Archives: Publications
Cretaceous stratigraphy of Antarctica and its global significance
31 March, 2025 by Alistair Crame, Jane Francis
The Cretaceous period is particularly well represented by a thick sequence of clastic sedimentary rocks exposed in the Antarctic Peninsula region of western Antarctica. This was an active margin throughout…Read more on Cretaceous stratigraphy of Antarctica and its global significance
The Arctic Beaufort Gyre in CMIP6 Models: Present and Future
31 March, 2025 by Ryan Williams
The Beaufort Gyre (BG) is an important feature of the Arctic Ocean. By accumulating or releasing freshwater, it influences ocean properties both within the Arctic and as far as the…Read more on The Arctic Beaufort Gyre in CMIP6 Models: Present and Future
New oribatid mite (Acari: Oribatida) records in the Antarctic Peninsula region
31 March, 2025 by Peter Convey
We report new oribatid records from the western Antarctic Peninsula region obtained during the XXIV and XXVI–XXVIII Ukrainian Antarctic expeditions. Five species (including 2 subspecies) representing five families of oribatid…Read more on New oribatid mite (Acari: Oribatida) records in the Antarctic Peninsula region
Long-term Variability and Tendencies of the Semidiurnal Tide in Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere from Meteor Radar Observations Over Esrange (67.9°N, 21.1°E)
28 March, 2025 by Ramesh Karanam, Tracy Moffat-Griffin
Long-term variability and tendencies in monthly mean semidiurnal tide (12-hr) in zonal (U12) and meridional (V12) winds are investigated in northern polar mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT; ∼80–100 km) using…Path-Planning on a Spherical Surface with Disturbances and Exclusion Zones
28 March, 2025 by Ayat Fekry, George Coombs, Harrison Abbot, Jonathan Smith, Maria Fox, Michael Thorne, Samuel Hall
An algorithm is presented for path-planning in a non-uniform spheroid mesh containing exclusion zones, vector and scalar fields. The mesh models physical environments such as ocean regions, together with a…Read more on Path-Planning on a Spherical Surface with Disturbances and Exclusion Zones
Strong polar vortex favoured intense Northern European storminess in February 2022
27 March, 2025 by Ryan Williams
February 2022 was an unusually stormy month over Northern Europe, including three extratropical cyclones impacting the United Kingdom and Ireland within a single week. The month also experienced an exceptionally…Read more on Strong polar vortex favoured intense Northern European storminess in February 2022
Projecting future climate change impacts on the distribution of pelagic squid in the Southern Ocean
27 March, 2025
Climate change is modifying the biogeography of many marine species. Squid (Cephalopoda) are important species of the Antarctic pelagic ecosystem, one of the areas most affected by climate change at…Rothera Runway Extension Biodiversity Survey Report 2023-2024
26 March, 2025 by Alison Cleary, David Barnes, Lloyd Peck, Melody Clark, Ryan Mathews, Simon Morley
The data presented here was captured around Rothera Point, Adelaide Island on the West Antarctic Peninsula between November 2023, and February 2024. The data was captured as part of a…Read more on Rothera Runway Extension Biodiversity Survey Report 2023-2024
Developing a Southern Ocean Marine Ecosystem Model Ensemble to Assess Climate Risks and Uncertainties
20 March, 2025 by Eugene Murphy, Patrick Keith, Simeon Hill
Climate change could irreversibly modify Southern Ocean ecosystems. Marine ecosystem model (MEM) ensembles can assist policy making by projecting future changes and allowing the evaluation and assessment of alternative management…Recent benthic foraminifera communities offshore of Thwaites Glacier in the Amundsen Sea, Antarctica: implications for interpretations of fossil assemblages
20 March, 2025 by Claus-Dieter Hillenbrand, James Smith, James Kirkham, Kelly Hogan, Robert Larter, Svetlana Radionovskaya
Benthic foraminiferal assemblages are useful tools for paleoenvironmental studies but rely on the calibration of live populations to modern environmental conditions to allow interpretation of this proxy downcore. In regions…End-to-end data-driven weather prediction
20 March, 2025 by Scott Hosking, Tom Andersson
Weather prediction is critical for a range of human activities including transportation, agriculture and industry, as well as the safety of the general public. Machine learning is transforming numerical weather…Genomic Introgression and Adaptation of Southern Seabird Species Facilitate Recent Polar Colonization
20 March, 2025 by Richard Phillips
Genomic adaptation and introgression can occur during the speciation process, enabling species to diverge in their frequencies of adaptive alleles or acquire new alleles that may promote adaptation to environmental…Ray tracing of very low frequency waves produced by active experiments or lightning events at low Earth orbit
18 March, 2025 by Richard Horne
We investigate the propagation in the plasmasphere of Very Low Frequency (VLF) electromagnetic waves, such as natural lightning-generated whistler waves and waves produced by active experiments. An active experiment is…Surface darkening by abundant and diverse algae on an Antarctic ice cap
18 March, 2025 by Hannah Moulton, Lloyd Peck, Peter Convey, Peter Fretwell
Algal blooms play important roles in physical and biological processes on glacial surfaces. Despite this, their occurrence and impacts within an Antarctic context remain understudied. Here, we present evidence of…Read more on Surface darkening by abundant and diverse algae on an Antarctic ice cap
Climate’s firm grip on glacier ablation in the Cordillera Darwin Icefield, Tierra del Fuego
18 March, 2025 by Dieter Tetzner
The Cordillera Darwin Icefield (CDI) in Tierra del Fuego is one of the largest temperate ice bodies in the Southern Hemisphere. We simulate the climatic energy and mass balance of…What can lithics tell us about hominin technology’s ‘primordial soup’? An origin of stone knapping via the emulation of Mother Nature
15 March, 2025 by Teal Riley
The use of stone hammers to produce sharp stone flakes—knapping—is thought to represent a significant stage in hominin technological evolution because it facilitated the exploitation of novel resources, including meat…DNA metabarcoding of non-fungal eukaryotic diversity in air and snow of Livingston Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica
14 March, 2025 by Peter Convey
A major natural route of dispersal to Antarctica is often assumed to be atmospheric transport, although few studies have documented this in detail. Aerial dispersal to Antarctica is very challenging…Mesopelagic particle layers in the dynamic hypoxic northern Benguela are shaped by zooplankton activity
14 March, 2025 by Sophie Fielding
Hypoxic (O2 < 60 μmol kg−1) waters are found below 27% of the ocean surface and are predicted to expand in the near future; however, the organic carbon cycle in…
Use of excess meltwater from continuous flow analysis systems for the analysis of low concentration insoluble microparticles in ice cores
13 March, 2025 by Claire Allen, Dieter Tetzner, Jack Humby, Liz Thomas
Low-concentration insoluble microparticles that are preserved in ice cores offer valuable information for reconstructing past environmental changes. However, their low concentrations and limited sample availability present challenges for extraction and…Quantitative sub-ice and marine tracing of Antarctic sediment provenance (TASP v1.0)
12 March, 2025 by Claus-Dieter Hillenbrand
Ice sheet models should be able to accurately simulate palaeo ice sheets to have confidence in their projections of future polar ice sheet mass loss and resulting global sea level…Read more on Quantitative sub-ice and marine tracing of Antarctic sediment provenance (TASP v1.0)
Evaluating the acclimation capacity of two keystone Antarctic echinoderms to coastal freshening
10 March, 2025 by Lloyd Peck, Nicholas Barrett
Coastal freshening in the Southern Ocean is expected to increase under projected climate scenarios. As a major environmental stressor, prolonged reduced salinity could pose a significant challenge to Antarctica's endemic…Bedmap3 updated ice bed, surface and thickness gridded datasets for Antarctica
10 March, 2025 by Alice Fremand, Andy Smith, David Vaughan, Ed King, Elena Field, Fausto Ferraccioli, Hugh Corr, Hamish Pritchard, James Kirkham, Peter Fretwell, Richard Hindmarsh, Tom Jordan, Richard Hindmarsh
We present Bedmap3, the latest suite of gridded products describing surface elevation, ice-thickness and the seafloor and subglacial bed elevation of the Antarctic south of 60 °S. Bedmap3 incorporates and…Read more on Bedmap3 updated ice bed, surface and thickness gridded datasets for Antarctica
Carbon dioxide fluxes associated with prokaryotic and eukaryotic communities in ice-free areas on King George Island, Maritime Antarctica
10 March, 2025 by Peter Convey
Background and Methods: We assessed the prokaryotic and eukaryotic diversity present in non-vegetated and vegetated soils on King George Island, Maritime Antarctic, in combination with measurements of carbon dioxide fluxes.…The influence of subglacial lake discharge on Thwaites Glacier ice-shelf melting and grounding-line retreat
6 March, 2025 by Paul Holland, Pierre Dutrieux
The retreat of the Antarctic Ice Sheet is conventionally attributed to increased ocean melting of ice shelves, potentially enhanced by internal instability from grounding lines near retrograde bed slopes. Ocean…Dramatic ENSO related Southwestern Atlantic ecosystem shifts
6 March, 2025 by Ashley Bennison, David Barnes, Emma Young, Martin Collins, Simon Morley, Stephanie Martin
ENSO (El Niño Southern Oscillation) events are becoming more frequent and more intense as climate change continues. Although ENSO effects are known to propagate into the southwest Atlantic, knowledge of…Read more on Dramatic ENSO related Southwestern Atlantic ecosystem shifts
Evaluating the resilience of Antarctic echinoderms to Southern Ocean freshening: short- and long-term responses.
5 March, 2025 by Nicholas Barrett
Climate change is impacting marine ecosystems worldwide, presenting a significant threat to biodiversity. In the Southern Ocean, organisms are facing increasing challenges due to warming, ocean acidification, reduced sea-ice cover,…High-Resolution Sensors Reveal Nitrate and Dissolved Silica Dynamics in an Arctic Fjord
4 March, 2025 by Kate Hendry
Subglacial weathering releases biologically important nutrients into meltwaters that have the potential to influence downstream ecosystems. There is a need to understand how accelerated glacial retreat could impact biogeochemical cycling…Read more on High-Resolution Sensors Reveal Nitrate and Dissolved Silica Dynamics in an Arctic Fjord
Inferring Species Interactions From Co-occurrence Networks With Environmental DNA Metabarcoding Data in a Coastal Marine Food Web
4 March, 2025 by Elizabeth Boyse
A good understanding of biotic interactions is necessary to accurately predict the vulnerability of ecosystems to climate change. Recently, co-occurrence networks built from environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding data have arisen…Temperature-induced changes in the relevance of viral lysis and microzooplankton grazing of Antarctic phytoplankton indicates future alterations in seasonal carbon flow
4 March, 2025 by Michael Meredith
Phytoplankton play a pivotal role as the primary producers in polar marine ecosystems. Despite evidence suggesting that production rates and loss factors vary from year to year, and thus drive…Energetic Electron Precipitation From the Radiation Belts: Geomagnetic and Solar Wind Proxies for Precipitation Flux Magnitudes
3 March, 2025 by Aaron Hendry, Mark Clilverd
Previously the geomagnetic Ap index has been used as a proxy to produce empirical energetic electron precipitation (EEP) forcing representations suitable for incorporation into coupled-climate model runs. The long-running Ap…Exploring the dynamics of Lotka–Volterra systems: Efficiency, extinction order, and predictive machine learning
3 March, 2025 by Michael Thorne
For years, a main focus of ecological research has been to better understand the complex dynamical interactions between species which comprise food webs. Using the connectance properties of a widely…A circumpolar review of the breeding distribution and habitat use of the snow petrel (Pagodroma nivea), the world’s most southerly breeding vertebrate
1 March, 2025 by Dominic Hodgson, Peter Fretwell, Richard Phillips
Knowledge of the spatial distribution of many polar seabird species is incomplete due to the remoteness of their breeding locations. Here, we compiled a new database of published and unpublished…Quantifying microplastics concentration of invertebrates from three Antarctic fjords
1 March, 2025 by David Barnes
Microplastics, small pieces of plastic measuring less than five millimeters, have spread to all ecosystems, even those in the Southern Ocean around Antarctica. In particular, microplastics have been found contaminating…Read more on Quantifying microplastics concentration of invertebrates from three Antarctic fjords
Impact of Sudden Stratospheric Warming and Elevated Stratopause Events on the Very Low Frequency Radio Signal
1 March, 2025 by Mark Clilverd
Sudden Stratospheric Warmings (SSW) and Elevated Stratopause (ES) events are mid-to-high latitudinal, atmospheric wave-driven phenomena leading to significant changes in wind, temperatures, and vertical mass transport, especially at stratospheric and…Adaptations, Cultivation, and Commercial Prospects of Polar Microalgae
1 March, 2025 by Peter Convey
Polar microalgae are microscopic organisms adapted to survive in cold and extreme habitats such as sea-ice, glaciers, lakes and snow. These microorganisms provide an essential basis as primary food sources…Read more on Adaptations, Cultivation, and Commercial Prospects of Polar Microalgae
The lifetimes and potential change in planetary albedo owing to the oxidation of thin surfactant organic films extracted from atmospheric aerosol by hydroxyl (OH) radicals at the air–water interface of particles
28 February, 2025 by Neil Brough
Water-insoluble organic material extracted from atmospheric aerosol samples collected in urban (Royal Holloway, University of London, UK) and remote (Halley Research Station, Antarctica) locations were shown to form stable thin…Simulation of Cloud Processes Over Offshore Coastal Antarctica Using the High-Resolution Regional UK Met Office Unified Model With Interactive Aerosols
28 February, 2025 by Andrew Orr, Ruth Price
The Southern Ocean and offshore coastal Antarctica are key regions for global climate. Low level mixed-phase clouds strongly control the surface radiation budget of this region but remain challenging for…Poleward displacement of the Southern Hemisphere Westerlies in response to Early Holocene warming
28 February, 2025 by Bianca Perren, Dominic Hodgson
Recent intensification of the Southern Hemisphere Westerlies has resulted in important changes to ocean circulation, Antarctic ice shelf stability and precipitation regimes in the continents abutting the Southern Ocean. Efforts…Migration and space use by porbeagle sharks Lamna nasus in the northeast Atlantic
27 February, 2025 by Norman Ratcliffe, Ryan Saunders
The porbeagle shark Lamna nasus, a top predator in the North Atlantic, is vulnerable to anthropogenic stressors due to its life history characteristics. Understanding its biology, abundance and spatial ecology…Read more on Migration and space use by porbeagle sharks Lamna nasus in the northeast Atlantic
Impact of topographic change on the East Asian monsoon in Japan and Eastern Asia during the Last Glacial Maximum
26 February, 2025 by Xu Zhang
The rainfall patterns in Eastern Asia are largely a consequence of the Asian winter and summer monsoons. On timescales 10 4 –10 6 of years, the position and strength of…Microplastics in Antarctica – a Plastic Legacy in the Antarctic Snow?
25 February, 2025 by Clara Manno, Claire Waluda, Emily Rowlands, Kirstie Jones-Williams
Microplastic pollution in remote inland Antarctica is largely unknown. This study explored the plastic footprint of snow from remote Antarctic camps: Union Glacier, Schanz Glacier and the South Pole. Refined…Read more on Microplastics in Antarctica – a Plastic Legacy in the Antarctic Snow?
Observationally constrained estimates of the annual Arctic sea-ice volume budget 2010–2022
25 February, 2025 by Paul Holland
Sea-ice floating in the Arctic ocean is a constantly moving, growing and melting layer. The seasonal cycle of sea-ice volume has an average amplitude of or 9 trillion tonnes of…Basal reflectance and melt rates across the Ross Ice Shelf, Antarctica, from grounding line to ice shelf front
21 February, 2025 by Oliver Marsh
We present a 1000 km transect of phase-sensitive radar measurements of ice thickness, basal reflection strength, basal melting, and ice-column deformation across the Ross Ice Shelf (RIS). Measurements were gathered…Climate-driven shifts in Southern Ocean primary producers and biogeochemistry in CMIP6 models
20 February, 2025 by Michael Meredith
As a net source of nutrients fuelling global primary production, changes in Southern Ocean productivity are expected to influence biological carbon storage across the global ocean. Following a high-emission, low-mitigation…Observations of high-time-resolution and size-resolved aerosol chemical composition and microphysics in the central Arctic: implications for climate-relevant particle properties
19 February, 2025 by Markus Frey
Aerosols play a critical role in the Arctic's radiative balance, influencing solar radiation and cloud formation. Limited observations in the central Arctic leave gaps in understanding aerosol dynamics year-round, affecting…Global Marine Flyways Identified for Long‐Distance Migrating Seabirds From Tracking Data
16 February, 2025 by Richard Phillips
Aim: To identify the broad‐scale oceanic migration routes (‘marine flyways’) used by multiple pelagic, long‐distance migratory seabirds based on a global compilation of tracking data. Location: Global. Time Period: 1989–2023.…Glacial geology of the Hudson Mountains, Amundsen Sea sector, West Antarctica
15 February, 2025 by Dominic Hodgson, James Smith, Joanne Johnson, Teal Riley
The Hudson Mountains are situated in the eastern Amundsen Sea sector of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, adjacent to Pine Island Glacier. They form a volcanic field of 17 stratovolcanoes…Read more on Glacial geology of the Hudson Mountains, Amundsen Sea sector, West Antarctica
Generating electron density archives using mainland EISCAT data between 2001-2021 at 10 minute and 1 hour integration
12 February, 2025 by Andrew Kavanagh, Jade Reidy, Jade Reidy
The mesosphere/lower-thermosphere/ionosphere (MLTI) region is a critical boundary in the coupling of the atmosphere, climate and space weather, however it is one of the least understood regions, making it hard…Obligate diapause and its termination shape the life-cycle seasonality of an Antarctic insect
12 February, 2025 by Peter Convey
The Antarctic midge, Belgica antarctica, is a unique insect endemic to Antarctica. It has a 2-year life cycle, with larvae overwintering in two different instars and adults emerging the following…Uncovering the Potential of Utilising Terrestrial Biogenic Markers in Ice Cores as Proxies to Past Environmental Conditions
11 February, 2025
Ice cores provide an un-matched high-resolution archive into paleoclimate reconstruction that other environmental archives (e.g. coral, sediment cores, and tree rings) do not. Limited research has focussed on terrestrial organic…Extreme precipitation associated with atmospheric rivers over West Antarctic ice shelves: insights from kilometre-scale regional climate modelling
11 February, 2025 by Andrew Orr, Ella Gilbert
We explore how atmospheric rivers (ARs) in a summer and winter case interact with the topography of the Amundsen Sea Embayment, West Antarctica, and deposit significant precipitation amounts. To do…An examination of changes in autumn Eurasian snow cover and its relationship with the winter Arctic Oscillation using 20th Century Reanalysis version 3
11 February, 2025 by Gareth Marshall
Utilising the 20th Century Reanalysis version 3 (20CRv3), we examine changes in the extent and rate of autumn Eurasian snow cover (SC) advance and the temporal variability in the SC–Arctic…Recent increase in surface melting of West Antarctic ice shelves linked to Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation
10 February, 2025 by Andrew Orr
Since the late 1990s, summer surface melt across ice shelves in the Ross-Amundsen Sea sector of West Antarctica increased significantly, as demonstrated by satellite measurements and MetUM simulations. This contrasts…Spatial and temporal variation of Antarctic microbial interactions: a study around the west Antarctic peninsula
8 February, 2025 by Michael Meredith
Background: The west Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) is a region of rapid environmental changes, with regional differences in climate warming along the north–south axis of the peninsula. Along the WAP, Palmer…Assessment of the southern polar and subpolar warming in the PMIP4 last interglacial simulations using paleoclimate data syntheses
7 February, 2025 by Louise Sime, Qinggang Gao, Rahul Sivankutty, Xu Zhang
Given relatively abundant paleo-proxies, the study of the last interglacial (LIG, ∼ 129–116 000 years ago, ka) is valuable to understanding the responses and feedback of the Southern Ocean and Antarctica in…Evidence of eastern rockhopper penguin feeding on a key commercial arrow squid species
7 February, 2025 by Hugo Rodrigues Guimaro
Cephalopods are crucial to the Southern Ocean ecosystem, connecting top predators with mid-trophic organisms, yet their ecology in the Pacific sector is not well understood. This research used stable isotope…Read more on Evidence of eastern rockhopper penguin feeding on a key commercial arrow squid species
Mélange dehydration and melting beneath South Sandwich Islands arc
7 February, 2025 by Philip Leat
Mechanisms regulating material transfer from subducted slabs to arc magmas remain debated, centered on metasomatized mantle wedge interactions versus mélange mobilization at the slab-mantle interface. The South Sandiwch Islands arc…Read more on Mélange dehydration and melting beneath South Sandwich Islands arc
Drivers of Southern Ocean food web structure and impacts of environmental change
6 February, 2025 by Patrick Keith
The Southern Ocean is experiencing major environmental and ecological changes which could drastically alter communities and impact ecosystem functioning. We still have a poor understanding of the structure of Southern…Read more on Drivers of Southern Ocean food web structure and impacts of environmental change
Advances and shortfalls in knowledge of Antarctic terrestrial and freshwater biodiversity
6 February, 2025 by Huw Griffiths, Kevin Hughes, Lloyd Peck, Peter Convey
Antarctica harbors many distinctive features of life, yet much about the diversity and functioning of Antarctica’s life remains unknown. Evolutionary histories and functional ecology are well understood only for vertebrates,…Development and application of a Py-GC/MS method for the quantification of microplastic contamination in terrestrial environments
5 February, 2025 by Rebecca Peel
This thesis details the development and application of a pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) method for the quantification of microplastic pollution in terrestrial samples. Initial analysis of plastic standards using Py-GC/MS…Key drivers of large scale changes in North Atlantic atmospheric and oceanic circulations and their predictability
5 February, 2025 by Hua Lu
Significant changes have occurred during the last few decades across the North Atlantic climate system, including in the atmosphere, ocean, and cryosphere. These large-scale changes play a vital role in…Ancient environmental microbiomes and the cryosphere
4 February, 2025 by David Pearce
In this review, we delineate the unique set of characteristics associated with cryosphere environments (namely, ice and permafrost) which present both challenges and opportunities for studying ancient environmental microbiomes (AEMs).…Read more on Ancient environmental microbiomes and the cryosphere
The potential for AI to revolutionize conservation: a horizon scan
4 February, 2025 by Lloyd Peck
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is an emerging tool that could be leveraged to identify the effective conservation solutions demanded by the urgent biodiversity crisis. We present the results of our horizon…Read more on The potential for AI to revolutionize conservation: a horizon scan
Spatial and temporal dependence in distribution‐based evaluation of CMIP6 daily maximum temperatures
4 February, 2025 by Emma Boland
Climate models are increasingly used to derive localised, specific information to guide adaptation to climate change. Model projections of future scenarios are conferred credibility by evaluating model skill in reproducing…Direct observation of Arctic Sea salt aerosol production from blowing snow and modeling over a changing sea ice environment
4 February, 2025 by Ananth Ranjithkumar, Markus Frey, Thomas Lachlan-Cope, Xin Yang
In the polar regions, there is significant model bias in the number concentrations and seasonality of sea salt aerosol (SSA) due to the lack of understanding of aerosol sources associated…Lateral Fluxes Drive Basal Melting Beneath Thwaites Eastern Ice Shelf, West Antarctica
3 February, 2025 by James Smith, Keith Makinson, Keith Nicholls, Paul Anker, Peter Davis
Thwaites Glacier is one of the fastest-changing ice-ocean systems in Antarctica. Basal melting beneath Thwaites' floating ice shelf, especially around pinning points and at the grounding line, sets the rate…Read more on Lateral Fluxes Drive Basal Melting Beneath Thwaites Eastern Ice Shelf, West Antarctica
In vivo pathogenicity characterization of viable opportunistic fungi Aspergillus thermomutatus and Rhodotorula mucilaginosa recovered from maritime Antarctic permafrost
2 February, 2025 by Peter Convey
In this study, we evaluated the pathogenic potential of the fungi Aspergillus thermomutatus and Rhodotorula mucilaginosa obtained from maritime Antarctic permafrost using in vivo experiments on immunocompromised BALB/c mice. Despite…Drivers of interspecific spatial segregation in two closely-related seabird species at a Pan-Atlantic scale
1 February, 2025 by Anne-Sophie Bonnet-Lebrun, Norman Ratcliffe
Aim: Ecologically similar species living in sympatry are expected to segregate to reduce the effects of competition where re-sources are limiting. Segregation from heterospecifics commonly occurs in space, but it…Photophysiology of the first reported bleached crustose coralline alga, Clathromorphum sp. (Hapalidiales, Rhodophyta), from Antarctica
1 February, 2025 by Peter Convey
During a 2019 Chilean Antarctic Scientific Expedition (ECA 55) studying crustose coralline algae (CCA) diversity on the Antarctic Peninsula, bleaching of these algae was observed for the first time in…Squid beaks as a proxy for mercury concentrations in muscle of the giant warty squid Moroteuthopsis longimana
1 February, 2025 by Philip Hollyman, Richard Phillips
Cephalopods play a major role in marine food webs as both predators and prey. Although most of the Hg in cephalopods is present in the muscle, most studies on its…Evaluating the effectiveness of seabird bycatch mitigation measures for pelagic longlines in the South Atlantic
1 February, 2025 by Richard Phillips
Incidental mortality (bycatch) of seabirds in pelagic longline fisheries remains a major threat to many populations. The design and implementation of technical innovations aimed at reducing seabird bycatch rates have…A polar oceans shipping information system
1 February, 2025 by Andrew Fleming, Alexander Tate, Andreas Cziferszky, Jeremy Wilkinson, Michael Thorne
Globally, ships above a certain tonnage, as well as an increasing number of smaller vessels, rely on the AIS (Automatic Identification System) to safely navigate around other vessels, which are…Scaling up ocean conservation through recognition of key biodiversity areas in the Southern Ocean from multispecies tracking data
29 January, 2025 by Philip Trathan
Biodiversity is critical for maintaining ecosystem function but is threatened by increasing anthropogenic pressures. In the Southern Ocean, a highly biologically productive region containing many endemic species, proactive management is…The Ronne Ice Shelf survived the last interglacial
29 January, 2025 by Isobel Rowell, Jack Humby, Louise Sime, Robert Mulvaney
The fate of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) is the largest cause of uncertainty in long-term sea-level projections. In the last interglacial (LIG) around 125,000 years ago, data suggest…Read more on The Ronne Ice Shelf survived the last interglacial
Stable Boundary Layers in an Arctic Fjord‐Valley System: Evaluation of Temperature Profiles Observed From Fiber‐Optic Distributed Sensing and Comparison to Numerical Weather Prediction Systems at Different Resolutions
28 January, 2025 by Megan Malpas
Stable boundary layers (SBLs) commonly form during the Arctic polar night, but their correct representation poses a major challenge for numerical weather prediction (NWP) systems. To enable detailed model verification,…Multiple eco-regions contribute to the seasonal cycle of Antarctic aerosol size distributions
28 January, 2025 by Anna Jones, Floortje Van Den Heuvel, Markus Frey, Thomas Lachlan-Cope
In order to reduce the uncertainty of aerosol radiative forcing in global climate models, we need to better understand natural aerosol sources which are important to constrain the current and…Calculations of extreme sea level rise scenarios are strongly dependent on ice sheet model resolution
28 January, 2025 by Rosie Williams, James Byrne, Scott Hosking, Robert Arthern
The West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) is losing ice and its annual contribution to sea level is increasing. The future behaviour of WAIS will impact societies worldwide, yet deep uncertainty…The biodiversity of ice-free Antarctica database [Data paper]
27 January, 2025 by Jasmine Lee, Peter Convey
Antarctica is one of Earth's most untouched, inhospitable, and poorly known regions. Although knowledge of its biodiversity has increased over recent decades, a diverse, wide-ranging, and spatially explicit compilation of…Read more on The biodiversity of ice-free Antarctica database [Data paper]
Precession Controls on Climate and Water Isotope Signals in Northern Africa
26 January, 2025 by Qinggang Gao
Precessional forcing is a key driver of quaternary climate change. Based on 24 experiments covering a full precession cycle, this study explores spatio-temporal variations of both climate and isotope signals…Read more on Precession Controls on Climate and Water Isotope Signals in Northern Africa
Assessing the suitability of sites near Pine Island Glacier for subglacial bedrock drilling aimed at detecting Holocene retreat–readvance
24 January, 2025 by Joanne Johnson
Unambiguous identification of past episodes of ice sheet thinning below the modern surface and grounding line retreat inboard of present requires recovery and exposure dating of subglacial bedrock. Such efforts…How the Concept of “Regenerative Good Growth” Could Help Increase Public and Policy Engagement and Speed Transitions to Net Zero and Nature Recovery
22 January, 2025 by Lloyd Peck
Just and fair transitions to low-carbon and nature-positive ways of living need to occur fast enough to limit and reverse the climate and nature crises, but not so fast that…Identifying Ocean Submesoscale Activity From Vertical Density Profiles Using Machine Learning
22 January, 2025 by Dani Jones
Submesoscale eddies are important features in the upper ocean where they mediate air-sea exchanges, convey heat and tracer fluxes into ocean interior, and enhance biological production. However, due to their…A dataset of Antarctic ecosystems in ice-free lands: classification, descriptions, and maps
22 January, 2025 by Dominic Hodgson, Kevin Hughes, Peter Convey
Antarctica, Earth’s least understood and most remote continent, is threatened by human disturbances and climate-related changes, underscoring the imperative for biodiversity inventories to inform conservation. Antarctic ecosystems support unique species…A Local Meteoric Water Line for Interior Alaska constrains Paleoclimate From 40,000 year old Relict Permafrost
21 January, 2025 by Alistair Monteath
Anthropogenic climate warming is degrading permafrost across Interior Alaska. Information from past warming events provides long-term perspectives of future trajectories, however, late Quaternary seasonal temperatures are poorly constrained. We established…Assessing the impact of sewage and wastewater on antimicrobial resistance in nearshore Antarctic biofilms and sediments
20 January, 2025 by Kevin Hughes, Kudzai Hwengwere, Lloyd Peck, Melody Clark
Despite being recognised as a global problem, our understanding of human-mediated antimicrobial resistance (AMR) spread to remote regions of the world is limited. Antarctica, often referred to as “the last…Terrestrial and freshwater invertebrate science in Svalbard in a changing world: from regional to pan-Arctic scales (STAFIEN – Svalbard Terrestrial and Freshwater Invertebrate Ecology Network)
20 January, 2025 by Peter Convey
Invertebrates are ubiquitous. Diverse in form and function, they play crucial roles in ecosystems: for example as food for other organisms, as pollinators, and as decomposers. Invertebrate species vastly outnumber…Antarctic sea ice #4: record lows between 2022 and 2025
19 January, 2025 by Caroline Holmes, Peter Fretwell
Antarctic sea ice forms a critical part of the regional and global climate system [1] and is also a critical habitat [2]. Following the first signs of decline in Antarctic…Read more on Antarctic sea ice #4: record lows between 2022 and 2025
Data supporting the North Atlantic Climate System Integrated Study (ACSIS) programme, including atmospheric composition; oceanographic and sea-ice observations (2016–2022); and output from ocean, atmosphere, land, and sea-ice models (1950–2050)
17 January, 2025 by Freya Squires
The North Atlantic Climate System Integrated Study (ACSIS) was a large multidisciplinary research programme funded by the UK’s Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). ACSIS ran from 2016 to 2022 and…Remote mapping of bedrock for future cosmogenic nuclide exposure dating studies in unvisited areas of Antarctica
17 January, 2025 by Jonathan Adams, Joanne Johnson, Stephen Roberts
Cosmogenic nuclide exposure dating is an important technique for reconstructing glacial histories. Many of the most commonly applied cosmogenic nuclides are extracted from the mineral quartz, meaning sampling of felsic…Plausible Last Interglacial Antarctic Ice Sheet Changes Do Not Fully Explain Antarctic Ice Core Water Isotope Records
16 January, 2025 by Louise Sime
Antarctic ice cores can help determine ice mass loss from the Antarctic Ice Sheet (AIS) during past warm periods. We compile Last Interglacial (LIG) δ18O measurements from eight Antarctic cores…Towards the Measurement of Sea-Ice Thickness Using a Time-Domain Inductive Measurement System
16 January, 2025 by Jeremy Wilkinson
Frequency-domain electromagnetic induction (EMI) is routinely used to detect the presence of seawater due to the inherent electrical conductivity of the seawater. This approach is used to infer sea-ice thickness…Improving the reproducibility in geoscientific papers: lessons learned from a Hackathon in climate science
16 January, 2025 by Andrew McDonald, Scott Hosking
In this paper, we explore the crucial role and challenges of computational reproducibility in geosciences, drawing insights from the Climate Informatics Reproducibility Challenge (CICR) in 2023. The competition aimed at…Antarctica’s Thwaites Glacier and sea-level rise – Results from the International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration (ITGC) [Environment Audit Committee call for evidence]
16 January, 2025 by Peter Davis, Robert Larter
Executive Summary: Change to Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica, sometimes referred to as the “Doomsday Glacier”, over the coming decades and centuries will have profound implications for global sea-level rise…Investigation of the October effect in very low-frequency (VLF) signals
15 January, 2025 by Mark Clilverd
Subionospheric very low-frequency (VLF) radio signals are reflected by free electrons in the ionospheric D-region at about 60–90 km altitude and can propagate over long distances, which makes them useful for…Read more on Investigation of the October effect in very low-frequency (VLF) signals
Perspectives on using peat records to reconstruct past atmospheric Hg levels
15 January, 2025 by Dominic Hodgson, Stephen Roberts
Anthropogenic mercury (Hg) emissions to the atmosphere have increased the concentration of this potent neurotoxin in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. The magnitude of regional variation in atmospheric Hg pollution levels…Read more on Perspectives on using peat records to reconstruct past atmospheric Hg levels