Firn Air Isotope and Temperature Measurements from Siple Dome and South Pole, Version 1
Data set id:
NSIDC-0098
DOI: 10.7265/N51N7Z2P

Overview

This data set includes d15N, d18O/2, dO2/N2/4, d40Ar/4, d38/Ar/2, d84Kr/48, and d132Xe/96 values for air drawn from the top 15 to 50 m of firn at the South Pole (summer and winter 1998) and a site at Siple Dome (summers 1996 and 1998). Data also include related firn temperature measurements. The objective of this research was to better understand thermal fractionation processes affecting records of atmospheric history from firn and ice core gases. Recent work (e.g., Severinghaus and Brook, 1999) has exploited trapped air in ice and deep firn as a record of past atmospheric composition and climate change. Interpretation of these paleoclimate archives is complicated by artifacts of thermal diffusion, a process in which heavier gases migrate down temperature gradients toward colder regions in the firn. Seasonal temperature change at the snow surface creates strong temperature gradients in the top few meters of the firn, which cause isotopic fractionation of firn gases. A specific goal of this research is to identify any long-term effects of seasonal temperature fluctuations on firn air isotopic anomalies.
Parameter(s):
FIRN AIRFIRN AIR ISOTOPESFIRN TEMPERATURE
Platform(s):
GROUND STATIONS, GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS
Sensor(s):
FLASKS, MASS SPECTROMETERS, THERMISTORS
Data Format(s):
ASCII, Excel
Temporal Coverage:
14 January 1998 to 28 July 1998
Temporal Resolution:
Not Specified
Spatial Resolution:
  • Not Specified
Spatial Coverage:
N:
-89.997
S:
-89.997
E:
-102
W:
-102
N:
-81.667
S:
-81.667
E:
-148.767
W:
-148.767
Blue outlined yellow areas on the map below indicate the spatial coverage for this data set.
NSIDC does not archive or provide citation guidance for these data.