Found 14089 items
1 January, 2014 by Kevin Hughes
Antarctic terrestrial habitats are vulnerable to impacts resulting from global and local human activities. Global activities have resulted in climate change affecting parts of Antarctica, stratospheric ozone depletion over the…1 January, 2014 by Kevin Hughes, Peter Convey
Globally, many thousands of species have been redistributed beyond their natural dispersal ranges as a result of human activities. The introduction of non-native species can have severe consequences for indigenous…1 January, 2014 by Thomas Millgate
Ice shelves play an important role in the mass balance of an ice sheet, by providing a link between the ocean and ice. Melting at the base of an ice…1 January, 2014 by Michael Dunn, Norman Ratcliffe, Philip Trathan, Stacey Adlard
We present a design for a simple, inexpensive leg band for mounting GLS tags on penguins. It causes a low level of injury and can be made from materials and…Read more on A leg-band for mounting geolocator tags on penguins
1 January, 2014 by Paul Rodhouse
Cephalopods are a relatively small class of molluscs (~ 800 species), but they support some large industrial scale fisheries and numerous small-scale, local, artisanal fisheries. For several decades, landings of…Read more on Environmental effects on cephalopod population dynamics
1 January, 2014 by Dominic Hodgson, Peter Convey
The Antarctic Peninsula is one of the most rapidly warming regions on Earth, with air temperature increases of as much as 3°C recorded since the 1950s. However, the longer-term context…1 January, 2014 by Kevin Hughes
The scope and intensity of human activity in the Antarctic region has changed considerably over the past 100 years, resulting in significant modifications to the Antarctic environment and its ecosystems,…1 January, 2014 by David Barnes, Iain Staniland, Mark Belchier, Philip Trathan, Susie Grant
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI) are surrounded by oceans that are species-rich, have high levels of biodiversity, important endemism and which also support large aggregations of charismatic…1 January, 2014 by Jonathan Shanklin
We review the 2012 Antarctic ozone hole, making use of various meteorological reanalyses, remotely sensed ozone measurements and ground-based measurements of ultra-violet radiation. Based on analysis of 33 years of…1 January, 2014 by Jonathan Shanklin
The Antarctic ozone hole of 2011 is reviewed from a variety of perspectives, making use of various data and analyses. The ozone hole of 2011 was relatively large in terms…1 January, 2014
Little is known of the endangered and declining western North Atlantic population of the Roseate Tern Sterna dougallii outside the breeding season, when most mortality probably occurs. We used geolocators…17 December, 2013 by Chester Sands
Phylogeographic studies provide a framework for understanding the importance of intrinsic versus extrinsic factors in shaping patterns of biodiversity through identifying past and present microevolutionary processes that contributed to lineage…17 December, 2013
During the heroic age of Antarctic exploration, general anaesthesia was given on at least 11 occasions. This paper describes some of the surgery procedures performed, including on the doctors themselvesRead more on Surgery and anaesthesia during the heroic age of Antarctic exploration (1895-1922)
16 December, 2013 by Eric Wolff
Earth system models are increasing in complexity and incorporating more processes than their predecessors, making them important tools for studying the global carbon cycle. However, their coupled behaviour has only…16 December, 2013 by Keith Nicholls
Over the last decade, several hundred seals have been equipped with conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) sensors in the Southern Ocean for both biological and physical oceanographic studies. A calibrated collection of seal-derived…16 December, 2013 by Anna Jones
HCHO was monitored throughout the year 2009 at the coastal East Antarctic site of Dumont d'Urville (DDU) using Aerolaser AL-4021 analyzers. The accurate determination of less than 100 pptv required…9 December, 2013 by Jennifer Jackson, Katrin Linse
A new deep-sea stalked barnacle, Vulcanolepas scotiaensis sp. nov. is described from hydrothermal vents at depths of 2400–2600 metres along segments of the East Scotia Ridge and from 1400 metres…9 December, 2013 by Mark Clilverd
The energy spectra of energetic electron precipitation from the radiation belts are studied in order to improve our understanding of the influence of radiation belt processes. The Detection of Electromagnetic…7 December, 2013 by Simon Morley
Species with broader geographical ranges are expected to be ecological generalists, while species with higher heat tolerances may be relatively competitive at more extreme and increasing temperatures. Thus, both traits…Read more on Geographical range, heat tolerance and invasion success in aquatic species
6 December, 2013 by Pierre Mathiot
The mid-Holocene (6 kyr BP; thousand years before present) is a key period to study the consistency between model results and proxy-based reconstruction data as it corresponds to a standard…1 December, 2013 by Peter Convey
This paper presents the results of a biodiversity study of microfungi in ornithogenic soils from Beaufort Island (Ross Sea, continental Antarctic). During the 2004/05 austral summer, we sampled a wide…1 December, 2013 by Adrian Jenkins, Deb Shoosmith, Keith Nicholls
The presence of warm Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW) intrusions on the Amundsen continental shelf has been linked to recent thinning of the outlet glaciers draining the West Antarctic ice sheet…1 December, 2013 by Jane Francis, Vanessa Bowman
The Late Cretaceous is considered to have been a time of greenhouse climates, although evidence from Maastrichtian sediments for rapid and significant sea-level changes suggests that ice sheets were growing…1 December, 2013 by Huw Griffiths
The geographical coverage of a comprehensive dataset on Antarctic macrobenthic communities is provided for the first time. Since the sampling methods applied since the 1950s vary considerably, a robust analysis…Read more on Circumpolar overview and spatial heterogeneity of Antarctic macrobenthic communities
1 December, 2013 by Keith Nicholls
Marine ice is an important factor in ice shelf stability. An extensive marine ice layer is present under the Amery Ice Shelf (AIS), East Antarctica. This paper documents observations on…1 December, 2013 by Simeon Hill
The goals of ecosystem based management (EBM) are strategically ambiguous, meaning that they require interpretation to identify objectives for ecosystem state. Ecosystem states that are useful for achieving such objectives…1 December, 2013 by Adrian Jenkins, Paul Holland, Thomas Millgate
The presence of ice shelf basal channels has been noted in a number of Antarctic and Greenland ice shelves, but their impact on basal melting is not fully understood. Here…Read more on The effect of basal channels on oceanic ice-shelf melting
1 December, 2013 by David Newnham, David Maxfield, Mark Clilverd, Richard Horne
We report ground-based measurements of the polar middle atmosphere made using a 230-250 GHz passive microwave radiometer deployed at Troll station (72°01’S 02°32’E, L-shell of L = 4.8), Antarctica. Our observations show enhanced…1 December, 2013 by Deborah Pardo
Sex differences in lifespan and aging are widespread among animals. Since investment in current reproduction can have consequences on other life-history traits, the sex with the highest cost of breeding…Read more on Females better face senescence in the wandering albatross
1 December, 2013 by Povl Abrahamsen
This synthesis study assesses recent changes of Arctic Ocean physical parameters using a unique collection of observations from the 2000s and places them in the context of long-term climate trends…Read more on Recent oceanic changes in the Arctic in the context of long-term observations
1 December, 2013 by Andrew Kavanagh, Mark Clilverd
Energetic Electron Precipitation (EEP) impacts the chemistry of the middle atmosphere with growing evidence of coupling to surface temperatures at high latitudes. To better understand this link it is essential…1 December, 2013 by Dominic Hodgson
Bathurst Harbour in World Heritage southwest Tasmania, Australia, is one of the world’s most pristine estuarine systems. At present there is a lack of data on pollution impacts or long-term…1 December, 2013 by Eric Wolff, Jane Francis, Robert Larter
The Geological Society published a Statement on 'Climate Change: Evidence from the Geological Record' in November 2010. In light of further research that has been published since then, the Geological…1 December, 2013 by Dominic Hodgson, Stephen Roberts
To fully understand the Holocene climatic variability in the sub-polar latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere and its driving mechanisms, like the Southern Hemisphere westerly winds, we undertook a multi-proxy analysis…Read more on A paleolimnological reconstruction of Holocene climate change in southern Patagonia
1 December, 2013 by David Pearce, Peter Convey
The Antarctic represents a largely untapped source for isolation of new microorganisms with potential to produce bioactive natural products. Actinomycetes are of special interest among such microorganisms as they are…29 November, 2013 by Richard Hindmarsh, Richard Hindmarsh
Fast-flowing glaciers and ice streams are pathways for ice discharge from the interior of the Antarctic Ice Sheet to ice shelves, at rates controlled by conditions at the ice-bed interface.…26 November, 2013 by Martin Miller
Lin et al. (1) claim to have discovered a positive 17O anomaly in water vapor from Alert, Canada, indicative of a component of stratospheric origin. However, their data (Tables S1−S5)…Read more on Oxygen isotope anomaly not present in water vapor from Alert, Canada
20 November, 2013 by Richard Phillips
Croxall et al. (2013; Mar Ecol Prog Ser 493:297-300) assert that fine-scale analysis of seabird-fisheries overlap, such as that presented in Torres et al. (2013; Mar Ecol Prog Ser 473:275-289),…20 November, 2013 by Gareth Marshall, Scott Hosking, John Turner, Tony Phillips
On 24 September 2012 the Antarctic sea ice extent (SIE) reached a new annual daily maximum (ADM) for the satellite era of 19.72 × 106 km2. The largest positive SIE anomalies compared to…11 November, 2013 by Jonathan Kingslake
We use the Shreve hydraulic potential equation as a simplified approach to investigate potential subglacial lake locations and meltwater drainage pathways beneath the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets. We validate…8 November, 2013
For over the past 50 years the tag line for Antarctica has been "A continent for peace and science," leaving the rest of human activities rather adrift. Yes, there have…Read more on Review of Exploring Antarctic values, by Daniela Liggett & Alan D. Hemmings (2013)
5 November, 2013 by Mark Clilverd, Neil Cobbett
Data from two autonomous VLF radio receiver systems installed in a remote region of the Antarctic in 2012 is used to take advantage of the juxtaposition of the L = 4.6 contour,…5 November, 2013 by Eric Wolff, Michael Dinn, Robert Arthern, Richard Hindmarsh, Robert Mulvaney, Richard Hindmarsh
The recovery of a 1.5 million yr long ice core from Antarctica represents a keystone of our understanding of Quaternary climate, the progression of glaciation over this time period and…Read more on Where to find 1.5 million yr old ice for the IPICS “Oldest-Ice” ice core
1 November, 2013 by Eric Wolff
Sea ice plays an important role in Earth's climate system. The lack of direct indications of past sea ice coverage, however, means that there is limited knowledge of the sensitivity…Read more on A review of sea ice proxy information from polar ice cores
1 November, 2013 by Claire Allen, Dominic Hodgson
Antarctic sea-ice plays a primary role in the climate system, potentially modulating interhemispheric millennial-scale climate change and deglacial warming. Recently, microfossil proxy data have provided important insights into this potential…1 November, 2013 by Richard Phillips
Life-history theory predicts that costs are associated with reproduction. One possible mediator of costs involves the secretion of glucocorticoid hormones, which in birds can be measured in feathers grown during…Read more on Corticosterone mediated costs of reproduction link current to future breeding
1 November, 2013 by Eric Wolff
We argue that, while Milanković variations in solar radiation undoubtedly have a major influence on the timing of the Quaternary ice ages, they are partly incidental to their underlying causes.…1 November, 2013
Here we demonstrate the ability of stochastic reduced order models to predict the statistics of non-stationary systems undergoing critical transitions. First, we show that the reduced order models are able…Read more on Predictions of critical transitions with non-stationary reduced order models
1 November, 2013 by Keith Nicholls, Paul Holland
The exchange between the open ocean and sub-ice shelf cavities is important to both water mass transformations and ice shelf melting. Here we use a high-resolution (500 m) numerical model…Read more on Eddy-driven exchange between the open ocean and a sub-ice shelf cavity
1 November, 2013 by Richard Phillips
Miniature geolocator loggers (Global Location Sensing, GLS) that provide daily locations of birds have revolutionised the study of winter ecology and migration patterns of seabirds. A long-term study of ringing…1 November, 2013 by Jeremy Wilkinson
The understanding of sea ice mass balance processes requires continuous monitoring of the seasonal evolution of the ice thickness. While autonomous ice mass balance buoys (IMB buoys) deployed over the…1 November, 2013 by Philip Trathan
Long-lived animals sometimes skip one or more breeding seasons; however, little is known about their movements and activities during such ‘sabbatical’ periods. Here we present novel data on year-round movements…Read more on Movements and activities of male black-tailed gulls in breeding and sabbatical years
1 November, 2013 by Mark Clilverd
BARREL is a multiple-balloon investigation designed to study electron losses from Earth’s Radiation Belts. Selected as a NASA Living with a Star Mission of Opportunity, BARREL augments the Radiation Belt…Read more on The Balloon Array for RBSP Relativistic Electron Losses (BARREL)
1 November, 2013 by Katrin Linse
The ecology of Antarctic deep-sea fauna is poorly understood and few studies have gone beyond assessing biodiversity when comparing deep regions of the Southern Ocean. Protobranch bivalves are ubiquitous in…1 November, 2013 by Richard Phillips
The Tristan albatross Diomedea dabbanena is Critically Endangered: >99% of adults breed at Gough Island, central South Atlantic Ocean, where chicks are threatened by introduced predators. At sea they mostly…1 November, 2013 by Dominic Hodgson
The introduction and establishment of non-indigenous species through human activities often poses a major threat to natural biodiversity. In many parts of the world management efforts are therefore focused on…1 November, 2013 by Geraint Tarling, Ryan Saunders, Sally Thorpe, Sophie Fielding
In this paper, we describe the variation in myctophid schools characteristics at South Georgia using multi-frequency acoustic data collected annually between November 2007 and January 2012. We studied the relationship…Read more on School characteristics of mesopelagic fish at South Georgia
1 November, 2013
This paper presents new 500 year interval palaeogeographic models for Britain, Ireland and the North West French coast from 11000 cal. BP to present. These models are used to calculate…Read more on New models of North West European Holocene palaeogeography and inundation
1 November, 2013 by Dominic Hodgson
Biological responses to climate and environmental changes in remote polar regions are of increasing interest in global change research. Terrestrial and marine polar ecosystems have suffered from impacts of both…30 October, 2013 by Richard Phillips
Carryover effects have been documented in many migratory bird species, but we know little about the physiological mechanisms that mediate those effects. Here we show that the energetic, endocrine, and…28 October, 2013 by Andrew Meijers
1] Ocean observations around the Australian-Antarctic basin show the importance of coastal latent heat polynyas near the Mertz Glacier Tongue (MGT) to the formation of Dense Shelf Water (DSW) and…28 October, 2013 by Eric Wolff, John Turner, Liz Thomas, Thomas Bracegirdle
We present a new stable isotope record from Ellsworth Land which provides a valuable 308-year record (1702-2009) of climate variability from coastal West Antarctica. Climate variability at this site is…Read more on A 308-year record of climate variability in West Antarctica
22 October, 2013 by Pierre Mathiot
An assessment of the performance of a state-of-the-art large-scale coupled sea ice - ocean model, including a new snow multilayer thermodynamic scheme, is performed. Four 29-years-long simulations are compared against…Read more on On the formulation of snow thermal conductivity in large-scale sea ice models
21 October, 2013 by Norman Ratcliffe, Philip Trathan, Stacey Adlard
Intra-specific foraging niche partitioning can arise due to gender differences or individual specialisation in behaviour or prey selection. These may in turn be related to sexual size dimorphism or individual…20 October, 2013 by Emilie Capron
The end of the Last Glacial Maximum (Termination I), roughly 20 thousand years ago (ka), was marked by cooling in the Northern Hemisphere, a weakening of the Asian monsoon, a…Read more on Two-phase change in CO2, Antarctic temperature and global climate during Termination II
18 October, 2013 by Richard Horne
The Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP)-Energetic Particle, Composition, and Thermal Plasma (ECT) suite contains an innovative complement of particle instruments to ensure the highest quality measurements ever made in the…16 October, 2013 by Andrew Kavanagh, Steve Colwell, Tracy Moffat-Griffin
The gravity wave field in the lower stratosphere (between 15 km and 22 km altitude) above Mount Pleasant Airport (51°49’S, 58°26’W), on the Falkland Islands is studied using over 2100 high-resolution radiosonde…16 October, 2013 by Mark Clilverd
Observations have shown that mesospheric hydroxyl (OH) is affected by energetic electron precipitation (EEP) at magnetic latitudes connected to the outer radiation belt. It is not clear, however, if the…15 October, 2013 by Claus-Dieter Hillenbrand, James Smith
Dynamical changes in contemporary ice sheets account for significant proportions of their current rates of mass loss, but assessing whether or not these processes are a natural part of ice-sheet…Read more on Glaciology and geological signature of the Last Glacial Maximum Antarctic ice sheet
15 October, 2013 by Michael Meredith, Paul Holland
Recent decadal changes in Southern Hemisphere climate have driven strong responses from the cryosphere. Concurrently, there has been a marked freshening of the shelf and bottom waters across a wide…Read more on Decadal freshening of the Antarctic Bottom Water exported from the Weddell Sea
15 October, 2013 by Paul Rodhouse
Southern Ocean squid are important predators and prey and are a potential fishery resource. Their future under climate change is analysed from predictions of change by 2100 and assessments of…15 October, 2013 by Hugh Corr, Jonathan Kingslake, Richard Hindmarsh, Richard Hindmarsh
Here we report Late Holocene ice sheet and grounding-line changes to the Weddell Sea sector of West Antarctica. Internal radio-echo layering within the Bungenstock Ice Rise, which comprises very slow-flowing…Read more on Late Holocene ice-flow reconfiguration in the Weddell sector of West Antarctica
7 October, 2013 by Huw Griffiths, Katrin Linse
Information regarding the molluscs in this dataset is based on the Rauschert dredge samples collected during the Latitudinal Gradient Program (LGP) on board the R/V “Italica” in the Ross Sea…6 October, 2013 by Adrian Jenkins, Fausto Ferraccioli, Hugh Corr, Tom Jordan
Meltwater generated beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet exerts a strong influence on the speed of ice flow, in particular for major ice streams1, 2. The subglacial meltwater also influences ocean…4 October, 2013 by Gareth Chisham, Mai Mai Lam, Mervyn Freeman
The existence of a meteorological response in the polar regions to fluctuations in the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) component By is well established. More controversially, there is evidence to suggest…Read more on The interplanetary magnetic field influences mid-latitude surface atmospheric pressure
2 October, 2013 by Eugene Murphy
Human societies, and their well-being, depend to a significant extent on the state of the ecosystems that surround them. These ecosystems are changing rapidly usually in response to anthropogenic changes…2 October, 2013 by Richard Phillips
As apex marine predators, seabirds are often sampled to monitor bioaccumulative persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in the marine environment. Despite the restrictions on use and production of many POPs, concern…2 October, 2013 by Sandra McInnes, Sandra McInnes
Tardigrades are important members of the Antarctic biota yet little is known about their role in the soil fauna or whether they are affected by anthropogenic factors. The German Federal…Read more on The impact of tourists on Antarctic tardigrades: an ordination-based model
2 October, 2013 by Emma Woodfield, Richard Horne, Sarah Glauert
Jupiter has the most intense radiation belts of all the outer planets. It is not yet known how electrons can be accelerated to energies of 10 MeV or more. It…1 October, 2013 by Claus-Dieter Hillenbrand, Robert Larter
Studies of the sedimentary architecture and characteristics of the Antarctic continental margin provide clues about past ice sheet advance-retreat cycles and help improve constraints for paleo-ice dynamic models since early…1 October, 2013 by Jane Francis, Vanessa Bowman
Development of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) during the Cenozoic is controversial in terms of timing and its role in major climate transitions. Some propose that the development of the…Read more on Paleogeographic controls on the onset of the Antarctic circumpolar current
1 October, 2013 by Chester Sands, David Barnes, Huw Griffiths, Katrin Linse, Peter Enderlein
In 2008 the BIOPEARL II expedition on board of RRS James Clark Ross sailed to the eastern Amundsen Sea Embayment and Pine Island Bay, one of the least studied Antarctic…1 October, 2013 by Gareth Chisham, Mervyn Freeman
We present observations from the Falkland Islands Super Dual Auroral Radar Network radar of the propagation of HF radio waves via the Weddell Sea Ionospheric Anomaly (WSA), a region of…1 October, 2013 by Mark Clilverd
Daily profiles of phase measurements as observed on fixed VLF-paths generally show a transient phase advance, followed by a phase delay, for about 90 minutes after sunrise hours. This is indicative…1 October, 2013 by John Turner
The first climatology of strong wind events (SWEs) at McMurdo station, Antarctica based on the in situ observations and reanalysis fields is presented. SWEs occur throughout the year, but with…Read more on A climatology of strong wind events at McMurdo station, Antarctica
1 October, 2013 by Mark Clilverd
The primary sources of energetic electron precipitation (EEP) which affect altitudes 30 keV) are expected to be from the radiation belts, and during substorms. EEP from the radiation belts should be…1 October, 2013 by Roger Worland, Peter Convey
In the Maritime Antarctic and High Arctic, soil microhabitat temperatures throughout the year typically range between -10 and +5°C. However, on occasion, they can exceed 20°C, and these instances are…1 October, 2013 by Simon Morley
Quaternary glaciations in Antarctica drastically modified geographical ranges and population sizes of marine benthic invertebrates and thus affected the amount and distribution of intraspecific genetic variation. Here, we present new…1 October, 2013 by Eugene Murphy, Philip Trathan, Simeon Hill, Susie Grant
Ecosystem services are the benefits that mankind obtains from natural ecosystems. Here we identify the key services provided by the Southern Ocean. These include provisioning of fishery products, nutrient cycling,…Read more on Ecosystem services of the Southern Ocean: trade-offs in decision-making
1 October, 2013 by Nigel Meredith, Richard Horne, Sarah Glauert, Tobias Kersten
Global models of the Van Allen radiation belts usually include resonant wave-particle interactions as a diffusion process, but there is a large uncertainty over the diffusion rates. Here we present…Read more on A new diffusion matrix for whistler mode chorus waves
1 October, 2013 by Richard Phillips
The distribution of Atlantic puffins (Fratercula arctica) from Skellig Michael, south-west Ireland, was investigated using geolocation loggers between the 2010 and 2011 breeding seasons. All tracked birds travelled rapidly west…1 October, 2013 by David Jones, Hilmar Gudmundsson
There remain large regions of scientific interest in the Antarctic that are not instrumented. These include highly dynamic ice streams and glaciers that are difficult or impossible to reach safely…1 October, 2013 by Jonathan Kingslake
Glacier-dammed lakes can yield subglacial outburst floods (jo¨kulhlaups) repeatedly. Predicting flood timing is crucial for hazard mitigation, but incomplete understanding of flood-initiation physics makes this challenging. Here we examine the…