1 August, 2023 by Anna Belcher, Geraint Tarling, Gabriele Stowasser, Ryan Saunders, Sophie Fielding
Zooplankton form an integral component of epi- and mesopelagic ecosystems, and there is a need to better understand their role in ocean biogeochemistry. The export and remineralisation of particulate organic…1 August, 2023 by Clara Manno, Emily Rowlands, Sally Thorpe, Victoria Peck
Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) plays a central role in the Antarctic marine food web and biogeochemical cycles and has been identified as a species that is potentially vulnerable to plastic…1 August, 2023 by Clara Manno, Emily Rowlands, Sally Thorpe, Victoria Peck
Estimated plastic debris floating at the ocean surface varies depending on modelling approaches, with some suggesting unaccounted sinks for marine plastic debris due to mismatches between plastic predicted to enter…Read more on Vertical flux of microplastic, a case study in the Southern Ocean, South Georgia
1 August, 2023 by Dani Jones
Fieldwork, including work done at sea, is a key component of many geoscientists' careers. Recent studies have highlighted the pervasive harassment faced by women and LGBTQ+ people during fieldwork. However,…1 August, 2023 by Eugene Murphy, Philip Trathan, Sally Thorpe
Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) and Ice krill (Euphausia crystallorophias) are key species within Southern Ocean marine ecosystems. Given their importance in regional food webs, coupled with the uncertain impacts of…1 August, 2023 by Peter Convey
This study provides new species records (NRs) of macroalgal assemblages present in rocky habitats from the South Shetland Islands (SSI) and north-eastern Antarctic Peninsula (EAP), Weddell Sea. Surveys were conducted…1 August, 2023 by Andrew McDonald
Forecasting the block maxima of a future time window is a challenging task due to the difficulty in inferring the tail distribution of a target variable. As the historical observations…31 July, 2023 by Tracy Moffat-Griffin
Global measurements to characterize gravity wave (GW) parameters, distribution and main trends in the ITM are crucial. This white paper summarizes current GW measurement techniques operated from ground-based to space…Read more on Measurements of gravity wave global distributions and trends in the ITM
28 July, 2023 by Eugene Murphy, Sally Thorpe
Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) is a key species of the Southern Ocean, impacted by climate change and human exploitation. Understanding how these changes affect the distribution and abundance of krill…27 July, 2023 by Geraint Tarling, Ryan Saunders, Victoria Fowler
In addition to diel vertical migration, individual zooplankton may also make a number of shorter-term migrations, or forays, into the surface layers from deeper depths. Direct observation of these forays…Read more on Detection of foray behaviour in the zooplankton of the Antarctic Polar Front region
23 July, 2023 by Gareth Chisham, Mai Mai Lam, Mervyn Freeman, Rob Shore
Forecasting of the effects of thermospheric drag on satellites will be improved significantly with better modeling of space weather effects on the high-latitude ionosphere, in particular the Joule heating arising…Read more on A Model of High Latitude Ionospheric Convection Derived From SuperDARN EOF Model Data
20 July, 2023 by Andrew Orr, Emily Potter
Runoff from glacierised Andean river basins is essential for sustaining the livelihoods of millions of people. By running a high-resolution climate model over the two most glacierised regions of Peru…Read more on A future of extreme precipitation and droughts in the Peruvian Andes
19 July, 2023 by Connor Bamford
In the design of protected areas for cetaceans, spatial maps rarely take account of the life-history and behaviour of protected species relevant to their spatial ambit, which may be important…19 July, 2023 by Richard Horne, Sarah Glauert, Thomas Daggitt
The outer radiation belt is a region of space comprising highly energetic electrons. During periods of extreme space weather, the number and energy of these electrons can rapidly vary. During…17 July, 2023 by Alice Fremand, Andy Smith, David Vaughan, Ed King, Elena Field, Fausto Ferraccioli, Hugh Corr, Hamish Pritchard, Peter Fretwell, Richard Hindmarsh, Tom Jordan, Richard Hindmarsh
One of the key components of this research has been the mapping of Antarctic bed topography and ice thickness parameters that are crucial for modelling ice flow and hence for…16 July, 2023 by Dani Jones
Ice sheet melting into the Southern Ocean can change the formation and properties of the Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW). Ocean models often mimic ice sheet melting by adding freshwater fluxes…15 July, 2023 by Robert Mulvaney
The Younger Toba Tuff eruption ∼74 ka ago in Indonesia, is among the largest known supereruptions in the Quaternary and its potential impact on the climate system and human evolution…13 July, 2023 by Michael Meredith
Glacial meltwater is an important environmental variable for ecosystem dynamics along the biologically productive Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) shelf. This region is experiencing rapid change, including increasing glacial meltwater discharge…Read more on Remote Sensing of Sea Surface Glacial Meltwater on the Antarctic Peninsula Shelf
11 July, 2023 by Kelly Hogan, Robert Larter
Improvements in the resolution of sea-floor mapping techniques have revealed extremely regular, sub-metre-scale ridge landforms produced by the tidal flexure of ice-shelf grounding lines as they retreated very rapidly (i.e.…Read more on Towards modelling of corrugation ridges at ice-sheet grounding lines
7 July, 2023 by Alex Burton-Johnson, Kelly Hogan, Philip Leat, Teal Riley
The Cenozoic development of the Scotia Sea and opening of Drake Passage led to the dispersal of crustal blocks of the North and South Scotia ridges that today have a…7 July, 2023 by Peter Convey
Introduction: Ecogeographical patterns in body size have been described across a wide range of vertebrate species. However, insects have shown inconsistent patterns in studies to date. Aquatic insects, particularly those…6 July, 2023 by Richard Phillips
Many seabird populations are declining, with fisheries bycatch as one of the greatest threats. Explicit risk criteria should be used to identify whether bycatch is a problem for particular species…4 July, 2023 by Elizabeth Pearmain, Richard Phillips
Plastic pollution is distributed patchily around the world’s oceans. Likewise, marine organisms that are vulnerable to plastic ingestion or entanglement have uneven distributions. Understanding where wildlife encounters plastic is crucial…Read more on Global assessment of marine plastic exposure risk for oceanic birds
4 July, 2023 by Anje-Margriet Neutel, David Barnes
Competitive hierarchies in diverse ecological communities have long been thought to lead to instability and prevent coexistence. However, system stability has never been tested, and the relation between hierarchy and…3 July, 2023 by Melody Clark
Polar regions play critical roles in the function of the Earth’s climate system, many of which are underpinned by their endemic biota. Whilst being home to some of the world’s…3 July, 2023 by Peter Convey
Research has confirmed that the utilisation of Antarctic microorganisms, such as bacteria, yeasts and fungi, in the bioremediation of diesel may provide practical alternative approaches. However, to date there has…1 July, 2023 by Richard Horne
Owing to the ever-present solar wind, our vast solar system is full of plasmas. The turbulent solar wind, together with sporadic solar eruptions, introduces various space plasma processes and phenomena…1 July, 2023 by Chester Sands
Understanding the drivers of evolutionary innovation provides a crucial perspective of how evolutionary processes unfold across taxa and ecological systems. It has been hypothesised that the Southern Ocean provided ecological…1 July, 2023 by Jane Francis
The late Palaeocene (Thanetian) Cross Valley Formation on Seymour Island is one of the few floras of this age in Antarctica. Understanding the diversity is critical for comparisons with coeval…Read more on Palaeocene high-latitude leaf flora of Antarctica Part 2: Tooth-margined angiosperms
1 July, 2023 by Alistair Crame
The Late Cenozoic flourishing of polar marine ecosystems, just when temperatures were reaching their lowest levels, has always seemed anomalous. Such an observation is coupled with an increasing volume of…Read more on Late Cenozoic evolution of the latitudinal diversity gradient
1 July, 2023 by John Turner
Numerous seabird species are experiencing population declines, and this trend is expected to continue or even accelerate in the future. To understand the effects of environmental change on seabird populations,…1 July, 2023 by Caitlin Frankish, Richard Phillips
Seabirds often spend time on the water in the vicinity of their breeding colonies at the start or end of foraging trips, which may be for bathing, social interaction, information…Read more on Rafting behaviour of albatrosses and petrels at South Georgia
1 July, 2023 by Kate Hendry
Glaciers and ice sheets are experiencing rapid warming under current climatic change and there is increasing evidence that glacial meltwaters provide key dissolved and dissolvable amorphous nutrients to downstream ecosystems.…Read more on Silicon isotopes highlight the role of glaciated fjords in modifying coastal waters
1 July, 2023 by Dani Jones, Emma Boland
The causes of decadal variations in global warming are poorly understood, however it is widely understood that variations in ocean heat content are linked with variations in surface warming. To…1 July, 2023 by Alex Brisbourne, Andy Smith, Robert Arthern
The slip of glaciers over the underlying bed is the dominant mechanism governing the migration of ice from land into the oceans, with accelerating slip contributing to sea-level rise. Yet…Read more on Highly variable friction and slip observed at Antarctic ice stream bed
1 July, 2023 by David Barnes
The West Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) is a hotspot of physical climate change, especially glacial retreat, particularly in its northern South Shetland Islands (SSI) region. Along coastlines, this process is opening…1 July, 2023 by Fausto Ferraccioli
The Mt. Melbourne Volcanic Field is a quiescent volcanic complex located in Northern Victoria Land, Antarctica, mostly covered by ice. Its inner structure has remained largely unknown, due to the…1 July, 2023 by Marie Attard
Many of the world's 10 000 bird species lay coloured or patterned eggs. The large diversity of eggshell patterning among birds, achieved through pigment, has been attributed to a few…Read more on Surface texture heterogeneity in maculated bird eggshells
29 June, 2023 by Sally Thorpe, Simeon Hill
Antarctic krill are very important animals. They are well-known as the food of ocean giants such as blue whales, but they also feed many other animals and help to slow…28 June, 2023 by Markus Frey
The amount of snow on Arctic sea ice impacts the ice mass budget. Wind redistribution of snow into open water in leads is hypothesized to cause significant wintertime snow loss.…28 June, 2023 by Huw Griffiths, Katrin Linse, Peter Enderlein
Deep-sea benthic fauna is vital for a well-functioning marine ecosystem but is increasingly under threat from a changing environment. To monitor and conserve this fauna, an understanding of their large-scale…Read more on Pan-Atlantic Comparison of Deep-Sea Macro- and Megabenthos
27 June, 2023
Numerous terrestrial and marine organisms, including cephalopods, are capable of light emission. In addition to communication, bioluminescence is used for attraction and defense mechanisms. The present review aims to: (i)…Read more on Bioluminescence in cephalopods: biodiversity, biogeography and research trends
26 June, 2023 by Alexandra Weiss, Andrew Meijers, Dave Munday, Dani Jones, Emma Boland, Povl Abrahamsen, Alexander Brearley, Michael Meredith, Shenjie Zhou
The 5-year Ocean Regulation of Climate by Heat and Carbon Sequestration and Transports (ORCHESTRA) programme and its 1-year extension ENCORE (ENCORE is the National Capability ORCHESTRA Extension) was an approximately…26 June, 2023 by Andrew Meijers, Povl Abrahamsen, Fabian Haumann, Geraint Tarling, Alexander Brearley, Mark Barham, Michael Meredith
The Southern Ocean upper-layer freshwater balance exerts a global climatic influence by modulating density stratification and biological productivity, and hence the exchange of heat and carbon between the atmosphere and…26 June, 2023 by Andrew Meijers
The Southern Ocean is an extreme environment. The vast area it covers, roaring winds, mountainous seas and treacherous ice all combine to make it both a challenge and a privilege…26 June, 2023 by Andrew Meijers, Povl Abrahamsen, Alexander Brearley, Michael Meredith, Natasha Lucas, Shenjie Zhou
The Southern Ocean greatly contributes to the regulation of the global climate by controlling important heat and carbon exchanges between the atmosphere and the ocean. Rates of climate change on…Read more on Southern ocean carbon and heat impact on climate
26 June, 2023 by Andrew Meijers
The effect of the Southern Ocean on global climate change is assessed using Earth system model projections following an idealized 1% annual rise in atmospheric CO2. For this scenario, the…Read more on The role of the Southern Ocean in the global climate response to carbon emissions
24 June, 2023 by Peter Convey
Despite their impressive diversity and ecosystem relevance, insects are undervalued and rarely considered in conservation efforts, except for those that are medically or economically important. In terms of funding and…23 June, 2023 by Peter Convey
Microalgae are photosynthetic microorganisms that thrive in many different environments. They are present across ecosystems globally and possess bioactive compounds that can be exploited as natural products with potential application…Read more on Microalgae-based products and their immunomodulatory activities
22 June, 2023 by Andrew Meijers, Dani Jones, Michael Meredith, Shenjie Zhou, Ute Hausmann
The Weddell Gyre is a major feature of the Southern Ocean and an important component of the planetary climate system; it regulates air–sea exchanges, controls the formation of deep and…21 June, 2023 by Huw Griffiths
The Southern Ocean is a productive and biodiverse region, but it is also threatened by anthropogenic pressures. Protecting the Southern Ocean should start with well-informed Marine Ecosystem Assessments of the…20 June, 2023 by Claus-Dieter Hillenbrand, Joanne Johnson
The Amundsen Sea in the Pacific sector of West Antarctica receives meltwater from the fastest retreating Antarctic glaciers, and its coastal polynyas host the highest primary productivity per unit area…Read more on Volcanogenic fluxes of iron from the seafloor in the Amundsen Sea, West Antarctica
20 June, 2023 by Amy King, Diana Vladimirova, Dieter Tetzner, Liz Thomas
Changes in sea ice conditions and atmospheric circulation over the Southern Ocean play an important role in modulating Antarctic climate. However, observations of both sea ice and wind conditions are…16 June, 2023 by David Barnes
Microplastics are ubiquitous around the world. Microplastics have been documented around the Southern Ocean, in coastal sediments and in Antarctic marine organisms, however microplastics data for Antarctic waters remain scarce.…Read more on Quantifying microplastics in fjords along the Western Antarctic Peninsula
15 June, 2023 by James Smith
Understanding ice stream dynamics over decadal to millennial timescales is crucial for improving numerical model projections of ice sheet behaviour and future ice loss. In marine-terminating settings, ice shelves play…12 June, 2023 by Andrew Meijers, Povl Abrahamsen, Michael Meredith, Paul Holland, Shenjie Zhou
Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) is pivotal for oceanic heat and carbon sequestrations on multidecadal-to-millennial timescales. The Weddell Sea contributes nearly a half of global AABW through Weddell Sea Deep Water…Read more on Slowdown of Antarctic Bottom Water export driven by climatic wind and sea ice changes
9 June, 2023 by Andrew Kavanagh
An international joint research project, entitled Interhemispheric Coupling Study by Observations and Modelling (ICSOM), is ongoing. In the late 2000s, an interesting form of interhemispheric coupling (IHC) was discovered: when…9 June, 2023 by Melody Clark
Numerous novel adaptations characterise the radiation of notothenioids, the dominant fish group in the freezing seas of the Southern Ocean. To improve understanding of the evolution of this iconic fish…Read more on Genomics of cold adaptations in the Antarctic notothenioid fish radiation
7 June, 2023 by Nigel Meredith, Richard Horne
Relativistic electrons in the Earth's outer radiation belt are a significant space weather hazard. Satellites in GPS-type orbits pass through the heart of the outer radiation belt where they may…Read more on Extreme Relativistic Electron Fluxes in GPS Orbit: Analysis of NS41 BDD‐IIR Data
3 June, 2023 by Clara Manno
Planktonic Foraminifera are unique paleo-environmental indicators through their excellent fossil record in ocean sediments. Their distribution and diversity are affected by different environmental factors including anthropogenically forced ocean and climate…Read more on The FORCIS database: A global census of planktonic Foraminifera from ocean waters
2 June, 2023 by Eric Wolff
This White Paper represents an outcome of “The Leverhulme Climate Symposium 2008 - Earth’s Climate: Past, Present and Future”, convened by H. Elderfield, M. Bickle, G. Allen and E. Shuckburgh,…2 June, 2023 by John Turner
Antarctic climate changes prior to 2000 were characterized by a strong zonally asymmetric pattern. Over 90% of the land ice mass loss occurred around a limited area in West Antarctica,…2 June, 2023 by Philip Trathan, Victoria Warwick-Evans
The ecosystem approach to fisheries has been discussed since the 1980s. It aims to reduce risks from fisheries to whole, or components of, ecosystems, not just to target species. Precautionary…2 June, 2023 by Fausto Ferraccioli, Tom Jordan
The geology beneath Thwaites Glacier, the Antarctic glacial catchment most vulnerable to climate change, is unknown. Thwaites Glacier lies within the West Antarctic Rift System, but details of the subglacial…
1 June, 2023 by Liz Thomas
Here we examine the water stable-isotope data from the Roosevelt Island Climate Evolution (RICE) ice core. Roosevelt Island is an independent ice rise located at the northeastern margin of the…1 June, 2023 by Dieter Tetzner, Julius Rix, Robert Mulvaney
The British Antarctic Survey's (BAS) Rapid Access Isotope Drill (RAID), designed for rapid drilling to survey prospective ice core sites, has been deployed at multiple Antarctic locations over 6 years.…1 June, 2023 by Jasmine Lee
Antarctic Specially Protected Areas (ASPAs) are a key regulatory mechanism for protecting Antarctic environmental values. Previous evaluations of the effectiveness of the ASPA system have focused on its representativeness and…Read more on Evaluating the conservation impact of Antarctica’s protected areas
1 June, 2023 by Paul Holland
Both the Southern Annular Mode (SAM) and the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) are critical factors contributing to Antarctic sea ice variability on interannual time scales. However, their joint effects on…Read more on The impacts of combined SAM and ENSO on seasonal Antarctic sea ice changes
1 June, 2023 by Dominic Hodgson, Stephen Roberts
To provide insights into glacier-climate dynamics of the South Shetland Islands (SSI), NW Antarctic Peninsula, we present a new deglaciation and readvance model for the Bellingshausen Ice Cap (BIC) on…1 June, 2023 by Kevin Hughes
Polar regions should be given greater consideration with respect to the monitoring, risk assessment, and management of potentially harmful chemicals, consistent with requirements of the precautionary principle. Protecting the vulnerable…Read more on Berlin statement on legacy and emerging contaminants in polar regions
1 June, 2023 by Joseph Ulanowski
The stability of ice crystal orientation is studied by modeling the air flow around ice crystals at moderate Reynolds number, where an ice crystal is approximated by a cylinder with…1 June, 2023 by Jennifer Freer
Changes in the community size structure of Arctic copepods toward smaller and less fat individuals or species have been linked to environmental changes. The underpinning mechanisms are, however, poorly understood.…1 June, 2023 by Mark Clilverd
A new model to predict the electron density and effective recombination coefficient of the lower ionosphere under solar flare conditions is presented. This model relies on space-borne solar irradiance measurements…1 June, 2023 by Claus-Dieter Hillenbrand
The Amundsen Polynya (AP) on the inner and middle continental shelf of the western Amundsen Sea Embayment is the fourth largest coastal polynya around Antarctica. The AP is highly productive…1 June, 2023 by Peter Convey
Changes in climate and environment can impact the sustainability of populations and biodiversity. Understanding population genetic diversity in the past and present can help us better predict species' responses to…1 June, 2023 by Claire Allen, Louise Sime, Matthew Chadwick, Maria Vittoria Guarino
Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5e (130-116 ka) represents a ‘laboratory’ for evaluating climate model performance under warmer-than-present conditions. Climate model simulations for MIS 5e have previously failed to produce Southern…1 June, 2023 by Sandra McInnes, Sandra McInnes
There have been several records in the last 60 years for East Antarctica for Milnesium tardigradum Doyere, 1840 sensu lato, now considered a species complex. During the 56th Japanese Antarctic…1 June, 2023 by Emma Woodfield, Thomas Daggitt
Emma Woodfield, Andy Smith and colleagues outline the research presented and discussed at the Autumn MIST meeting in November 2022.28 May, 2023 by Irena Vankova, Keith Nicholls
Totten Glacier is a fast-moving East Antarctic outlet with the potential for significant future sea-level contributions. We deployed four autonomous phase-sensitive radars on its ice shelf to monitor ice-ocean interactions…25 May, 2023 by Simon Morley
The Falkland Islands marine environment host a mix of temperate and subantarctic species. This review synthesizes baseline information regarding ontogenetic migration patterns and trophic interactions in relation to oceanographic dynamics…25 May, 2023 by Alex Brisbourne
The density structure of firn has implications for hydrological and climate modelling, and ice-shelf stability. The structure of firn can be evaluated from depth models of seismic velocity, widely obtained…24 May, 2023 by Michael Haigh, Paul Holland
Ice streams such as Pine Island and Thwaites Glaciers which terminate at their ice shelves in the eastern Amundsen Sea, West Antarctica, are losing mass faster than most others about…Read more on The Influence of Bathymetry Over Heat Transport Onto the Amundsen Sea Continental Shelf
18 May, 2023 by Alex Burton-Johnson
A dataset to describe exposed bedrock and surficial geology of Antarctica has been constructed by the GeoMAP Action Group of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) and GNS Science.…Read more on A continent-wide detailed geological map dataset of Antarctica
17 May, 2023 by Anna Jones, Millie Bond, Freya Squires, Markus Frey
Measurements of atmospheric nitrous acid (HONO) amount fraction and flux density above snow were carried out using a long-path absorption photometer at Halley station in coastal Antarctica between 22 Jan-…15 May, 2023 by Andrew Orr, Ella Gilbert, Steve Colwell, Tony Phillips
We calculate a regional surface “melt potential” index (MPI) over Antarctic ice shelves that describes the frequency (MPI-freq, %) and intensity (MPI-int, K) of daily maximum summer temperatures exceeding a…15 May, 2023 by Rachel Cavanagh
Climate change is having profound effects on populations of fished species and the ecosystems on which they depend, lending to a growing body of work that advocates for climate resilience…Read more on Managing for climate resilient fisheries: Applications to the Southern Ocean
12 May, 2023 by Subir Mandal
This work presents some new findings in terms of the vertical propagation speeds of gravity waves in the daytime as possible precursors to the ESF. These findings have resulted from…11 May, 2023 by Clara Manno, Geraint Tarling, Jessie Gardner, Victoria Peck
Pteropods are a key part of biogeochemical cycling and epipelagic food webs in the Southern Ocean. However, shelled pteropods are vulnerable to climate change, due to their aragonite shells being…10 May, 2023 by Andrew Clarke, Ali Massey, Alice Clement, Aurelia Reichardt, Emma Stuart, Emma Bolton, Terri Souster, Helen Peat, Hugh Venables, Hollie London, Kate Hendry, Mairi Fenton, Marlon Clark, Michael Meredith, Petra ten Hoopen, Ryan Mathews, Sabrina Heiser, Sarah Reed, Samuel Pountney, Terri Souster, Zoe Waring
Oceanographic changes adjacent to Antarctica have global climatic and ecological impacts. However, this is the most challenging place in the world to obtain marine data due to its remoteness and…9 May, 2023 by Andrew Wood, Michael Dunn, Richard Phillips
Climate change affects timing of reproduction in many bird species, but few studies have investigated its influence on annual reproductive output. Here, we assess changes in the annual production of…Read more on The effect of climate change on avian offspring production: A global meta-analysis
8 May, 2023 by Irene Malmierca Vallet, Louise Sime
Dansgaard–Oeschger (D–O) events, millennial-scale climate oscillations between stadial and interstadial conditions (of up to 10–15 ∘C in amplitude at high northern latitudes), occurred throughout the Marine Isotope Stage 3 (MIS3; 27.8–59.4 ka)…