and the Arctic Oscillation. The relative influence of these teleconnections is variable with notable shifts occurring after ~1870, ~1925, and ~1980-2000. The intermittent expression of these cycles in the ice out and MA instrumental record is not only influenced by absolute changes in the intensity of the various teleconnections and other climate drivers, but by phase interference between teleconnections, which periodically damps the various signals.

Atmospheric form drag over Arctic sea ice derived from high-resolution IceBridge elevation data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petty, A.; Tsamados, M.; Kurtz, N. T.

2016-02-01

Here we present a detailed analysis of atmospheric form drag over Arctic sea ice, using high resolution, three-dimensional surface elevation data from the NASA Operation IceBridge Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) laser altimeter. Surface features in the sea ice cover are detected using a novel feature-picking algorithm. We derive information regarding the height, spacing and orientation of unique surface features from 2009-2014 across both first-year and multiyear ice regimes. The topography results are used to explicitly calculate atmospheric form drag coefficients; utilizing existing form drag parameterizations. The atmospheric form drag coefficients show strong regional variability, mainly due to variability in ice type/age. The transition from a perennial to a seasonal ice cover therefore suggest a decrease in the atmospheric form drag coefficients over Arctic sea ice in recent decades. These results are also being used to calibrate a recent form drag parameterization scheme included in the sea ice model CICE, to improve the representation of form drag over Arctic sea ice in global climate models.

Quantification of ikaite in Antarctic sea ice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fischer, M.; Thomas, D. N.; Krell, A.; Nehrke, G.; Göttlicher, J.; Norman, L.; Riaux-Gobin, C.; Dieckmann, G. S.

2012-02-01

Calcium carbonate precipitation in sea ice can increase pCO2 during precipitation in winter and decrease pCO2 during dissolution in spring. CaCO3 precipitation in sea ice is thought to potentially drive significant CO2 uptake by the ocean. However, little is known about the quantitative spatial and temporal distribution of CaCO3 within sea ice. This is the first quantitative study of hydrous calcium carbonate, as ikaite, in sea ice and discusses its potential significance for the carbon cycle in polar oceans. Ice cores and brine samples were collected from pack and land fast sea ice between September and December 2007 during an expedition in the East Antarctic and another off Terre Adélie, Antarctica. Samples were analysed for CaCO3, Salinity, DOC, DON, Phosphate, and total alkalinity. A relationship between the measured parameters and CaCO3 precipitation could not be observed. We found calcium carbonate, as ikaite, mostly in the top layer of sea ice with values up to 126 mg ikaite per liter melted sea ice. This potentially represents a contribution between 0.12 and 9 Tg C to the annual carbon flux in polar oceans. The horizontal distribution of ikaite in sea ice was heterogenous. We also found the precipitate in the snow on top of the sea ice.

Ice ages and the thermal equilibrium of the earth, II

USGS Publications Warehouse

Adam, D.P.

1975-01-01

The energy required to sustain midlatitude continental glaciations comes from solar radiation absorbed by the oceans. It is made available through changes in relative amounts of energy lost from the sea surface as net outgoing infrared radiation, sensible heat loss, and latent heat loss. Ice sheets form in response to the initial occurrence of a large perennial snowfield in the subarctic. When such a snowfield forms, it undergoes a drastic reduction in absorbed solar energy because of its high albedo. When the absorbed solar energy cannot supply local infrared radiation losses, the snowfield cools, thus increasing the energy gradient between itself and external, warmer areas that can act as energy sources. Cooling of the snowfield progresses until the energy gradients between the snowfield and external heat sources are sufficient to bring in enough (latent plus sensible) energy to balance the energy budget over the snowfield. Much of the energy is imported as latent heat. The snow that falls and nourishes the ice sheet is a by-product of the process used to satisfy the energy balance requirements of the snowfield. The oceans are the primary energy source for the ice sheet because only the ocean can supply large amounts of latent heat. At first, some of the energy extracted by the ice sheet from the ocean is stored heat, so the ocean cools. As it cools, less energy is lost as net outgoing infrared radiation, and the energy thus saved is then available to augment evaporation. The ratio between sensible and latent heat lost by the ocean is the Bowen ratio; it depends in part on the sea surface temperature. As the sea surface temperature falls during a glaciation, the Bowen ratio increases, until most of the available energy leaves the oceans as sensible, rather than latent heat. The ice sheet starves, and an interglacial period begins. The oscillations between stadial and interstadial intervals within a glaciation are caused by the effects of varying amounts of

Mapping and assessing variability in the Antarctic marginal ice zone, pack ice and coastal polynyas in two sea ice algorithms with implications on breeding success of snow petrels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stroeve, Julienne C.; Jenouvrier, Stephanie; Campbell, G. Garrett; Barbraud, Christophe; Delord, Karine

2016-08-01

Sea ice variability within the marginal ice zone (MIZ) and polynyas plays an important role for phytoplankton productivity and krill abundance. Therefore, mapping their spatial extent as well as seasonal and interannual variability is essential for understanding how current and future changes in these biologically active regions may impact the Antarctic marine ecosystem. Knowledge of the distribution of MIZ, consolidated pack ice and coastal polynyas in the total Antarctic sea ice cover may also help to shed light on the factors contributing towards recent expansion of the Antarctic ice cover in some regions and contraction in others. The long-term passive microwave satellite data record provides the longest and most consistent record for assessing the proportion of the sea ice cover that is covered by each of these ice categories. However, estimates of the amount of MIZ, consolidated pack ice and polynyas depend strongly on which sea ice algorithm is used. This study uses two popular passive microwave sea ice algorithms, the NASA Team and Bootstrap, and applies the same thresholds to the sea ice concentrations to evaluate the distribution and variability in the MIZ, the consolidated pack ice and coastal polynyas. Results reveal that the seasonal cycle in the MIZ and pack ice is generally similar between both algorithms, yet the NASA Team algorithm has on average twice the MIZ and half the consolidated pack ice area as the Bootstrap algorithm. Trends also differ, with the Bootstrap algorithm suggesting statistically significant trends towards increased pack ice area and no statistically significant trends in the MIZ. The NASA Team algorithm on the other hand indicates statistically significant positive trends in the MIZ during spring. Potential coastal polynya area and amount of broken ice within the consolidated ice pack are also larger in the NASA Team algorithm. The timing of maximum polynya area may differ by as much as 5 months between algorithms. These

The implementation of a municipal indoor ice skating helmet policy: effects on helmet use, participation and attitudes.

PubMed

O'Mahony-Menton, Colleen; Willmore, Jacqueline; Russell, Katherine

2015-12-01

In Ottawa, between 2005 and 2009 there was an annual average of 47.2 head injuries due to ice skating in children and youth (1-19 years of age) requiring a visit to the emergency department, with the highest rates among those aged 5-14 years. Between 2002 and 2007, only 6% of children were wearing a helmet during ice skating when the head injury occurred. During indoor public skating sessions, 93% of children (<10 years)-57% aged 10-12 years, 20% aged 13-17 years and 9% adults-wore helmets in the absence of a policy. Support for a helmet policy was high from public health, medical, political and community perspectives. Helmet policies in relation to cycling have demonstrated increases in helmet use and reduction of head injuries without decreasing physical activity. However, no known studies have examined the effect of indoor ice skating helmet policy coupled with education and promotional activities on helmet use, participation and attitudes towards helmet use. An ice skating helmet policy for children (<11 years of age) and those with limited skating experience at indoor rinks during public skating sessions was developed, implemented and evaluated. Supportive activities such as discount coupons, promotional materials, a media launch, social marketing and staff training are described. The helmet policy was associated with increased helmet use for young children and for older children, youth and adults not included in the policy, without decreasing attendance to public skating sessions. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Bedrock displacements in Greenland manifest ice mass variations, climate cycles and climate change

PubMed Central

Bevis, Michael; Wahr, John; Khan, Shfaqat A.; Madsen, Finn Bo; Brown, Abel; Willis, Michael; Kendrick, Eric; Knudsen, Per; Box, Jason E.; van Dam, Tonie; Caccamise, Dana J.; Johns, Bjorn; Nylen, Thomas; Abbott, Robin; White, Seth; Miner, Jeremy; Forsberg, Rene; Zhou, Hao; Wang, Jian; Wilson, Terry; Bromwich, David; Francis, Olivier

2012-01-01

The Greenland GPS Network (GNET) uses the Global Positioning System (GPS) to measure the displacement of bedrock exposed near the margins of the Greenland ice sheet. The entire network is uplifting in response to past and present-day changes in ice mass. Crustal displacement is largely accounted for by an annual oscillation superimposed on a sustained trend. The oscillation is driven by earth’s elastic response to seasonal variations in ice mass and air mass (i.e., atmospheric pressure). Observed vertical velocities are higher and often much higher than predicted rates of postglacial rebound (PGR), implying that uplift is usually dominated by the solid earth’s instantaneous elastic response to contemporary losses in ice mass rather than PGR. Superimposed on longer-term trends, an anomalous ‘pulse’ of uplift accumulated at many GNET stations during an approximate six-month period in 2010. This anomalous uplift is spatially correlated with the 2010 melting day anomaly. PMID:22786931

Future ice ages and the challenges related to final disposal of nuclear waste: The Greenland Ice Sheet Hydrology Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lehtinen, A.; Claesson-Liljedahl, L.; Näslund, J.-O.; Ruskeeniemi, T.

2009-04-01

A deep geological repository for nuclear waste is designed to keep radiotoxic material separated from mankind and the environment for several hundreds of thousands of years. Within this time perspective glacial conditions are expected in high latitudes/Canada and North Europe. Climate induced changes such as the growth of ice sheets and permafrost will influence and alter the ground surface and subsurface environment, which may impact repository safety. In order to understand how climate change, particularly cooling and glaciation, might affect a repository in the long term, the use of present-day analogues helps to reduce the uncertainties and support the assumptions made in safety assessments. There are major uncertainties concerning hydrological processes related to glacial conditions. The impact of glaciations on any planned repository is a key consideration when performing safety assessments as it is one of the strongest perturbations related to climate change in the long term. The main aspects that need to be further investigated include: 1) to what extent does the meltwater produced by an ice sheet penetrates into the bedrock; 2) what is the pressure situation under an ice sheet, driving ground water flow; 3) how much oxygenated water will reach repository depth; 4) to what depth does glacial meltwater penetrate into the bedrock ; 5)what chemical composition does such water has when and if it reaches repository depth; and 6) can taliks (unfrozen ground in a permafrost area) act as concentrated discharge points of deep groundwater potentially transporting radionuclides in case of repository failure? Field data is needed in order to achieve a better and integrated understanding of the problems discussed above. Thus, research in a natural analogue site in Greenland has been planned and initiated by the Finnish (Posiva), Swedish (SKB) and Canadian (NWMO) nuclear waste management companies. The Greenland ice sheet and the Kangerlussuaq area (west Greenland

Under-ice melt ponds in the Arctic

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, Naomi; Flocco, Daniela; Feltham, Daniel

2017-04-01

In the summer months, melt water from the surface of the Arctic sea ice can percolate down through the ice and flow out of its base. This water is relatively warm and fresh compared to the ocean water beneath it, and so it floats between the ice and the oceanic mixed layer, forming pools of melt water called under-ice melt ponds. Double diffusion can lead to the formation of a sheet of ice, which is called a false bottom, at the interface between the fresh water and the ocean. These false bottoms isolate under-ice melt ponds from the ocean below, trapping the fresh water against the sea ice. These ponds and false bottoms have been estimated to cover between 5 and 40% of the base of the sea ice. [Notz et al. Journal of Geophysical Research 2003] We have developed a one-dimensional thermodynamic model of sea ice underlain by an under-ice melt pond and false bottom. Not only has this allowed us to simulate the evolution of under-ice melt ponds over time, identifying an alternative outcome than previously observed in the field, but sensitivity studies have helped us to estimate the impact that these pools of fresh water have on the mass-balance sea ice. We have also found evidence of a possible positive feedback cycle whereby increasingly less ice growth is seen due to the presence of under-ice melt ponds as the Arctic warms. Since the rate of basal ablation is affected by these phenomena, their presence alters the salt and freshwater fluxes from the sea ice into the ocean. We have coupled our under-ice melt pond model to a simple model of the oceanic mixed layer to determine how this affects mixed layer properties such as temperature, salinity, and depth. In turn, this changes the oceanic forcing reaching the sea ice.

High-cycle electromechanical aging of dielectric elastomer actuators with carbon-based electrodes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Saint-Aubin, C. A.; Rosset, S.; Schlatter, S.; Shea, H.

2018-07-01

We present high-cycle aging tests of dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs) based on silicone elastomers, reporting on the time-evolution of actuation strain and of electrode resistance over millions of cycles. We compare several types of carbon-based electrodes, and for the first time show how the choice of electrode has a dramatic influence on DEA aging. An expanding circle DEA configuration is used, consisting of a commercial silicone membrane with the following electrodes: commercial carbon grease applied manually, solvent-diluted carbon grease applied by stamping (pad printing), loose carbon black powder applied manually, carbon black powder suspension applied by inkjet-printing, and conductive silicone-carbon composite applied by stamping. The silicone-based DEAs with manually applied carbon grease electrodes show the shortest lifetime of less than 105 cycles at 5% strain, while the inkjet-printed carbon powder and the stamped silicone-carbon composite make for the most reliable devices, with lifetimes greater than 107 cycles at 5% strain. These results are valid for the specific dielectric and electrode configurations that were tested: using other dielectrics or electrode formulations would lead to different lifetimes and failure modes. We find that aging (as seen in the change in resistance and in actuation strain versus cycle number) is independent of the actuation frequency from 10 Hz to 200 Hz, and depends on the total accumulated time the DEA spends in an actuated state.

Ice sheet load cycling and fluid underpressures in the Eastern Michigan Basin, Ontario, Canada

USGS Publications Warehouse

Neuzil, Christopher E.; Provost, Alden M.

2014-01-01

Strong fluid underpressures have been detected in Paleozoic strata in the eastern Michigan Basin, with hydraulic heads reaching ~400 m below land surface (~4 MPa underpressure) and ~200 m below sea level in strata where unusually low permeabilities (~10−20–10−23 m2) were measured in situ. Multiple glaciations, including three with as much as 3 km of ice cover at the site in the last 120 ka, suggest a causal link with the underpressures. We examined this possibility using a one-dimensional groundwater flow model incorporating mechanical loading from both ice weight and lithospheric flexure. Because hydrologic and mechanical changes during glaciation are not well characterized and subsurface properties are imperfectly known, the model was used inversely to estimate flexural loads and loosely constrained permeabilities by matching observed pressures. Acceptable matches were obtained for a surprisingly wide range of scenarios with permeabilities close to measured values and plausible flexural loads. Matches were not obtained when too many parameters were preselected, or when permeabilities were constrained to be significantly larger than measured values. In successful model runs groundwater expulsion under glacial-mechanical loads caused the underpressuring, and flexural loads were important if aquifer and sub-glacial pressures were significantly elevated during glaciation. Simulated fluid pressures in the low-permeability strata fluctuated by 30–40 MPa during glacial cycles but resulted in advective transport of only tens of meters or less. Although other mechanisms cannot be ruled out, we conclude that glacial-mechanical forcing of a water-saturated system can explain the observed underpressures.

The Regional Water Cycle and Water Ice Clouds in the Tharsis - Valles Marineris System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leung, C. W. S.; Rafkin, S. C.

2017-12-01

The regional atmospheric circulation on Mars is highly influenced by local topographic gradients. Terrain-following air parcels forced along the slopes of the major Tharsis volcanoes and the steep canyon walls of Valles Marineris significantly impact the local water vapor concentration and the associated conditions for cloud formation. Using a non-hydrostatic mesoscale atmospheric model with aerosol & cloud microphysics, we investigate the meteorological conditions for water ice cloud formation in the coupled Tharsis - Valles Marineris system near the aphelion season. The usage of a limited area regional model ensures that topographic slopes are well resolved compared to the typical resolutions of a global-coverage general circulation model. The effects of shadowing and slope angle geometries on the energy budget is also taken into account. Diurnal slope winds in complex terrains are typically characterized by the reversal of wind direction twice per sol: upslope during the day, and downslope at night. However, our simulation results of the regional circulation and diurnal water cycle indicate substantial asymmetries in the day-night circulation. The convergence of moist air masses enters Valles Marineris via easterly flows, whereas dry air sweep across the plateau of the canyon system from the south towards the north. We emphasize the non-uniform vertical distribution of water vapor in our model results. Water vapor mixing ratios in the lower planetary boundary layer may be factors greater than the mixing ratio aloft. Water ice clouds are important contributors to the climatic forcing on Mars, and their effects on the mesoscale circulations in the Tharsis - Valles Marineris region significantly contribute to the regional perturbations in the large-scale global atmospheric circulation.

ARCTIC SEA ICE EXTENT AND DRIFT, MODELED AS A VISCOUS FLUID.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ling, Chi-Hai; Parkinson, Claire L.

1986-01-01

A dynamic/thermodynamic numerical model of sea ice has been used to calculate the yearly cycle of sea ice thicknesses, concentrations, and velocities in the Arctic Ocean and surrounding seas. The model combines the formulations of two previous models, taking the thermodynamics and momentum equations from the model of Parkinson and Washington and adding the constitutive equation and equation of state from the model of Ling, Rasmussen, and Campbell. Simulated annually averaged ice drift vectors compare well with observed ice drift from the Arctic Ocean Buoy Program.

Sea Ice Mass Reconciliation Exercise (SIMRE) for altimetry derived sea ice thickness data sets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hendricks, S.; Haas, C.; Tsamados, M.; Kwok, R.; Kurtz, N. T.; Rinne, E. J.; Uotila, P.; Stroeve, J.

2017-12-01

Satellite altimetry is the primary remote sensing data source for retrieval of Arctic sea-ice thickness. Observational data sets are available from current and previous missions, namely ESA's Envisat and CryoSat as well as NASA ICESat. In addition, freeboard results have been published from the earlier ESA ERS missions and candidates for new data products are the Sentinel-3 constellation, the CNES AltiKa mission and NASA laser altimeter successor ICESat-2. With all the different aspects of sensor type and orbit configuration, all missions have unique properties. In addition, thickness retrieval algorithms have evolved over time and data centers have developed different strategies. These strategies may vary in choice of auxiliary data sets, algorithm parts and product resolution and masking. The Sea Ice Mass Reconciliation Exercise (SIMRE) is a project by the sea-ice radar altimetry community to bridge the challenges of comparing data sets across missions and algorithms. The ESA Arctic+ research program facilitates this project with the objective to collect existing data sets and to derive a reconciled estimate of Arctic sea ice mass balance. Starting with CryoSat-2 products, we compare results from different data centers (UCL, AWI, NASA JPL & NASA GSFC) at full resolution along selected orbits with independent ice thickness estimates. Three regions representative of first-year ice, multiyear ice and mixed ice conditions are used to compare the difference in thickness and thickness change between products over the seasonal cycle. We present first results and provide an outline for the further development of SIMRE activities. The methodology for comparing data sets is designed to be extendible and the project is open to contributions by interested groups. Model results of sea ice thickness will be added in a later phase of the project to extend the scope of SIMRE beyond EO products.

A basal stress parameterization for modeling landfast ice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lemieux, Jean-François; Tremblay, L. Bruno; Dupont, Frédéric; Plante, Mathieu; Smith, Gregory C.; Dumont, Dany

2015-04-01

Current large-scale sea ice models represent very crudely or are unable to simulate the formation, maintenance and decay of coastal landfast ice. We present a simple landfast ice parameterization representing the effect of grounded ice keels. This parameterization is based on bathymetry data and the mean ice thickness in a grid cell. It is easy to implement and can be used for two-thickness and multithickness category models. Two free parameters are used to determine the critical thickness required for large ice keels to reach the bottom and to calculate the basal stress associated with the weight of the ridge above hydrostatic balance. A sensitivity study was conducted and demonstrates that the parameter associated with the critical thickness has the largest influence on the simulated landfast ice area. A 6 year (2001-2007) simulation with a 20 km resolution sea ice model was performed. The simulated landfast ice areas for regions off the coast of Siberia and for the Beaufort Sea were calculated and compared with data from the National Ice Center. With optimal parameters, the basal stress parameterization leads to a slightly shorter landfast ice season but overall provides a realistic seasonal cycle of the landfast ice area in the East Siberian, Laptev and Beaufort Seas. However, in the Kara Sea, where ice arches between islands are key to the stability of the landfast ice, the parameterization consistently leads to an underestimation of the landfast area.

The 1,800-year oceanic tidal cycle: A possible cause of rapid climate change

PubMed Central

Keeling, Charles D.; Whorf, Timothy P.

2000-01-01

Variations in solar irradiance are widely believed to explain climatic change on 20,000- to 100,000-year time-scales in accordance with the Milankovitch theory of the ice ages, but there is no conclusive evidence that variable irradiance can be the cause of abrupt fluctuations in climate on time-scales as short as 1,000 years. We propose that such abrupt millennial changes, seen in ice and sedimentary core records, were produced in part by well characterized, almost periodic variations in the strength of the global oceanic tide-raising forces caused by resonances in the periodic motions of the earth and moon. A well defined 1,800-year tidal cycle is associated with gradually shifting lunar declination from one episode of maximum tidal forcing on the centennial time-scale to the next. An amplitude modulation of this cycle occurs with an average period of about 5,000 years, associated with gradually shifting separation-intervals between perihelion and syzygy at maxima of the 1,800-year cycle. We propose that strong tidal forcing causes cooling at the sea surface by increasing vertical mixing in the oceans. On the millennial time-scale, this tidal hypothesis is supported by findings, from sedimentary records of ice-rafting debris, that ocean waters cooled close to the times predicted for strong tidal forcing. PMID:10725399

Freshening of the Labrador Sea as a trigger for Little Ice Age development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alonso-Garcia, Montserrat; Kleiven, Helga (Kikki) F.; McManus, Jerry F.; Moffa-Sanchez, Paola; Broecker, Wallace S.; Flower, Benjamin P.

2017-04-01

Arctic freshwater discharges to the Labrador Sea from melting glaciers and sea ice can have a large impact on ocean circulation dynamics in the North Atlantic, modifying climate and deep water formation in this region. In this study, we present for the first time a high resolution record of ice rafting in the Labrador Sea over the last millennium to assess the effects of freshwater discharges in this region on ocean circulation and climate. The occurrence of ice-rafted debris (IRD) in the Labrador Sea was studied using sediments from Site GS06-144-03 (57.29° N, 48.37° W; 3432 m water depth). IRD from the fraction 63-150 µm shows particularly high concentrations during the intervals ˜ AD 1000-1100, ˜ 1150-1250, ˜ 1400-1450, ˜ 1650-1700 and ˜ 1750-1800. The first two intervals occurred during the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA), whereas the others took place within the Little Ice Age (LIA). Mineralogical identification indicates that the main IRD source during the MCA was SE Greenland. In contrast, the concentration and relative abundance of hematite-stained grains reflects an increase in the contribution of Arctic ice during the LIA. The comparison of our Labrador Sea IRD records with other climate proxies from the subpolar North Atlantic allowed us to propose a sequence of processes that led to the cooling that occurred during the LIA, particularly in the Northern Hemisphere. This study reveals that the warm climate of the MCA may have enhanced iceberg calving along the SE Greenland coast and, as a result, freshened the subpolar gyre (SPG). Consequently, SPG circulation switched to a weaker mode and reduced convection in the Labrador Sea, decreasing its contribution to the North Atlantic deep water formation and, thus, reducing the amount of heat transported to high latitudes. This situation of weak SPG circulation may have made the North Atlantic climate more unstable, inducing a state in which external forcings (e.g. reduced solar irradiance and volcanic

Using the glacial geomorphology of palaeo-ice streams to understand mechanisms of ice sheet collapse

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stokes, Chris R.; Margold, Martin; Clark, Chris; Tarasov, Lev

2017-04-01

Processes which bring about ice sheet deglaciation are critical to our understanding of glacial-interglacial cycles and ice sheet sensitivity to climate change. The precise mechanisms of deglaciation are also relevant to our understanding of modern-day ice sheet stability and concerns over global sea level rise. Mass loss from ice sheets can be broadly partitioned between melting and a 'dynamic' component whereby rapidly-flowing ice streams/outlet glaciers transfer ice from the interior to the oceans. Surface and basal melting (e.g. of ice shelves) are closely linked to atmospheric and oceanic conditions, but the mechanisms that drive dynamic changes in ice stream discharge are more complex, which generates much larger uncertainties about their future contribution to ice sheet mass loss and sea level rise. A major problem is that observations of modern-day ice streams typically span just a few decades and, at the ice-sheet scale, it is unclear how the entire drainage network of ice streams evolves during deglaciation. A key question is whether ice streams might increase and sustain rates of mass loss over centuries or millennia, beyond those expected for a given ocean-climate forcing. To address this issue, numerous workers have sought to understand ice stream dynamics over longer time-scales using their glacial geomorphology in the palaeo-record. Indeed, our understanding of their geomorphology has grown rapidly in the last three decades, from almost complete ignorance to a detailed knowledge of their geomorphological products. Building on this body of work, this paper uses the glacial geomorphology of 117 ice streams in the North American Laurentide Ice Sheet to reconstruct their activity during its deglaciation ( 22,000 to 7,000 years ago). Ice stream activity was characterised by high variability in both time and space, with ice streams switching on and off in different locations. During deglaciation, we find that their overall number decreased, they occupied a

Effects of age, socioeconomic status, and menstrual cycle on pulmonary response to ozone

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Seal, E. Jr.; McDonnell, W.F.; House, D.E.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of age, socioeconomic status, and menstrual cycle phase on the pulmonary response to ozone exposure. Three hundred seventy-two healthy white and black young adults, between the ages of 18 and 35 y, were exposed only once to 0.0, 0.12, 0.18, 0.24, 0.30, or 0.40 ppm ozone for 2.3 h. Prior to and after exposure, pulmonary function tests were obtained. Prior to exposure, each subject completed a personal and family-history questionnaire. The response to this questionnaire were used to investigate age, socioeconomic status, and menstrual cycle phase effects on pulmonary responsivenessmore » to ozone. We concluded that the ages of subjects, within the age range studied, had an effect on responsiveness (i.e., decrements in forced expiratory volume in 1 s decreased as the subjects` ages decreased). Socioeconomic status, as reflected by education of fathers, also appeared to affect forced expiratory volume in 1-s responsiveness to ozone, with the middle socioeconomic group being the most responsive. The phase of menstrual cycle did not have an impact on individual responsiveness to ozone. 14 refs., 4 figs.« less

Off-Ice Anaerobic Power Does Not Predict On-Ice Repeated Shift Performance in Hockey.

PubMed

Peterson, Ben J; Fitzgerald, John S; Dietz, Calvin C; Ziegler, Kevin S; Baker, Sarah E; Snyder, Eric M

2016-09-01

Peterson, BJ, Fitzgerald, JS, Dietz, CC, Ziegler, KS, Baker, SE, and Snyder, EM. Off-ice anaerobic power does not predict on-ice repeated shift performance in hockey. J Strength Cond Res 30(9): 2375-2381, 2016-Anaerobic power is a significant predictor of acceleration and top speed in team sport athletes. Historically, these findings have been applied to ice hockey although recent research has brought their validity for this sport into question. As ice hockey emphasizes the ability to repeatedly produce power, single bout anaerobic power tests should be examined to determine their ability to predict on-ice performance. We tested whether conventional off-ice anaerobic power tests could predict on-ice acceleration, top speed, and repeated shift performance. Forty-five hockey players, aged 18-24 years, completed anthropometric, off-ice, and on-ice tests. Anthropometric and off-ice testing included height, weight, body composition, vertical jump, and Wingate tests. On-ice testing consisted of acceleration, top speed, and repeated shift fatigue tests. Vertical jump (VJ) (r = -0.42; r = -0.58), Wingate relative peak power (WRPP) (r = -0.32; r = -0.43), and relative mean power (WRMP) (r = -0.34; r = -0.48) were significantly correlated (p ≤ 0.05) to on-ice acceleration and top speed, respectively. Conversely, none of the off-ice tests correlated with on-ice repeated shift performance, as measured by first gate, second gate, or total course fatigue; VJ (r = 0.06; r = 0.13; r = 0.09), WRPP (r = 0.06; r = 0.14; r = 0.10), or WRMP (r = -0.10; r = -0.01; r = -0.01). Although conventional off-ice anaerobic power tests predict single bout on-ice acceleration and top speed, they neither predict the repeated shift ability of the player, nor are good markers for performance in ice hockey.

Where is the 1-million-year-old ice at Dome A?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Liyun; Moore, John C.; Sun, Bo; Tang, Xueyuan; Guo, Xiaoran

2018-05-01

Ice fabric influences the rheology of ice, and hence the age-depth profile at ice core drilling sites. To investigate the age-depth profile to be expected of the ongoing deep ice coring at Kunlun station, Dome A, we use the depth-varying anisotropic fabric suggested by the recent polarimetric measurements around Dome A along with prescribed fabrics ranging from isotropic through girdle to single maximum in a three-dimensional, thermo-mechanically coupled full-Stokes model of a 70 × 70 km2 domain around Kunlun station. This model allows for the simulation of the near basal ice temperature and age, and ice flow around the location of the Chinese deep ice coring site. Ice fabrics and geothermal heat flux strongly affect the vertical advection and basal temperature which consequently control the age profile. Constraining modeled age-depth profiles with dated radar isochrones to 2/3 ice depth, the surface vertical velocity, and also the spatial variability of a radar isochrones dated to 153.3 ka BP, limits the age of the deep ice at Kunlun to between 649 and 831 ka, a much smaller range than previously inferred. The simple interpretation of the polarimetric radar fabric data that we use produces best fits with a geothermal heat flux of 55 mW m-2. A heat flux of 50 mW m-2 is too low to fit the deeper radar layers, and 60 mW m-2 leads to unrealistic surface velocities. The modeled basal temperature at Kunlun reaches the pressure melting point with a basal melting rate of 2.2-2.7 mm a-1. Using the spatial distribution of basal temperatures and the best fit fabric suggests that within 400 m of Kunlun station, 1-million-year-old ice may be found 200 m above the bed, and that there are large regions where even older ice is well above the bedrock within 5-6 km of the Kunlun station.

History and anatomy of subsurface ice on Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schorghofer, Norbert; Forget, Francois

2012-08-01

Ice buried beneath a thin layer of soil has been revealed by neutron spectroscopy and explored by the Phoenix Mars Lander. It has also been exposed by recent impacts. This subsurface ice is thought to lose and gain volume in response to orbital variations (Milankovitch cycles). We use a powerful numerical model to follow the growth and retreat of near-surface ice as a result of regolith-atmosphere exchange continuously over millions of years. If a thick layer of almost pure ice has been deposited recently, it has not yet reached equilibrium with the atmospheric water vapor and may still remain as far equatorward as 43°N, where ice has been revealed by recent impacts. A potentially observable consequence is present-day humidity output from the still retreating ice. We also demonstrate that in a sublimation environment, subsurface pore ice can accumulate in two ways. The first mode, widely known, is the progressive filling of pores by ice over a range of depths. The second mode occurs on top of an already impermeable ice layer; subsequent ice accumulates in the form of pasted on horizontal layers such that beneath the ice table, the pores are completely full with ice. Most or all of the pore ice on Mars today may be of the second type. At the Phoenix landing site, where such a layer is also expected to exist above an underlying ice sheet, it may be extremely thin, due to exceptionally small variations in ice stability over time.

Periodic fluctuations in deep water formation due to sea ice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saha, R.

2012-12-01

During the last ice age, several abrupt warming events took place, known as Dansgaard-Oeschger (D-O) events. Their effects were felt globally, although the North Atlantic experienced the largest temperature increase. The leading hypothesis to explain their occurrence postulates that the warming was caused by abrupt disruptions of the North Atlantic Current due to meltwater discharge from destabilized ice sheets (Heinrich events). However, the number of warming events outnumber the those of ice-sheet collapse. Thus, the majority of D-O events are not attributed to surface freshwater anomalies, and the underlying mechanism behind their occurrence remain unexplained. Using a simple dynamical model of sea ice and an overturning circulation, I show the existence of self-sustained relaxation oscillations in the overturning circulation. The insulating effect of sea ice is shown to paradoxically lead to a net loss of heat from the top layer of the polar ocean when sea ice retreats. Repeated heat loss results in a denser top layer and a destabilized water column, which triggers convection. The convective state pulls the system out of its preferred mode of circulation, setting up relaxation oscillations. The period of oscillations in this case is linked to the geometry of the ocean basin, if solar forcing is assumed to remain constant. If appropriate glacial freshwater forcing is applied to the model, a pattern of oscillation is produced that bears remarkable similarity to the observed fluctuations in North Atlantic climate between 50,000 and 30,000 years before present.; Comparison of NGRIP δ 18-O (proxy for near surface air temperature) between 50,000 and 30,000 years before present, showing Bond cycles (left) with the model output when forced with appropriate glacial freshwater forcing (right).

Diurnal Variation of Tropical Ice Cloud Microphysics: Evidence from Global Precipitation Measurement Microwave Imager Polarimetric Measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gong, Jie; Zeng, Xiping; Wu, Dong L.; Li, Xiaowen

2018-01-01

The diurnal variation of tropical ice clouds has been well observed and examined in terms of the occurring frequency and total mass but rarely from the viewpoint of ice microphysical parameters. It accounts for a large portion of uncertainties in evaluating ice clouds' role on global radiation and hydrological budgets. Owing to the advantage of precession orbit design and paired polarized observations at a high-frequency microwave band that is particularly sensitive to ice particle microphysical properties, 3 years of polarimetric difference (PD) measurements using the 166 GHz channel of Global Precipitation Measurement Microwave Imager (GPM-GMI) are compiled to reveal a strong diurnal cycle over tropical land (30°S-30°N) with peak amplitude varying up to 38%. Since the PD signal is dominantly determined by ice crystal size, shape, and orientation, the diurnal cycle observed by GMI can be used to infer changes in ice crystal properties. Moreover, PD change is found to lead the diurnal changes of ice cloud occurring frequency and total ice mass by about 2 h, which strongly implies that understanding ice microphysics is critical to predict, infer, and model ice cloud evolution and precipitation processes.

Ice Shelf-Ocean Interactions Near Ice Rises and Ice Rumples

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lange, M. A.; Rückamp, M.; Kleiner, T.

2013-12-01

The stability of ice shelves depends on the existence of embayments and is largely influenced by ice rises and ice rumples, which act as 'pinning-points' for ice shelf movement. Of additional critical importance are interactions between ice shelves and the water masses underlying them in ice shelf cavities, particularly melting and refreezing processes. The present study aims to elucidate the role of ice rises and ice rumples in the context of climate change impacts on Antarctic ice shelves. However, due to their smaller spatial extent, ice rumples react more sensitively to climate change than ice rises. Different forcings are at work and need to be considered separately as well as synergistically. In order to address these issues, we have decided to deal with the following three issues explicitly: oceanographic-, cryospheric and general topics. In so doing, we paid particular attention to possible interrelationships and feedbacks in a coupled ice-shelf-ocean system. With regard to oceanographic issues, we have applied the ocean circulation model ROMBAX to ocean water masses adjacent to and underneath a number of idealized ice shelf configurations: wide and narrow as well as laterally restrained and unrestrained ice shelves. Simulations were performed with and without small ice rises located close to the calving front. For larger configurations, the impact of the ice rises on melt rates at the ice shelf base is negligible, while for smaller configurations net melting rates at the ice-shelf base differ by a factor of up to eight depending on whether ice rises are considered or not. We employed the thermo-coupled ice flow model TIM-FD3 to simulate the effects of several ice rises and one ice rumple on the dynamics of ice shelf flow. We considered the complete un-grounding of the ice shelf in order to investigate the effect of pinning points of different characteristics (interior or near calving front, small and medium sized) on the resulting flow and stress fields

Arctic ice shelves and ice islands: Origin, growth and disintegration, physical characteristics, structural-stratigraphic variability, and dynamics

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jeffries, M.O.

1992-08-01

Ice shelves are thick, floating ice masses most often associated with Antarctica where they are seaward extensions of the grounded Antarctic ice sheet and sources of many icebergs. However, there are also ice shelves in the Arctic, primarily located along the north coast of Ellesmere Island in the Canadian High Arctic. The only ice shelves in North America and the most extensive in the north polar region, the Ellesmere ice shelves originate from glaciers and from sea ice and are the source of ice islands, the tabular icebergs of the Arctic Ocean. The present state of knowledge and understanding ofmore » these ice features is summarized in this paper. It includes historical background to the discovery and early study of ice shelves and ice islands, including the use of ice islands as floating laboratories for polar geophysical research. Growth mechanisms and age, the former extent and the twentieth century disintegration of the Ellesmere ice shelves, and the processes and mechanisms of ice island calving are summarized. Surface features, thickness, thermal regime, and the size, shape, and numbers of ice islands are discussed. The structural-stratigraphic variability of ice islands and ice shelves and the complex nature of their growth and development are described. Large-scale and small-scale dynamics of ice islands are described, and the results of modeling their drift and recurrence intervals are presented. The conclusion identifies some unanswered questions and future research opportunities and needs. 97 refs., 18 figs.« less

Ice formation and development in aged, wintertime cumulus over the UK : observations and modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crawford, I.; Bower, K. N.; Choularton, T. W.; Dearden, C.; Crosier, J.; Westbrook, C.; Capes, G.; Coe, H.; Connolly, P.; Dorsey, J. R.; Gallagher, M. W.; Williams, P.; Trembath, J.; Cui, Z.; Blyth, A.

2011-11-01

In-situ high resolution aircraft measurements of cloud microphysical properties were made in coordination with ground based remote sensing observations of Radar and Lidar as part of the Aerosol Properties, PRocesses And InfluenceS on the Earth's climate (APPRAISE) project. A narrow but extensive line (~100 km long) of shallow convective clouds over the southern UK was studied. Cloud top temperatures were observed to be higher than ~-8 °C, but the clouds were seen to consist of supercooled droplets and varying concentrations of ice particles. No ice particles were observed to be falling into the cloud tops from above. Current parameterisations of ice nuclei (IN) numbers predict too few particles will be active as ice nuclei to account for ice particle concentrations at the observed near cloud top temperatures (~-7 °C). The role of biological particles, consistent with concentrations observed near the surface, acting as potential efficient high temperature IN is considered important in this case. It was found that very high concentrations of ice particles (up to 100 L-1) could be produced by powerful secondary ice particle production emphasising the importance of understanding primary ice formation in slightly supercooled clouds. Aircraft penetrations at -3.5 °C, showed peak ice crystal concentrations of up to 100 L-1 which together with the characteristic ice crystal habits observed (generally rimed ice particles and columns) suggested secondary ice production had occurred. To investigate whether the Hallett-Mossop (HM) secondary ice production process could account for these observations, ice splinter production rates were calculated. These calculated rates and observations could only be reconciled provided the constraint that only droplets >24 μm in diameter could lead to splinter production, was relaxed slightly by 2 μm. Model simulations of the case study were also performed with the WRF (Weather, Research and Forecasting) model and ACPIM (Aerosol Cloud and

Historical Carbon Dioxide Record from the Vostok Ice Core (417,160 - 2,342 years BP)

DOE Data Explorer

Barnola, J. M. [CNRS, Saint Martin d'Heres Cedex, France; Raynaud, D. [CNRS, Saint Martin d'Heres Cedex, France; Lorius, C. [CNRS, Saint Martin d'Heres Cedex, France; Barkov, N. I.

2003-01-01

In January 1998, the collaborative ice-drilling project between Russia, the United States, and France at the Russian Vostok station in East Antarctica yielded the deepest ice core ever recovered, reaching a depth of 3,623 m (Petit et al. 1997, 1999). Ice cores are unique with their entrapped air inclusions enabling direct records of past changes in atmospheric trace-gas composition. Preliminary data indicate the Vostok ice-core record extends through four climate cycles, with ice slightly older than 400 kyr (Petit et al. 1997, 1999). Because air bubbles do not close at the surface of the ice sheet but only near the firn-ice transition (that is, at ~90 m below the surface at Vostok), the air extracted from the ice is younger than the surrounding ice (Barnola et al. 1991). Using semiempirical models of densification applied to past Vostok climate conditions, Barnola et al. (1991) reported that the age difference between air and ice may be ~6000 years during the coldest periods instead of ~4000 years, as previously assumed. Ice samples were cut with a bandsaw in a cold room (at about -15°C) as close as possible to the center of the core in order to avoid surface contamination (Barnola et al. 1983). Gas extraction and measurements were performed with the "Grenoble analytical setup," which involved crushing the ice sample (~40 g) under vacuum in a stainless steel container without melting it, expanding the gas released during the crushing in a pre-evacuated sampling loop, and analyzing the CO2 concentrations by gas chromatography (Barnola et al. 1983). The analytical system, except for the stainless steel container in which the ice was crushed, was calibrated for each ice sample measurement with a standard mixture of CO2 in nitrogen and oxygen. For further details on the experimental procedures and the dating of the successive ice layers at Vostok, see Barnola et al. (1987, 1991), Lorius et al. (1985), and Petit et al. (1999).

The episodic influx of tin-rich cosmic dust particles during the last ice age

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

LaViolette, Paul A.

2015-12-01

This paper presents evidence of the first detection of interstellar dust in ice age polar ice. Neutron activation analysis (NAA) results are reported for 15 elements found in dust filtered from eight samples of Camp Century Greenland ice dating from 40 to 78 kyrs BP. High concentrations of Sn, Sb, Au, Ag, Ir, and Ni were found to be present in three out of these eight samples. One compositionally anomalous dust sample from an ice core depth of 1230.5 m (age ∼49 kyrs BP, near the beginning of D/O stadial No. 13) was found to contain tin with an average weight percent of 49% as determined by energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDS). This sample was also found to contain high concentrations of Pb with an average weight abundance of 8.4% and matching the Sn:Pb ratio observed in interstellar spectra. Dust particles in this sample generally have a platy morphology and range from submicron size up to a size as large as 120 μm, a particle consisting almost entirely of SnO2 and being the largest monomineralic extraterrestrial dust particle so far discovered. One porous aggregate tin-bearing particle was found to contain nanometer sized chondrules indicating an extraterrestrial origin. The extraterrestrial origin for the tin is also indicated by the presence of isotopic anomalies in the 114Sn, 115Sn and 117Sn isotopes. Follow up isotopic measurements of this tin-rich dust need to be performed to improve confidence in the anomalies reported here. High abundances of the low melting point elements Ag, Au, and Sb are also present in this tin-rich sample along with elevated abundances of the siderophiles Ir, Ni, Fe, and Co, the latter being present in chondritic proportions and indicating that about 9% of the dust has a C1 chondrite component. Measurements indicate that about 97% of this dust is of extraterrestrial origin with a 3% residual being composed of terrestrial windblown dust. EDS analysis of another tin-rich Camp Century ice core dust sample dating to ∼130 kyrs BP

Volcanic CO2 Emissions and Glacial Cycles: Coupled Oscillations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burley, J. M.; Huybers, P. J.; Katz, R. F.

2016-12-01

Following the mid-Pleistocene transition, the dominant period of glacial cycles changed from 40 ka to 100 ka. It is broadly accepted that the 40 ka glacial cycles were driven by cyclical changes in obliquity. However, this forcing does not explain the 100 ka glacial cycles. Mechanisms proposed for 100 ka cycles include isostatic bed depression and proglacial lakes destabilising the Laurentide ice sheet, non-linear responses to orbital eccentricity, and Antarctic ice sheets influencing deep-ocean stratification. None of these are universally accepted. Here we investigate the hypothesis that variations in volcanic CO2 emissions can cause 100 ka glacial cycles. Any proposed mechanism for 100 ka glacial cycles must give the Earth's climate system a memory of 10^4 - 10^5years. This timescale is difficult to achieve for surface processes, however it is possible for the solid Earth. Recent work suggests volcanic CO2 emissions change in response to glacial cycles [1] and that there could be a 50 ka delay in that response [2]. Such a lagged response could drive glacial cycles from 40 ka cycles to an integer multiple of the forcing period. Under what conditions could the climate system admit such a response? To address this, we use a simplified climate model modified from Huybers and Tziperman [3]. Our version comprises three component models for energy balance, ice sheet growth and atmospheric CO2 concentration. The model is driven by insolation alone with other components varying according to a system of coupled, differential equations. The model is run for 500 ka to produce several glacial cycles and the resulting changes in global ice volume and atmospheric CO2 concentration.We obtain a switch from 40 ka to 100 ka cycles as the volcanic CO2 response to glacial cycles is increased. These 100 ka cycles are phase-locked to obliquity, lasting 80 or 120 ka. Whilst the MOR response required (in this model) is larger than plausible estimates based on [2], it illustrates the

The Annual Glaciohydrology Cycle in the Ablation Zone of the Greenland Ice Sheet: Part 1. Hydrology Model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Colgan, William; Rajaram, Harihar; Anderson, Robert; Steffen. Konrad; Phillips, Thomas; Zwally, H. Jay; Abdalati, Waleed

2012-01-01

We apply a novel one-dimensional glacier hydrology model that calculates hydraulic head to the tidewater-terminating Sermeq Avannarleq flowline of the Greenland ice sheet. Within a plausible parameter space, the model achieves a quasi-steady-state annual cycle in which hydraulic head oscillates close to flotation throughout the ablation zone. Flotation is briefly achieved during the summer melt season along a approx.17 km stretch of the approx.50 km of flowline within the ablation zone. Beneath the majority of the flowline, subglacial conduit storage closes (i.e. obtains minimum radius) during the winter and opens (i.e. obtains maximum radius) during the summer. Along certain stretches of the flowline, the model predicts that subglacial conduit storage remains open throughout the year. A calculated mean glacier water residence time of approx.2.2 years implies that significant amounts of water are stored in the glacier throughout the year. We interpret this residence time as being indicative of the timescale over which the glacier hydrologic system is capable of adjusting to external surface meltwater forcings. Based on in situ ice velocity observations, we suggest that the summer speed-up event generally corresponds to conditions of increasing hydraulic head during inefficient subglacial drainage. Conversely, the slowdown during fall generally corresponds to conditions of decreasing hydraulic head during efficient subglacial drainage.

Regionally coherent Little Ice Age cooling in the Atlantic Warm Pool

USGS Publications Warehouse

Richey, J.N.; Poore, R.Z.; Flower, B.P.; Quinn, T.M.; Hollander, D.J.

2009-01-01

We present 2 new decadal-resolution foraminiferal Mg/Ca-SST records covering the past 6-8 centuries from the northern Gulf of Mexico (GOM). These records provide evidence for a Little Ice Age (LIA) cooling of 2??C, consistent with a published Mg/Ca record from Pigmy Basin. Comparison of these 3 records with existing SST proxy records from the GOM-Caribbean region show that the magnitude of LIA cooling in the Atlantic Warm Pool (AWP) was significantly larger than the mean hemispheric cooling of <1??C. We propose that a reduction in the intensity and spatial extent of the AWP during the LIA, combined with associated changes in atmospheric circulation may account for the regional SST patterns observed in the GOM-Caribbean region during the LIA. Copyright 2009 by the American Geophysical Union.

Diatom assemblages promote ice formation in large lakes

PubMed Central

D'souza, N A; Kawarasaki, Y; Gantz, J D; Lee, R E; Beall, B F N; Shtarkman, Y M; Koçer, Z A; Rogers, S O; Wildschutte, H; Bullerjahn, G S; McKay, R M L

2013-01-01

We present evidence for the directed formation of ice by planktonic communities dominated by filamentous diatoms sampled from the ice-covered Laurentian Great Lakes. We hypothesize that ice formation promotes attachment of these non-motile phytoplankton to overlying ice, thereby maintaining a favorable position for the diatoms in the photic zone. However, it is unclear whether the diatoms themselves are responsible for ice nucleation. Scanning electron microscopy revealed associations of bacterial epiphytes with the dominant diatoms of the phytoplankton assemblage, and bacteria isolated from the phytoplankton showed elevated temperatures of crystallization (Tc) as high as −3 °C. Ice nucleation-active bacteria were identified as belonging to the genus Pseudomonas, but we could not demonstrate that they were sufficiently abundant to incite the observed freezing. Regardless of the source of ice nucleation activity, the resulting production of frazil ice may provide a means for the diatoms to be recruited to the overlying lake ice, thereby increasing their fitness. Bacterial epiphytes are likewise expected to benefit from their association with the diatoms as recipients of organic carbon excreted by their hosts. This novel mechanism illuminates a previously undescribed stage of the life cycle of the meroplanktonic diatoms that bloom in Lake Erie and other Great Lakes during winter and offers a model relevant to aquatic ecosystems having seasonal ice cover around the world. PMID:23552624

The microbiome of glaciers and ice sheets.

PubMed

Anesio, Alexandre M; Lutz, Stefanie; Chrismas, Nathan A M; Benning, Liane G

2017-01-01

Glaciers and ice sheets, like other biomes, occupy a significant area of the planet and harbour biological communities with distinct interactions and feedbacks with their physical and chemical environment. In the case of the glacial biome, the biological processes are dominated almost exclusively by microbial communities. Habitats on glaciers and ice sheets with enough liquid water to sustain microbial activity include snow, surface ice, cryoconite holes, englacial systems and the interface between ice and overridden rock/soil. There is a remarkable similarity between the different specific glacial habitats across glaciers and ice sheets worldwide, particularly regarding their main primary producers and ecosystem engineers. At the surface, cyanobacteria dominate the carbon production in aquatic/sediment systems such as cryoconite holes, while eukaryotic Zygnematales and Chlamydomonadales dominate ice surfaces and snow dynamics, respectively. Microbially driven chemolithotrophic processes associated with sulphur and iron cycle and C transformations in subglacial ecosystems provide the basis for chemical transformations at the rock interface under the ice that underpin an important mechanism for the delivery of nutrients to downstream ecosystems. In this review, we focus on the main ecosystem engineers of glaciers and ice sheets and how they interact with their chemical and physical environment. We then discuss the implications of this microbial activity on the icy microbiome to the biogeochemistry of downstream ecosystems.

ICE AND DEBRIS IN THE FRETTED TERRAIN, MARS.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lucchitta, Baerbel K.

1984-01-01

Viking moderate- and high-resolution images along the northern highland margin were studied monoscopically and stereoscopically to contribute to an understanding of the development of fretted terrain. Results support the hypothesis that the fretting process involved flow facilitated by interstitial ice. The process apparently continued for a long period of time, and debris-apron formation shaped the fretted terrain in the past as well as the present. Interstitial ice in debris aprons is most likely derived from ground ice obtained by sapping or scarp collapse. Debris aprons could have been removed by sublimation if they consisted mostly of ice, or by deflation if they consisted mostly of debris. To remove the debris, wind erosion was either very intense early in martian history, or was intermittent, perhaps owing to climatic cycles.

Effect of okra cell wall and polysaccharide on physical properties and stability of ice cream.

PubMed

Yuennan, Pilapa; Sajjaanantakul, Tanaboon; Goff, H Douglas

2014-08-01

Stabilizers are used in ice cream to increase mix viscosity, promote smooth texture, and improve frozen stability. In this study, the effects of varying concentrations (0.00%, 0.15%, 0.30%, and 0.45%) of okra cell wall (OKW) and its corresponding water-soluble polysaccharide (OKP) on the physical characteristics of ice cream were determined. Ice cream mix viscosity was measured as well as overrun, meltdown, and consumer acceptability. Ice recrystallization was determined after ice cream was subjected to temperature cycling in the range of -10 to -20 °C for 10 cycles. Mix viscosity increased significantly as the concentrations of OKW and OKP increased. The addition of either OKW or OKP at 0.15% to 0.45% significantly improved the melting resistance of ice cream. OKW and OKP at 0.15% did not affect sensory perception score for flavor, texture, and overall liking of the ice cream. OKW and OKP (0.15%) reduced ice crystal growth to 107% and 87%, respectively, as compared to 132% for the control (0.00%). Thus, our results suggested the potential use of OKW and OKP at 0.15% as a stabilizer to control ice cream quality and retard ice recrystallization. OKP, however, at 0.15% exhibited greater effect on viscosity increase and on ice recrystallization inhibition than OKW. © 2014 Institute of Food Technologists®

Deceleration of Fusion–Fission Cycles Improves Mitochondrial Quality Control during Aging

PubMed Central

Meyer-Hermann, Michael; Osiewacz, Heinz D.

2012-01-01

Mitochondrial dynamics and mitophagy play a key role in ensuring mitochondrial quality control. Impairment thereof was proposed to be causative to neurodegenerative diseases, diabetes, and cancer. Accumulation of mitochondrial dysfunction was further linked to aging. Here we applied a probabilistic modeling approach integrating our current knowledge on mitochondrial biology allowing us to simulate mitochondrial function and quality control during aging in silico. We demonstrate that cycles of fusion and fission and mitophagy indeed are essential for ensuring a high average quality of mitochondria, even under conditions in which random molecular damage is present. Prompted by earlier observations that mitochondrial fission itself can cause a partial drop in mitochondrial membrane potential, we tested the consequences of mitochondrial dynamics being harmful on its own. Next to directly impairing mitochondrial function, pre-existing molecular damage may be propagated and enhanced across the mitochondrial population by content mixing. In this situation, such an infection-like phenomenon impairs mitochondrial quality control progressively. However, when imposing an age-dependent deceleration of cycles of fusion and fission, we observe a delay in the loss of average quality of mitochondria. This provides a rational why fusion and fission rates are reduced during aging and why loss of a mitochondrial fission factor can extend life span in fungi. We propose the ‘mitochondrial infectious damage adaptation’ (MIDA) model according to which a deceleration of fusion–fission cycles reflects a systemic adaptation increasing life span. PMID:22761564

Seasonal and interannual variability of fast ice extent in the southeastern Laptev Sea between 1999 and 2013

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Selyuzhenok, V.; Krumpen, T.; Mahoney, A.; Janout, M.; Gerdes, R.

2015-12-01

Along with changes in sea ice extent, thickness, and drift speed, Arctic sea ice regime is characterized by a decrease of fast ice season and reduction of fast ice extent. The most extensive fast ice cover in the Arctic develops in the southeastern Laptev Sea. Using weekly operational sea ice charts produced by Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI, Russia) from 1999 to 2013, we identified five main key events that characterize the annual evolution of fast ice in the southeastern Laptev Sea. Linking the occurrence of the key events with the atmospheric forcing, bathymetry, freezeup, and melt onset, we examined the processes driving annual fast ice cycle. The analysis revealed that fast ice in the region is sensitive to thermodynamic processes throughout a season, while the wind has a strong influence only on the first stages of fast ice development. The maximal fast ice extent is closely linked to the bathymetry and local topography and is primarily defined by the location of shoals, where fast ice is likely grounded. The annual fast ice cycle shows significant changes over the period of investigation, with tendencies toward later fast ice formation and earlier breakup. These tendencies result in an overall decrease of the fast ice season by 2.8 d/yr, which is significantly higher than previously reported trends.

Different postconditioning cycles affect prognosis of aged patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention.

PubMed

Zhang, Jie; Zhang, Xin; Cui, Yuqi; Ferdous, Misbahul; Cui, Lianqun; Zhao, Peng

2017-07-17

Postconditioning can affect the infarct size in acute myocardial infarction (AMI). However, few studies show an effect of different postconditioning cycles on AMI aged patients. This study sought to assess the effect of different postconditioning cycles on prognosis in aged patients with AMI who underwent primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). 74 aged patients were randomly assigned to three groups. Control group; PC-1 group accepted postconditioning 4 cycles of 30 s inflation and 30 s deflation; PC-2 group accepted postconditioning 4 cycles of 60 s. Creatine kinase MB (CK-MB), troponin I (cTnI), high-sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and corrected Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) frame counts (CTFC) were analyzed before andafter treatment. All patients received an echocardiographic examination for whole heart function, wall motion score index (WMSI) and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) examination at 7 days and 6 months after treatment. S: The peak of CK-MB, postoperative 72 h cTnI and CTFC were significantly attenuated by postconditioning when compared with the control group. The hs-CRP of the postconditioning group was lower than the control group 24 h postoperative. No difference was observed between PC-1 and PC-2 group about the effect described above. At 7 days, heart function in the postconditioning group was improved when compared with the control group. At 6 months, the WMSI and SPECT score significantly reduced in the PC-2 group compared with the control and PC-1 groups, but there was no difference among the three groups about echo data except the left ventricular end-systolic diameter. Postconditioning is significantly beneficial to prognosis in aged patients with AMI. The cardiac protective effect of 4 cycles of 60 s procedure was observed in WMSI and SPECT. It is favorable to implement this procedure in aged patients with AMI in clinic.

The Antarctic ice core chronology (AICC2012): an optimized multi-parameter and multi-site dating approach for the last 120 thousand years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Veres, D.; Bazin, L.; Landais, A.; Toyé Mahamadou Kele, H.; Lemieux-Dudon, B.; Parrenin, F.; Martinerie, P.; Blayo, E.; Blunier, T.; Capron, E.; Chappellaz, J.; Rasmussen, S. O.; Severi, M.; Svensson, A.; Vinther, B.; Wolff, E. W.

2013-08-01

expected that the future contribution of both other long ice core records and other types of chronological constraints to the Datice tool will lead to further refinements in the ice core chronologies beyond the AICC2012 chronology. For the time being however, we recommend that AICC2012 be used as the preferred chronology for the Vostok, EDC, EDML and TALDICE ice core records, both over the last glacial cycle (this study), and beyond (following Bazin et al., 2013). The ages for NGRIP in AICC2012 are virtually identical to those of GICC05 for the last 60.2 ka, whereas the ages beyond are independent of those in GICC05modelext (as in the construction of AICC2012, the GICC05modelext was included only via the background scenarios and not as age markers). As such, where issues of phasing between Antarctic records included in AICC2012 and NGRIP are involved, the NGRIP ages in AICC2012 should therefore be taken to avoid introducing false offsets. However for issues involving only Greenland ice cores, there is not yet a strong basis to recommend superseding GICC05modelext as the recommended age scale for Greenland ice cores.

The life-cycle argument: age as a mediator of pharmacists' earnings.

PubMed

Carvajal, Manuel J; Armayor, Graciela M

2015-01-01

Age diversity poses challenges to pharmacy employers and managers. A life-cycle argument has been presented to explain pharmacists' age-related differences at work. Explore responses of pharmacists' wage-and-salary earnings in three age groups (younger than 40, 40-54 years, and 55 years plus) to labor input and human-capital variables. A survey questionnaire was mailed to registered pharmacists in South Florida, USA. An earnings function was formulated and tested, using ordinary least squares, for each age group separately to compare the direction, magnitude, and statistical significance of each determinant on earnings. The covariates were number of hours worked, type of pharmacy degree, years of professional experience, gender, number of children, and whether the pharmacist had completed a residency and/or attained a specialty board certification. The model showed better fit and statistical significance for practitioners under 40 and 55 years or older. The number of hours worked was the overwhelming determinant, but the magnitude of its influence was different for the three age groups. Human-capital indicators provided evidence in support of the life-cycle argument. The wage-and-salary earnings of pharmacy practitioners were mediated by age group in their response to labor input and human-capital variables. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Ageing and the economic life cycle: The National Transfer Accounts approach.

PubMed

Temple, Jeromey B; Rice, James M; McDonald, Peter F

2017-12-01

To illustrate the use of National Transfer Accounts (NTA) for understanding ageing and the economic life cycle in Australia. The NTA methodology is applied utilising a range of unit record, demographic and administrative data sets from 1981 to 2010. During early and later life, total consumption (public and private) is greater than labour income. On a time series and cohort basis, we show that each successive generation has improved their level of well-being (as measured by consumption) relative to the previous years or previous cohorts from 1981 to 1982 onwards. We also show a substantial increase in labour income earned by mature age workers over this period. International comparisons show Australia to have consumption and labour income age profiles very similar to those of Canada but dissimilar to many other countries, driven by differences in demographic and policy settings. The NTA approach provides a powerful framework to track differences in the economic life cycle across age groups, across time, across cohorts and across countries. © 2017 AJA Inc.

Rewriting Ice Sheet "Glacier-ology"

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bindschadler, R.

2006-12-01

The revolution in glaciology driven by the suite of increasingly sophisticated satellite instruments has been no more extreme than in the area of ice dynamics. Years ago, glaciologists were (probably unwittingly) selective in what properties of mountain glaciers were also applied to ice sheets. This reinforced the view that they responded slowly to their environment. Notions of rapid response driven by the ideas of John Mercer, Bill Budd and Terry Hughes were politely rejected by the centrists of mainstream glaciological thought. How the tables have turned--and by the ice sheets themselves, captured in the act of rapidly changing by modern remote sensors! The saw-toothed record of sea-level change over past glacial-interglacial cycles required the existence of rapid ice loss processes. Satellite based observations, supported by hard-earned field observations have extended the time scale over which ice sheets can suddenly change to ever shorter intervals: from centuries, to decades, to years to even minutes. As changes continue to be observed, the scientific community is forced to consider new or previously ignored processes to explain these observations. The penultimate goal of ice-sheet dynamics is to credibly predict the future of both the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. In this important endeavor, there is no substitute for our ability to observe. Without the extensive data sets provided by remote sensing, numerical models can be neither tested nor improved. The impact of remote sensing on our existing ability to predict the future must be compared to our probable state of knowledge and ability were these data never collected. Among many satellite observed phenomena we would be largely or wholly ignorant of are the recent acceleration of ice throughout much of coastal Greenland; the sudden disintegration of multiple ice shelves along the Antarctic Peninsula; and the dramatic thinning and acceleration of the Amundsen Sea sector of West Antarctica. These

Snow and ice ecosystems: not so extreme.

PubMed

Maccario, Lorrie; Sanguino, Laura; Vogel, Timothy M; Larose, Catherine

2015-12-01

Snow and ice environments cover up to 21% of the Earth's surface. They have been regarded as extreme environments because of their low temperatures, high UV irradiation, low nutrients and low water availability, and thus, their microbial activity has not been considered relevant from a global microbial ecology viewpoint. In this review, we focus on why snow and ice habitats might not be extreme from a microbiological perspective. Microorganisms interact closely with the abiotic conditions imposed by snow and ice habitats by having diverse adaptations, that include genetic resistance mechanisms, to different types of stresses in addition to inhabiting various niches where these potential stresses might be reduced. The microbial communities inhabiting snow and ice are not only abundant and taxonomically diverse, but complex in terms of their interactions. Altogether, snow and ice seem to be true ecosystems with a role in global biogeochemical cycles that has likely been underestimated. Future work should expand past resistance studies to understanding the function of these ecosystems. Copyright © 2015 Institut Pasteur. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Sea-ice indicators of polar bear habitat

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stern, Harry L.; Laidre, Kristin L.

2016-09-01

Nineteen subpopulations of polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are found throughout the circumpolar Arctic, and in all regions they depend on sea ice as a platform for traveling, hunting, and breeding. Therefore polar bear phenology - the cycle of biological events - is linked to the timing of sea-ice retreat in spring and advance in fall. We analyzed the dates of sea-ice retreat and advance in all 19 polar bear subpopulation regions from 1979 to 2014, using daily sea-ice concentration data from satellite passive microwave instruments. We define the dates of sea-ice retreat and advance in a region as the dates when the area of sea ice drops below a certain threshold (retreat) on its way to the summer minimum or rises above the threshold (advance) on its way to the winter maximum. The threshold is chosen to be halfway between the historical (1979-2014) mean September and mean March sea-ice areas. In all 19 regions there is a trend toward earlier sea-ice retreat and later sea-ice advance. Trends generally range from -3 to -9 days decade-1 in spring and from +3 to +9 days decade-1 in fall, with larger trends in the Barents Sea and central Arctic Basin. The trends are not sensitive to the threshold. We also calculated the number of days per year that the sea-ice area exceeded the threshold (termed ice-covered days) and the average sea-ice concentration from 1 June through 31 October. The number of ice-covered days is declining in all regions at the rate of -7 to -19 days decade-1, with larger trends in the Barents Sea and central Arctic Basin. The June-October sea-ice concentration is declining in all regions at rates ranging from -1 to -9 percent decade-1. These sea-ice metrics (or indicators of habitat change) were designed to be useful for management agencies and for comparative purposes among subpopulations. We recommend that the National Climate Assessment include the timing of sea-ice retreat and advance in future reports.