Showing 11923 items
1 October, 2022 by Peter Convey
We report the first formal record of the Indian meal moth Plodia interpunctella from a location within the Antarctic Treaty area, with the capture of a live adult male within…1 October, 2022 by Peter Convey
We detected the fungal assemblages present in lake sediments on James Ross Island, Antarctica, using DNA metabarcoding. A total of 132 amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) were assigned, dominated by taxa…1 October, 2022 by Kevin Newsham
Mineral extraction is known to affect soil fungi in polar environments, but it is unknown how long these effects persist. Here, by amplifying the internal transcribed spacer regions of rRNA…1 October, 2022 by Mervyn Freeman
Nearly all studies of impulsive geomagnetic disturbances (GMDs, also known as magnetic perturbation events MPEs) that can produce dangerous geomagnetically induced currents (GICs) have used data from the northern hemisphere.…1 October, 2022 by Mark Clilverd, Richard Horne
Intervals of Pulsations of Diminishing Periods (IPDPs) are a subtype of Electromagnetic Ion Cyclotron (EMIC) waves that can be triggered by substorm onset. Pi1B waves are Ultra Low Frequency (ULF)…1 October, 2022 by Matthew Chadwick
Past warm periods serve as an analog for the impacts of future warming. Reconstructions of Antarctic sea ice from 130,000 years ago show a reduction in sea-ice extent relative to…Read more on Reconstructing Antarctic sea ice from 130,000 years ago
1 October, 2022 by Dominic Hodgson, Louise Sime, Richard Phillips
Where snow petrels forage is predominantly a function of sea ice. They spit stomach oil in defence, and accumulated deposits at nesting sites are providing new opportunities to reconstruct their…Read more on Snow petrel stomach-oil deposits as a new biological archive of Antarctic sea ice
1 October, 2022 by Louise Sime
The 16 models that simulated the Last Interglacial climate as part of the CMIP6/PMIP4 exercise consistently produce a smaller Arctic summer sea-ice area compared to the pre-industrial period, but their…30 September, 2022
At high-latitudes, diurnal and semidiurnal variations of temperature and neutral wind velocity can originate both in the lower atmosphere (UV or infrared absorption) or in the thermosphere-ionosphere (ion convection, EUV…25 September, 2022 by Johnathan Ross, Nigel Meredith, Richard Horne, Sarah Glauert
The banded structure of Electromagnetic Ion Cyclotron (EMIC) wave spectra and their resonant interactions with radiation belt electrons depend on the cold ion composition. However, there is a great deal…Read more on The importance of ion composition for radiation belt modeling
23 September, 2022 by Andrew Orr
Regional climate models (RCMs) and reanalysis datasets provide valuable information for assessing the vulnerability of ice shelves to collapse over Antarctica, which is important for future global sea level rise…19 September, 2022 by Hamish Pritchard
Seasonal melting of glaciers and snow from the western Third Pole (TP) plays important role in sustaining water supplies downstream. However, the future water availability of the region, and even…16 September, 2022 by Markus Frey
Previous Antarctic summer campaigns have shown unexpectedly high levels of oxidants in the lower atmosphere of the continental plateau and at coastal regions, with atmospheric hydroxyl radical (OH) concentrations up…16 September, 2022 by Diana Vladimirova, Jack Humby, Liz Thomas
In this study, we used the stable water isotope record (δ18O) from an ice core drilled in Palmer Land, southern Antarctic Peninsula (AP). Utilizing δ18O we identified two climate regimes…16 September, 2022 by Thomas Bauska
Here we use high-precision carbon isotope data (δ13C-CO2) to show atmospheric CO2 during Marine Isotope Stage 4 (MIS 4, ~70.5-59 ka) was controlled by a succession of millennial-scale processes. Enriched…15 September, 2022 by Xin Yang
Bromine explosion events (BEEs) are important processes that influence the atmospheric oxidation capacity, especially in the polar troposphere during spring. Although sea ice surface is thought to be a significant…Read more on Study of an Arctic blowing snow-induced bromine explosion event in Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard
15 September, 2022 by Louise Sime
Southern Ocean bathymetry constrains the path of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC), but the bathymetric influence on the coupled ocean–atmosphere system is poorly understood. Here, we investigate this impact by…12 September, 2022 by Anne-Sophie Bonnet-Lebrun, Norman Ratcliffe
Density-dependent prey depletion around breeding colonies has long been considered an important factor controlling the population dynamics of colonial animals. Ashmole proposed that as seabird colony size increases, intraspecific competition…Read more on Foraging range scales with colony size in high-latitude seabirds
12 September, 2022 by Hugh Venables
Tides significantly affect polar coastlines by modulating ice shelf melt and modifying shelf water properties through transport and mixing. However, the effect of tides on the marine carbonate chemistry in…10 September, 2022 by Robert Mulvaney
The response of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet to past intervals of oceanic and atmospheric warming is still not well constrained but is critical for understanding both past and future…9 September, 2022 by Alexander Bradley, David Bett, Paul Holland, Pierre Dutrieux
The combination of the Pine Island Ice Shelf (PIIS) draft and a seabed ridge beneath it form a topographic barrier, restricting access of warm Circumpolar Deep Water to a cavity…Read more on The influence of Pine Island Ice Shelf calving on basal melting
8 September, 2022 by Nadia Frontier
1. Climate change can alter ecological communities both directly, by driving shifts in species distributions and abundances, and indirectly by influencing the strength and direction of species interactions. Within benthic…7 September, 2022 by Gareth Marshall, John King, Steve Colwell, Tony Phillips
We use meteorological measurements from three drifting buoys to evaluate the performance of the ERA-Interim and ERA5 atmospheric reanalyses from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts over the Weddell…6 September, 2022 by Rob Shore
The response of the Earth’s magnetotail current sheet to the external solar wind driver is highly time-dependent and asymmetric. For example, the current sheet twists in response to variations in…6 September, 2022 by Michael McCarthy, Michael McCarthy
Glaciers are key components of the mountain water towers of Asia and are vital for downstream domestic, agricultural, and industrial uses. The glacier mass loss rate over the southeastern Tibetan…5 September, 2022 by Claus-Dieter Hillenbrand, James Smith, Kelly Hogan, Robert Larter
Understanding the recent history of Thwaites Glacier, and the processes controlling its ongoing retreat, is key to projecting Antarctic contributions to future sea-level rise. Of particular concern is how the…Read more on Rapid retreat of Thwaites Glacier in the pre-satellite era
1 September, 2022 by Joseph Ulanowski
Cloud representation is one of the largest uncertainties in the current weather and climate models. In this article, the observations and modeling of the radiative effect on (cloud) microphysics (REM)…Read more on The Radiative Effect on Cloud Microphysics from the Arctic to the Tropics
1 September, 2022 by Peter Convey
Snow is an important driver of ecosystem processes in cold biomes. Snow accumulation determines ground temperature, light conditions, and moisture availability during winter. It also affects the growing season's start…Read more on Winters are changing: Snow effects on Arctic and alpine tundra ecosystems
1 September, 2022 by Richard Phillips
1. Timing of breeding, an important driver of fitness in many populations, is widely studied in the context of global change, yet despite considerable efforts to identify environmental drivers of…1 September, 2022 by Claire Allen, Claus-Dieter Hillenbrand, James Smith, Kelly Hogan, Robert Larter, Zoe Roseby
Following the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; ca. 23-19 calibrated [cal.] kyr before present [BP]), atmospheric and oceanic warming, together with global sea-level rise, drove widespread deglaciation of the Antarctic Ice…1 September, 2022 by Philip Trathan
Direct observation of foraging behavior is not always possible, especially for marine species that hunt underwater. However, biologging and tracking devices have provided detailed information about how various species use…1 September, 2022 by Lara Perez Miguel, Robert Larter
The present-day morpho-stratigraphy of the Ross Sea is the result of Cenozoic tectonic and cryospheric events, and constitutes a key record of Antarctica's cryospheric evolution. An enduring problem in interpreting…1 September, 2022 by Jane Francis
The Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) annual Medals and Awards recognise achievements in researching, communicating and teaching a wide range of geographical knowledge. The speeches and citations are a record…Read more on Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) Medals and Awards celebration 2022 [Speech]
1 September, 2022 by Claire Allen, Claus-Dieter Hillenbrand, James Smith, Kelly Hogan, Robert Larter, Zoe Roseby
Reconstructing the advance and retreat of past ice sheets provides important long-term context for recent change(s) and enables us to better understand ice sheet responses to forcing mechanisms and external…1 September, 2022 by Paul Holland
The satellite-observed sea ice thickness records from 2003 to 2020 identify an extreme sea ice thickness loss during 2010–2011. Ice thickness budget analysis demonstrates that the thickness loss was associated…1 September, 2022 by Dave Munday
Including the ocean surface current in the calculation of wind stress is known to damp mesoscale eddies through a negative wind power input and have potential ramifications for eddy longevity.…Read more on The response of a baroclinic anticyclonic eddy to relative wind stress forcing
1 September, 2022 by Keith Nicholls
Ocean-driven melt of Antarctic ice shelves is an important control on mass loss from the ice sheet, but is complex to study due to significant variability in melt rates both…Read more on Data initiatives for ocean-driven melt of Antarctic ice shelves
1 September, 2022 by Alexander Bradley, David Bett, Paul Holland, Pierre Dutrieux
Sea level rise contributions from the Pine Island Glacier (PIG) are strongly modulated by the backstress that its floating extension – Pine Island Ice Shelf (PIIS) – exerts on the…Read more on The ice dynamic and melting response of Pine Island Ice Shelf to calving
1 September, 2022 by Alex Brisbourne
The density structure of firn has implications for hydrological and climate modelling and for ice shelf stability. The firn structure can be evaluated from depth models of seismic velocity, widely…30 August, 2022 by Dave Munday, Dani Jones, Rachel Furner
There has been much recent interest in developing data-driven models for weather and climate predictions. However, there are open questions regarding their generalizability and robustness, highlighting a need to better…Read more on A sensitivity analysis of a regression model of ocean temperature
24 August, 2022 by Robert Mulvaney
Crystallographic preferred orientations (CPOs) are particularly important in controlling the mechanical properties of glacial shear margins. Logistical and safety considerations often make direct sampling of shear margins difficult, and geophysical…24 August, 2022 by Ashley Bennison
Body-mounted accelerometers provide a new prospect for estimating power use in flying birds, as the signal varies with the two major kinematic determinants of aerodynamic power: wingbeat frequency and amplitude.…Read more on The role of wingbeat frequency and amplitude in flight power
23 August, 2022 by Mark Clilverd, Mervyn Freeman
Variability of the geomagnetic field induces anomalous Geomagnetically Induced Currents (GICs) in grounded conducting infrastructure. GICs represent a serious space weather hazard, but are not often measured directly and the…19 August, 2022 by Ryan Saunders
Knowledge of the three-dimensional movement patterns of elasmobranchs is vital to understand their ecological roles and exposure to anthropogenic pressures. To date, comparative studies among species at global scales have…Read more on Diving into the vertical dimension of elasmobranch movement ecology
17 August, 2022 by Victoria Peck
The carbon cycle is a key regulator of Earth’s climate. On geological time-scales, our understanding of particulate organic matter (POM), an important upper ocean carbon pool that fuels ecosystems and…16 August, 2022 by Amelie Kirchgaessner, Anna Jones
Atmospheric aerosols are important drivers of Arctic climate change through aerosol–cloud–climate interactions. However, large uncertainties remain on the sources and processes controlling particle numbers in both fine and coarse modes.…15 August, 2022 by Lara Perez Miguel, Victoria Peck
Early Pleistocene Marine Isotope Stage (MIS)-31 (1.081 to 1.062 Ma) is a unique interval of extreme global warming, including evidence of a West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) collapse. Here we…12 August, 2022 by Andrew Orr, Nadine Johnston
The aim of this workshop was to discuss the needs and challenges in using high-resolution climate model outputs for impacts-relevant modeling. Development of impacts-relevant climate projections in the polar regions…10 August, 2022 by Amy King, Jack Humby, Liz Thomas, Robert Mulvaney
A new ice core was drilled in West Antarctica on Skytrain Ice Rise in field season 2018/2019. This 651 m ice core is one of the main targets of the WACSWAIN…10 August, 2022 by Mervyn Freeman, Richard Horne, Sarah Glauert, Thomas Daggitt
We analyse a set of events in which both electron flux dropouts caused by magnetopause shadowing and geosynchronous magnetopause crossings (GMCs) are observed. These observations are compared to event-specific last…10 August, 2022 by Matthew Chadwick
Antarctic sea ice forms a critical part of the Southern Ocean and global climate system. The behaviour of Antarctic sea ice throughout the last glacial-interglacial (G-IG) cycle (12 000–130 000 years) allows…4 August, 2022 by Ingrid Cnossen
Rocket emissions and debris from spacecraft falling out of orbit are having increasingly detrimental effects on global atmospheric chemistry. Improved monitoring and regulation are urgently needed to create an environmentally…Read more on Atmospheric impacts of the space industry require oversight [Comment]
3 August, 2022 by Peter Convey
1. Antarctic winters are challenging for terrestrial invertebrates, and species that live there have specialised adaptations to conserve energy and protect against cold injury in the winter. However, rapidly occurring…3 August, 2022 by Ben Robinson, Simon Morley
Living specimens of the macroalga Palmaria decipiens were collected from 100 m depth, representing a new confirmed depth record, considerably exceeding the previous record of 42 m depth. Previous deeper…3 August, 2022 by Peter Convey
Increased research attention is being given to bacterial diversity associated with lichens. Rock tripe lichens (Umbilicariaceae) were collected from two distinct Antarctic biological regions, the continental region near the Japanese…2 August, 2022 by Claire Allen, Louise Sime, Matthew Chadwick
Antarctic sea ice plays a critical role in the Earth system, influencing energy, heat and freshwater fluxes, air–sea gas exchange, ice shelf dynamics, ocean circulation, nutrient cycling, marine productivity and…1 August, 2022 by Michael Thorne
Instability in Jacobians is determined by the presence of an eigenvalue lying in the right half plane. The coefficients of the characteristic polynomial contain information related to the specific matrix…1 August, 2022 by Peter Convey
We assessed the potentially pathogenic fungi in Antarctic permafrost and the overlying active layer on King George, Robert, Livingston and Deception Islands in the South Shetland Islands archipelago, maritime Antarctica.…1 August, 2022 by Clara Manno, Claire Waluda
The polar plastics research community have recommended the spatial coverage of microplastic investigations in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean be increased. Presented here is a baseline estimate of microplastics in…Read more on A record of microplastic in the marine nearshore waters of South Georgia
1 August, 2022 by Dominic Hodgson
The Southern Hemisphere westerly wind belt (SHWW) is a major feature of Southern Hemisphere, midlatitude climate that is closely linked with the sequestration and release of CO2 in the Southern…1 August, 2022 by Simon Morley
Aim: The Antarctic Circumpolar Current imparts significant structure to the Southern Ocean biota. The Antarctic Polar Front is a major barrier to dispersal, with separate species (or sometimes intraspecific clades)…1 August, 2022 by James Smith, Joanne Johnson, Liz Thomas
The rate and magnitude of the Antarctic Ice Sheet (AIS) contribution to global sea-level rise beyond 2100 CE remains highly uncertain. Past changes of the AIS, however, offer opportunities to…Read more on Stability of the Antarctic Ice Sheet during the pre-industrial Holocene
1 August, 2022 by Richard Phillips, William Mills
Mercury is a pervasive environmental contaminant that can negatively impact seabirds. Here, we measure total mercury (THg) concentrations in red blood cells (RBCs) from breeding brown skuas (Stercorarius antarcticus) (n…1 August, 2022 by Michael Meredith
The cycling of dissolved organic matter in the productive west Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) region is not well understood. For this study, dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and nitrogen (DON) concentrations and…1 August, 2022 by Anna Jones, James France, Thomas Lachlan-Cope
Methane (CH4) mole fractions from the large semiseasonal Llanos de Moxos wetlands (∼70,000 km2) in northern Bolivia were measured by aircraft flights and ground sampling during early March 2019 (late…Read more on Very large fluxes of methane measured above Bolivian seasonal wetlands
1 August, 2022 by Jennifer Freer, Philip Trathan
Multiple initiatives have called for large-scale representative networks of marine protected areas (MPAs). MPAs should be ecologically representative to be effective, but in large, remote regions this can be difficult…1 August, 2022 by Maria Fox
Temporal planning often involves numeric effects that are directly proportional to their action’s duration. These include continuous effects, where a numeric variable is subjected to a rate of change while…Read more on Efficient Temporal Piecewise-Linear Numeric Planning with Lazy Consistency Checking
1 August, 2022 by Keith Nicholls, Paul Holland, Peter Davis
The melt rate of Antarctic ice shelves is of key importance for rising sea levels and future climate scenarios. Recent observations beneath Larsen C Ice Shelf revealed an ocean boundary…1 August, 2022 by Martin Rogers
Microsporidian diversity is vast. There is a renewed drive to understand how microsporidian pathological, genomic, and ecological traits relate to their phylogeny. We comprehensively sample and phylogenetically analyse 125 microsporidian…Read more on Microsporidia: a new taxonomic, evolutionary, and ecological synthesis
30 July, 2022 by Jaume Forcada
Nuclear copies of mitochondrial genes (numts) are commonplace in vertebrate genomes and have been characterized in many species. However, relatively little attention has been paid to understanding their evolutionary origins…26 July, 2022 by Anna Jones, Markus Frey, Robert Mulvaney, Holly Winton
Perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) are synthetic chemicals with a variety of industrial and consumer applications that are now widely distributed in the global environment. Here, we report the measurement of six…
25 July, 2022 by Alice Fremand, Carl Robinson, David Vaughan, Fausto Ferraccioli, Hugh Corr, Helen Peat, Julien Bodart, Tom Jordan
Over the past 50 years, the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) has been one of the major acquirers of aerogeophysical data over Antarctica, providing scientists with gravity, magnetic, and radar datasets…22 July, 2022 by Neil Cobbett, Tracy Moffat-Griffin
The mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT) is a dynamic layer of the earth’s atmosphere. This region marks the interface at which neutral atmosphere dynamics begin to influence the ionosphere and…22 July, 2022 by Claire Allen, Zelna Weich
Antarctic sea ice is an essential component of the global climate system. Reconstructions of Antarctic sea ice from marine sediment cores are a vital resource to improve the representation of…21 July, 2022 by Claire Allen, Dieter Tetzner, Liz Thomas
The Southern Hemisphere westerly winds are among the most important drivers of recently observed environmental changes in West Antarctica. However, the lack of long-term wind records in this region hinders…21 July, 2022 by Philip Trathan
In Antarctica, abundant consumers rely on Antarctic krill for food, but krill are also the subject of a commercial fishery. The fishery overlaps in time and space with the foraging…21 July, 2022 by Kate Hendry
Over recent decades the highest rates of water column warming and sea ice loss across the Arctic Ocean have been observed in the Barents Sea. These physical changes have resulted…Read more on Benthic silicon cycling in the Arctic Barents Sea: A reaction–transport model study
20 July, 2022 by Peter Convey
Solar radiation regulates most biological activities on Earth. Prolonged exposure to solar UV radiation can cause deleterious effects by inducing two major types of DNA damage, namely cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers…20 July, 2022 by Victoria Warwick-Evans
Marine protected areas (MPAs), particularly large MPAs, are increasing in number and size around the globe in part to facilitate the conservation of marine megafauna under the assumption that large-scale…Read more on Mismatches in scale between highly mobile marine megafauna and marine protected areas
19 July, 2022 by Richard Phillips
Penguins lost the ability to fly more than 60 million years ago, subsequently evolving a hyper-specialized marine body plan. Within the framework of a genome-scale, fossil-inclusive phylogeny, we identify key…Read more on Genomic insights into the secondary aquatic transition of penguins
15 July, 2022 by Kate Hendry
Biogeochemical cycling of silicon (Si) in the Barents Sea is under considerable pressure from physical and chemical changes, including dramatic warming and sea ice retreat, together with a decline in…13 July, 2022 by John King, John Turner
Northern sections of the Larsen Ice Shelf, eastern Antarctic Peninsula (AP) have experienced dramatic break-up and collapse since the early 1990s due to strong summertime surface melt, linked to strengthened…13 July, 2022 by Ryan Saunders
The global importance of mesopelagic fish is increasingly recognised, but they remain poorly studied. This is particularly true in the Southern Ocean, where mesopelagic fishes are both key predators and…13 July, 2022 by Ashley Bennison
Understanding the sensory ecology of species is vital if we are to predict how they will function in a changing environment. Visual cues are fundamentally important for many predators when…Read more on Underwater visibility constrains the foraging behaviour of a diving pelagic seabird
9 July, 2022 by Geraint Tarling, Ryan Saunders
The Scotia Sea is a productive pelagic ecosystem in the Southern Ocean, which is rapidly changing as a consequence of global warming. Species range shifts are particularly evident, as sub-Antarctic…Read more on Ecological networks in the Scotia Sea: Structural changes across latitude and depth
9 July, 2022 by Dennis Mayk, Lloyd Peck
Ocean acidification and global climate change are predicted to negatively impact marine calcifiers, with species inhabiting the intertidal zone being especially vulnerable. Current predictions of organism responses to projected changes…7 July, 2022 by Kate Hendry
Carbonate chemistry of the Arctic Ocean seafloor and its vulnerability to ocean acidification remains poorly explored. This limits our ability to quantify how biogeochemical processes and bottom water conditions shape…7 July, 2022 by Lloyd Peck
The biodiversity of marine and coastal habitats is experiencing unprecedented change. While there are well-known drivers of these changes, such as overexploitation, climate change and pollution, there are also relatively…Read more on A global horizon scan of issues impacting marine and coastal biodiversity conservation
7 July, 2022 by Ella Gilbert
Recent warm atmospheric conditions have damaged the ice shelves of the Antarctic Peninsula through surface melt and hydrofracturing and could potentially initiate future collapse of other Antarctic ice shelves. However,…Read more on Clouds drive differences in future surface melt over the Antarctic ice shelves
6 July, 2022 by Dani Jones, Rachael Sanders
The subpolar North Atlantic is an important part of the global ocean and climate system, with SST variability in the region influencing the climate of Europe and North America. While…Read more on Causes of the 2015 North Atlantic cold anomaly in a global state estimate
6 July, 2022 by Jack Atkinson
We investigate the flow within a liquid-metal battery induced by an externally imposed magnetic field, B-0. An analytical model for laminar flow is proposed and this is found to be…Read more on Magnetically driven flow in a liquid-metal battery
4 July, 2022 by Norman Ratcliffe
1. Changes in phenology and distribution are being widely reported for many migratory species in response to shifting environmental conditions. Understanding these changes and the situations in which they occur…4 July, 2022
Endangered species with small population sizes are susceptible to genetic erosion, which can be detrimental to long-term persistence. Consequently, monitoring and mitigating the loss of genetic diversity are essential for…1 July, 2022
Under the climate change context, warming Southern Ocean waters may allow mercury (Hg) to become more bioavailable to the Antarctic marine food web (i.e., ice-stored Hg release and higher methylation…Read more on Mercury biomagnification in an Antarctic food web of the Antarctic Peninsula