Recent accumulation rate at Dome A, Antarctica

Hou, Shugui; Li, Yuansheng; Xiao, Cunde; Ren, Jiawen

doi:10.1007/s11434-007-0041-3

Cited by 70 publications

(77 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…Hence the net accumulation rate averaged over the two years was less than 0.016 cm water equivalent per year. The result is consistent with the estimation using nuclear test layer [18] and the modeling [25,26] . The accumulation rate at Dome A is approximately one third or half of the sites such as Vostok, Dome B and Dome F, or it roughly equals the averaged accumulation rate at Vostok during the last glacial maximum (LGM) period [7] .…”

Section: Geographysupporting

confidence: 88%

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

Xiao

Hou

et al. 2008

Chin. Sci. Bull.

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

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Section: Geographysupporting

confidence: 88%

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

Xiao

Hou

et al. 2008

Chin. Sci. Bull.

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“…1). Preliminary investigation has shown that the annual mean temperature (measured at 10 m below the surface) at Dome A is −58.5 • C, the lowest annual mean temperature ever recorded on the surface of the earth (Hou et al, 2007). The average snow accumulation rate during the past several centuries (AD 1260(AD -2004) is about 25 mm ice equivalent yr −1 (Jiang et al, 2012), which is typical of other sites in the East Antarctic interior (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

How old is the ice beneath Dome A, Antarctica?

et al. 2014

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Abstract. Chinese scientists will start to drill a deep ice core at Kunlun station near Dome A in the near future. Recent work has predicted that Dome A is a location where ice older than 1 million years can be found. We model flow, temperature and the age of the ice by applying a three-dimensional, thermomechanically coupled full-Stokes model to a 70 × 70 km 2 domain around Kunlun station, using isotropic non-linear rheology and different prescribed anisotropic ice fabrics that vary the evolution from isotropic to single maximum at 1/3 or 2/3 depths. The variation in fabric is about as important as the uncertainties in geothermal heat flux in determining the vertical advection which in consequence controls both the basal temperature and the age profile. We find strongly variable basal ages across the domain since the ice varies greatly in thickness, and any basal melting effectively removes very old ice in the deepest parts of the subglacial valleys. Comparison with dated radar isochrones in the upper one third of the ice sheet cannot sufficiently constrain the age of the deeper ice, with uncertainties as large as 500 000 years in the basal age. We also assess basal age and thermal state sensitivities to geothermal heat flux and surface conditions. Despite expectations of modest changes in surface height over a glacial cycle at Dome A, even small variations in the evolution of surface conditions cause large variation in basal conditions, which is consistent with basal accretion features seen in radar surveys.

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“…Consequently, seeking such kind of old ice cores from Antarctica is of vital importance, which is also one of the primary goals of the International partnership Ice Core Sciences (IPICS). Dome A, the highest point of the Antarctic ice sheet, is characterized by the lowest annual average temperature (58°C) [97], low accumulation rates (<25 mm/a water equivalent) [98,99], neglectable ice flow velocity and exceeding 3000 m ice thickness [100], meets the necessary conditions for retrieving such very old ice cores [101].…”

Section: Temperature Change At Orbital Timescalementioning

confidence: 99%

Climatology of stable isotopes in Antarctic snow and ice: Current status and prospects

2012

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Stable isotopic composition in Antarctic snow and ice is commonly regarded as one of invaluable palaeoclimate proxies and plays a critically important role in reconstructing past climate change. In this paper we summarized the spatial distribution and the controlling factors of D,  18 O, d-excess and 17 O-excess in Antarctic snow and ice, and discussed their reliability and applicability as palaeoclimate proxies. Recent progress in the stable isotopic records from Antarctic deep ice cores was reviewed, and perspectives on bridging the current understanding gaps were suggested. Antarctic Ice Sheet is a highly important part of the Earth system. Thanks to its extraordinary environment of very low temperature, extremely low snow accumulation rate and thick ice layer, a wealth of high resolution and long chronology paleoclimatic information is stored, and hence Antarctic Ice Sheet is honored as archives of the Earth's climate. Because the reliability of future climate prediction is, to a great degree, dependent on our knowledge of the past climatic evolution, Antarctic ice core records play an important role in the current global change studies. O in the Vostok and the EPICA Dome C ice cores have documented temperatures over the past 400 ka and 800 ka BP (before present), respectively [1-4], which well reflects the glacial-interglacial change. A drilling has successfully reached the bedrock at the Dome F site providing an ice core which covers more than 700 ka [5]. The robust couplings of dust-climate and CO 2 -climate over the glacial-interglacial timescales are also revealed by a comparison between   D (  18 O) and the corresponding dust and CO 2 records from the same ice cores, taking account of the ice core ice-age and gas-age difference [6][7][8]. These results contribute significantly to our understanding of the Earth's climatic and environmental evolution during Antarctic

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Recent accumulation rate at Dome A, Antarctica

Cited by 70 publications

References 11 publications

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

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

How old is the ice beneath Dome A, Antarctica?

Climatology of stable isotopes in Antarctic snow and ice: Current status and prospects

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