Relation between surface topography and sea-salt snow chemistry from Princess Elizabeth Land, East Antarctica

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Abstract

Previous studies on Antarctic snow have established an unambiguous correlation between variability of sea-salt records and site specific features like elevation and proximity to the sea. On the other hand, variations of Cl-/Na + ratios in snow have been attributed to the reaction mechanisms involving atmospheric acids. In the present study, the annual records of Na +, Cl - and SO 42- were investigated using snow cores along a 180 km coast to inland transect in Princess Elizabeth Land, East Antarctica. Exceptionally high Na + concentrations and large variations in Cl -/Na + ratios were observed up to 50 km (∼1100 m elevation) of the transect. The steepest slope in the entire transect (49.3 m km -1) was between 20 and 30 km and the sea-salt records in snow from this area revealed extensive modifications, with Cl -/Na + ratios as low as 0.2. Statistical analysis showed a strong association between the slope and variations in Cl -/Na + ratios along the transect (r Combining double low line -0.676, 99% confidence level). While distance from the coast accounted for some variability, the altitude by itself has no significant control over the sea-salt ion variability. However, the steep slopes influence the deposition of sea-salt aerosols in snow. The wind redistribution of snow due to the steep slopes on the coastal escarpment increases the concentration of Na +, resulting in a low Cl -/Na + ratios. We propose that the slope variations in the coastal regions of Antarctica could significantly influence the sea-salt chemistry of snow. © Author(s) 2012. CC Attribution 3.0 License.

Figures

  • Fig. 1. Map showing the sampling locations in Princess Elizabeth Land transect. Inset on the left corner shows the wind rose chart for 2008, showing prevalent wind direction (NNE–ENE) on the coast.
  • Fig. 2. Temporal records of δ18O, Cl−, Na+ and SO2−4 from sites representing coast (26 km), mid-way (90 km) and the interior (160 km) in Princess Elizabeth Land. Seasonality in δ18O variability was primarily used to determine the annual accumulations within the core, supported by Na+, Cl− and SO2−4 records.
  • Table 1. Details of sampling parameters along with slope, accumulation rates and annual Cl−/Na+ values.
  • Fig. 3. (a) Spatial distribution and statistical variations in the annual concentrations of Na+, Cl− and SO2−4 from coast to inland. Note the logarithmic scale for concentrations in Na+ and Cl− plots. The square and the line inside the box represent mean and median, respectively; the whiskers outside the box represent the upper (99 %) and lower (1 %) quartiles and “x” denotes the outliers. Breaks in the x-axis show difference in sampling interval before and after 50 km. (b) The summer and winter concentrations of the respective sea-salt ions along with the elevation profile.
  • Fig. 4. (a) Average annual Cl−/Na+ ratios from coast to inland. The dashed line is the annual average Cl−/Na+ ratio along the entire transect and the solid line is bulk sea water (BSW) ratio. (b) Seasonal variability in Cl−/Na+ ratios from the entire transect. Please note the break in scale along the x-axis.
  • Table 2. Seasonal and annual average concentrations of Na+, Cl− and SO2−4 in snow from the steep escarpment of the transect.
  • Table 3. Correlation coefficients (r) between the site specific features and Na+ and Cl− ions. Correlations are based on annual ion concentration data. Values marked with a and b represent correlations that are significant at 95 % and 99 % respectively.
  • Table 4. Multiple regression model summaries explaining the percentage of Cl−/Na+ variability attributed to the physical parameters. Model 1 shows the variance due to slope entered in the regression equation followed by distance from sea and elevation while model 2 shows the variation due to elevation, followed by distance from sea and slope.

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APA

Mahalinganathan, K., Thamban, M., Laluraj, C. M., & Redkar, B. L. (2012). Relation between surface topography and sea-salt snow chemistry from Princess Elizabeth Land, East Antarctica. Cryosphere, 6(2), 505–515. https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-6-505-2012

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