The files are in Microsoft Excel format (.xls
).
Documentation for Ultra-trace gas measurements in the WAIS Divide 06A Ice Core, Version 1
This data set includes the measurements of trace gases from WAIS Divide 06A ice core analyzed with a gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The trace gases found in the 207 samples are ethane (C2H6), propane (C3H8), n-butane (n-C4H10), carbonyl sulfide (COS), carbon disulfide (CS2), methyl chloride (CH3Cl), and methyl bromide (CH3Br).
Detailed Data Description
Data are available on the FTP site in the ftp://sidads.colorado.edu/pub/DATASETS/AGDC/nsidc0659_aydin
directory. Within this directory, there is one file: UCI data submission WAIS06A ice core.xls
. There are 16 columns in the file. See Table 1 for the column information.
Column Header | Description |
---|---|
Depth (m) | Depth of the ice core sample |
C2H6 (ppt) | Amount of ethane found in sample |
err (ppt) | Amount of uncertaintity (+/- 1 sigma) for ethane measurement |
C3H8 (ppt) | Amount of propane found in sample |
err (ppt) | Amount of uncertaintity (+/- 1 sigma) for propane measurement |
C4H10 (ppt) | Amount of n-butane found in sample |
err (ppt) | Amount of uncertaintity (+/- 1 sigma) for n-butane measurement |
COS (ppt) | Amount of carbonyl sulfide found in sample |
err (ppt) | Amount of uncertaintity (+/- 1 sigma) for carbonyl sulfide measurement |
CS2 (ppt) | Amount of carbon disulfide found in sample |
err (ppt) | Amount of uncertaintity (+/- 1 sigma) for carbon disulfide measurement |
CH3Cl (ppt) | Amount of methyl chloride found in sample |
err (ppt) | Amount of uncertaintity (+/- 1 sigma) for methyl chloride measurement |
CH3Br (ppt) | Amount of methyl bromide found in sample |
err (ppt) | Amount of uncertaintity (+/- 1 sigma) for methyl bromide measurement |
flag | 0=no apparent issues; 1=drill fluid detected; 2=potential leak during extraction or analysis |
The file size is 92 KB.
The WAIS Divide ice core extraction site is at 79.5° S and 112.1° W.
The sample analysis occurred on 28 October 2015.
The data set's parameters are trace gases extracted from the ice core samples.
Parameter Description
The trace gases are ethane (C2H6), propane (C3H8), n-butane (n-C4H10), carbonyl sulfide (COS), carbon disulfide (CS2), methyl chloride (CH3Cl), and methyl bromide (CH3Br).
Sample Data Record
See Figure 1 for a sample of the data.

Software and Tools
The data are available via FTP.
To view the data, use Microsoft Excel.
Data Acquisition and Processing
A dry-extraction system was used for extraction of ice core air and the analysis was carried out using a GC-MS system at the University of California, Irvine. See Aydin et al., 2007 for a more detailed discussion on the methodology used for the process.
No correction has been applied for gravitational enrichment in the firn. There was some amount of drill-fluid in 79 of the samples that were analyzed, and are flagged in the data (see Table 1). An additional 5 samples were flagged for potential vacuum leaks that occurred during the extraction or the analysis.
The instrument used for the analysis was the HP 5890/Micromass Autospec Ultima, which combines gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection.
The trace gas measurements in the WDC-06A ice core are impacted by in situ production or artifacts associated with the ice core air extraction, with the exception of COS. The paleoatmospheric and biogeochemical implications of the COS measurements are published in two separate articles [Aydin et al., 2014; Aydin et al., in review 2015].
References and Related Publications
Contacts and Acknowledgments
Murat Aydin
University of California, Irvine
Dept. of Earth System Science
Bison Avenue, Croul Hall 1212
Irvine, CA 92697
Eric S. Saltzman
University of California, Irvine
Dept. of Earth System Science
Bison Avenue, Croul Hall 1212
Irvine, CA 92697
This research was supported by NSF Division of Polar Programs (PLR) Grant Numbers 1043780.
Document Information
DOCUMENT CREATION DATE
11 December 2015