C. van der Veen

Radiocarbon analyses along the EDML ice core in Antarctica

Trend analyses were performed on several indicators of Arctic haze using data from sites located in the North American, Norwegian, Finnish and Russian Arctic for the spring months of March and April. Concentrations of nonseasalt (nss) SO4= in the Canadian, Norwegian and Finnish Arctic were found to have decreased by 30–70% from the early 1990s to present. The magnitude of the decrease depended on location. The trend in nss SO4= at Barrow, Alaska from 1997 to present, is unclear. Measurements at Barrow of light scattering by aerosols show a decrease of about 50% between the early 1980s and the mid-1990s for both March and April. Restricting the analysis to the more recent period of 1997 to present indicates an increase in scattering of about 50% during March. Aerosol NO3- measured at Alert, Canada has increased by about 50% between the early 1990s and 2003. Nss K+ and light absorption, indicators of forest fires, have a seasonal maximum during the winter and spring and minimum during the summer and fall at both Alert and Barrow. Based on these data, the impact of summertime forest fire emissions on low-altitude surface sites within the Arctic is relatively small compared to winter/spring emissions. Key uncertainties about the impact of long range transport of pollution to the Arctic remain including the certainty of the recent detected trends; sources, transport and trends of soot; and radiative effects due to complex interactions between aerosols, clouds and radiation in the Arctic.

Natural and anthropogenic variations in methane sources during the past two millennia

Methane is an important greenhouse gas that is emitted from multiple natural and anthropogenic sources. Atmospheric methane concentrations have varied on a number of timescales in the past, but what has caused these variations is not always well understood. The different sources and sinks of methane have specific isotopic signatures, and the isotopic composition of methane can therefore help to identify the environmental drivers of variations in atmospheric methane concentrations. Here we present high-resolution carbon isotope data (δ13C content) for methane from two ice cores from Greenland for the past two millennia. We find that the δ13C content underwent pronounced centennial-scale variations between 100 bc and ad 1600. With the help of two-box model calculations, we show that the centennial-scale variations in isotope ratios can be attributed to changes in pyrogenic and biogenic sources. We find correlations between these source changes and both natural climate variability—such as the Medieval Climate Anomaly and the Little Ice Age—and changes in human population and land use, such as the decline of the Roman empire and the Han dynasty, and the population expansion during the medieval period.

Overview of the trace gas measurements on board the Citation aircraft during the intensive field phase of INDOEX

During the intensive field phase of the Indian Ocean Experiment (INDOEX), measurements of the atmospheric chemical and aerosol composition over the Indian Ocean were performed from a Cessna Citation aircraft. Measurements were performed during February and March 1999 over the northern Indian Ocean from 70 degreesE to 80 degreesE, and from 8 degreesN tb 8 degreesS in the 0-13 km altitude range. An overview of the trace gas-measurements is presented. In the lowest 3 km the highest levels of pollution were found during February 1999, mostly originating from northeastern India and southeastern Asia. Lower levels of pollution were detected in March 1999, when the sampled air mostly originated from the Arabian Sea region. The mixing ratios of a number of trace compounds, indicative of biomass burning, were well correlated. The pollutant emission factors inferred from the measurements are consistent with literature values for fire plumes, confirming that the residential use of biofuels in Asia is a major source of gaseous pollutants to the atmosphere over the Indian Ocean, in accord with emission databases. The removal of reactive trace gases was studied over an extended area without interfering local emissions, and is shown to be governed by photochemical processes rather than by mixing and deposition. At intermediate altitudes of 3-8 km the mixing ratios of all trace gases other than ozone were generally lower, and the measurements suggest that the Photochemical processing of these air masses is much more extensive than in the 0-3 kin range. In the 8-13 km altitude range some evidence is obtained for the importance of convective cloud systems in the transport of gaseous pollutants to the upper troposphere.

A 1500 year record of accumulation at Amundsenisen western Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica, derived from electrical and radioactive measurements on a 120 m ice core

During the Nordic EPICA pre-site survey in Dronning Maud Land in 1997/1998 a 120 m long ice core was retrieved (76°00′S 08°03′W, 2400 m above sea level). The whole core has been measured using the electric conductivity measurement (ECM) and dielectric profiling (DEP) techniques, and the core chronology has been established by detecting major volcanic eruptions. In a nearby shallow core radioactive traces from nuclear tests conducted during the 1950s and 1960s have been identified. Altogether, 13 ECM and DEP peaks in the long core are identified as originating from specific volcanic eruptions. In addition two peaks of increased total β activity are identified in the short core. Accumulation is calculated as averages over the time periods between these dated events. Accumulation rate is 62 millimetres (w. eq./yr) for the last 181 years (1816 A.D. to present) and 61 mm w. eq./yr for the last 1457 years (540 A.D. to present). Our record shows an 8% decrease in accumulation between 1452 and 1641 A.D. (i.e. part of the Little Ice Age), compared to the long-term mean.

Analyses of firn gas samples from Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica: Study of nonmethane hydrocarbons and methyl chloride

Firn air was sampled on the Antarctic plateau in Dronning Maud Land (DML), during the Norwegian Antarctic Research Expedition (NARE) 2000/2001. In this paper, we describe the analyses for methyl chloride and nonmethane hydrocarbons (NMHCs) in these firn air samples. For the first time, the NMHCs ethane, propane, and acetylene have been measured in Antarctic firn air, and concentration profiles for these gases have been derived. A one-dimensional numerical firn air diffusion model was used to interpret the measured profiles and to derive atmospheric concentrations as a function of time. The atmospheric trends we derived for the NMHC and methyl chloride at DML cover the period from 1975 to 2000. Methyl chloride shows a decreasing trend of 1.2 +/- 0.6 ppt per year (annual mean concentration 548 +/- 32 ppt). For ethane we found an increasing trend of 1.6 +/- 0.6 ppt per year (annual mean concentration 241 +/- 12 ppt). The concentrations of propane and acetylene appear to be constant over the period 1975-2000, with annual mean concentrations of 30 +/- 4 ppt for propane and 24 +/- 2 ppt for acetylene.

Isotopic composition of H2 from wood burning: Dependency on combustion efficiency, moisture content, and δD of local precipitation

[1]xa0Differences in isotopic composition between the various sources of H2 are large, but only a few measurements have been carried out to constrain them. Two conflicting values have been published for H2 from biomass burning. Both rely on the assumption that the isotopic composition of H2 should scale with the isotopic composition of the precipitation at the location where the biomass grew. Here we test this hypothesis using 18 wood samples collected from various locations around the globe. The sample locations cover a range of δD content of H2 in precipitation, from below −120‰ in Siberia and Canada to −15‰ in Zimbabwe. The results confirm the predicted dependence of the H2 isotopic composition on the precipitation in the sampling region. The water content itself is found to at most slightly affect the results. Furthermore, δD of H2 depends strongly on combustion efficiency. Thus, the isotopic composition of H2 from biomass burning shows a strong variability around the globe and between different stages of a fire. It is suggested that, rather than a global bulk number, global models that attempt to reproduce the spatial and temporal distribution of δD in H2 should incorporate explicitly the variability of δD(H2) from biomass burning on δD in precipitation.

Spatial gradients in snow layering and 10 m temperatures at two EPICA-Dronning Maud Land (Antarctica) pre-site-survey drill sites

Abstract During the 1997/98 field season, Sweden, Norway and The Netherlands performed a pre-site survey for EPICA in Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica. This paper summarizes the results and pays special attention to the high spatial gradients found in snow layering and temperatures. The sites were Camp Victoria (CV) on Amundsenisen (76° S, 8° W; 2400 m a.s.l.), approximately 550 km from the coast, and Camp Maudheimvidda (CM) on Maudheimvidda (74° S 13° W; 362 m a.s.L), some 140 km from the coast. The drilling programme included both medium-long firn/ice cores and shallow firn cores. These were analysed by means of δ18O, DEP, ECM,β activity, density, and ion content. The combined results suggests a mean annual accumulation rate of 60 mm. we. for CV and 220 mm. we. for CM. Variability measurements of spatial snow layering were performed at two scales; over tens of kilometres by radar and over a few metres by pits and high-resolution radar soundings. Results, as measured by relative standard deviation, were typically 10% on the polar plateau and as high as 50% near the coast. The 10 m temperature measurements were –38.5°C (std dev. = 0.5°) for CV and –17.6°C (std dev.=0.15°) for CM. Snow chemistry was sampled at each medium-long-core drill site. Comparison of δ18O profiles from snow pits and the uppermost part of the CV medium-long core showed large variations. Mean δ18O valuesover 2 m profiles varied between 41.6%, and 39.7%o within a horizontal distance of 50 m.

Seasonal cycles of nonmethane hydrocarbons and methyl chloride, as derived from firn air from Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica

[1] This paper presents atmospheric concentrations of ethane, propane, acetylene, and methyl chloride, inferred from firn air by using a numerical one-dimensional firn diffusion model. The firn air was collected on the Antarctic plateau in Dronning Maud Land during the Norwegian Antarctic Research Expedition (NARE) 2000/2001. The influences of seasonal variations in temperature and pressure and the variation in accumulation rate were studied and are not negligible, but appear to cancel each other out if all variability is taken into account. This paper also demonstrates that firn air from the uppermost firn layer (30 m) can be used to derive seasonal cycles of these trace gases, without needing a year-round facility. These cycles display higher atmospheric mixing ratios during the Antarctic winter and lower atmospheric mixing ratios in summer. The cycles for the year 2000 show amplitudes of 140 +/- 25 ppt for ethane, 30 +/- 10 ppt for propane, 24 +/- 6 ppt for acetylene, and 40 +/- 20 ppt for methyl chloride. For ethane and propane the amplitudes and months of maximum atmospheric concentration (phase) are in reasonable agreement with year-round measurements at the South Pole and Baring Head (New Zealand). The amplitudes for methyl chloride and acetylene are significantly greater than seen in year-round measurements at the South Pole and at Neumayer (Antarctica), although the phase is in line. While biomass burning and removal by OH radicals can partially explain these large amplitudes, the exact cause still remains unclear for methyl chloride and acetylene.