27 January, 2011 by Hua Lu, Ingrid Cnossen
We use a troposphere-stratosphere model of intermediate complexity to study the atmospheric response to an idealized solar forcing in the subtropical upper stratosphere during Northern Hemisphere (NH) early winter. We…Read more on Solar signal propagation: The role of gravity waves and stratospheric sudden warmings
1 January, 2011 by Vsevolod Afanasyev
Each autumn billions of songbirds migrate between the temperate zone and tropics, but little is known about how events on the breeding grounds affect migration to the tropics. Here, we…1 January, 2011 by Katrin Linse
Three hundred and fifty specimens of the endemic Southern Ocean octopus genus Pareledone, were sequenced for the barcoding gene COI. Geographic coverage comprised the South Shetland Islands, the Ross Sea,…1 January, 2011 by Claire Allen
Sea-ice growth and decay in Antarctica is one of the biggest seasonal changes on Earth, expanding ice cover from 4 106 km2 to a maximum of 19 106 km2 during…1 January, 2011 by Claire Allen
We have developed cleaning methods for extracting diatomopal from bulk marine sediment samples, for measurement of both zinc (Zn) abundance and isotope composition. This cleaning technique was then applied to…1 January, 2011 by Mark Belchier
Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides) or ‘Chilean sea bass’ support a valuable and controversial fishery, yet their life history is not well understood and longevity estimates range from ~20 to >50…1 January, 2011
A global chemistry-climate model is used to assess the impact on atmospheric composition of the regeneration and recycling of HOx in the photo-oxidation of isoprene. The impact is explored subject…1 January, 2011 by Kevin Hughes
Antarctica is the most isolated continent on Earth, but it has not escaped the negative impacts of human activity. The unique marine ecosystems of Antarctica and their endemic faunas are…Read more on Anthropogenic impacts on marine ecosystems in Antarctica
1 January, 2011 by Eric Wolff
We constructed an 800,000-year synthetic record of Greenland climate variability based on the thermal bipolar seesaw model. Our Greenland analog reproduces much of the variability seen in the Greenland ice…1 January, 2011 by Andrew Clarke, David Barnes
Antarctica is a continent of extremes: on average it is the highest, windiest, coldest and driest land mass on Earth. It also has the largest ice-mass, with less than 1%…1 January, 2011 by David Barnes, Terri Souster, Terri Souster
The West Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) is a hotspot of recent rapid regional warming and ice loss1. The WAP sea surface freezes each winter to form a ‘fast-ice’ skin that can…Read more on Reduced survival of Antarctic benthos linked to climate-induced iceberg scouring
1 January, 2011 by Povl Abrahamsen
Extremely low summer sea-ice coverage in the Arctic Ocean in 2007 allowed extensive sampling and a wide quasi-synoptic hydrographic and δ18O dataset could be collected in the Eurasian Basin and…Read more on Origin of freshwater and polynya water in the Arctic Ocean halocline in summer 2007
1 January, 2011 by Fausto Ferraccioli, Hugh Corr, Tom Jordan
An International Polar Year aerogeophysical investigation of the high interior of East Antarctica reveals widespread freeze-on that drives substantial mass redistribution at the bottom of the ice sheet. Although the…1 January, 2011 by Dominic Hodgson, Joanne Johnson
Glacial geological evidence of rapid ice stream retreat is important for the potential insight it can bring to understanding of contemporary rapid ice sheet change. Here, we report new chronological…Read more on Rapid deglaciation of Marguerite Bay, western Antarctic Peninsula in the Early Holocene
1 January, 2011 by David Vaughan
Observations from satellite and airborne platforms are combined with model calculations to infer the nature and efficiency of basal melting of the Pine Island Glacier ice shelf, West Antarctica, by…Read more on Variability of basal melt beneath the Pine Island Glacier ice shelf, West Antarctica
1 January, 2011 by Richard Phillips
Relationships between events in one period of the annual cycle and behaviour in subsequent seasons are key determinants of individual life histories and population dynamics. However, studying such associations is…1 January, 2011 by Peter Convey
Passive chambers are used to examine the impacts of summer warming in Antarctica but, so far, impacts occurring outside the growing season, or related to extreme temperatures, have not been…1 January, 2011 by Thomas Bracegirdle
The semi-annual oscillation (SAO) in sea-level pressure at high southern latitudes is the consequence of a twice-yearly contraction (and strengthening) and expansion (and weakening) of the storm track between 50…1 January, 2011 by Katrin Linse
The benthic fauna was investigated during the expedition ANT-XXIV/2 (2007/08) in relation to oceanographic features, biogeochemical properties and sediment characteristics, as well as the benthic, pelagic and air-breathing fauna. The…Read more on Maud Rise – a snapshot through the water column
1 January, 2011 by Lloyd Peck, Melody Clark
Echinoderms and in particular brittle stars display a remarkable ability to regenerate lost or damaged tissues. They offer an excellent model in which to study regeneration displaying extensive regenerative ability…1 January, 2011 by Vsevolod Afanasyev
The population decline of the Lesser Kestrel Falco naumanni has been the subject of studies across its Western Palaearctic breeding range, but little is known about its use of pre-migratory…1 January, 2011 by Richard Phillips
Although seabirds that are trans-equatorial migrants show apparently broad overlap among populations in the non-breeding season, such large-scale pattern may conceal subtle but nevertheless key differences in migratory behaviour. These…1 January, 2011 by Jaume Forcada
Black-browed albatrosses Thalassarche melanophris are currently classified as globally endangered. The most important populations of this species are believed to be declining due to, amongst other factors, unsustainable levels of…1 January, 2011 by Richard Phillips
It has long been known that birds change their behaviour, reproductive performance and survival as they mature, including in the first few years after recruitment into the breeding population. However,…1 January, 2011 by Lloyd Peck, Michael Thorne, Melody Clark
Background: The Antarctic krill Euphausia superba is a keystone species in the Antarctic food chain. Not only is it a significant grazer of phytoplankton, but it is also a major…Read more on Antarctic krill 454 pyrosequencing reveals chaperone and stress transcriptome
1 January, 2011 by David Pearce
One of the most remarkable discoveries resulting from the robotic and remote sensing exploration of space is the inferred presence of bodies of liquid water under ice deposits on other…Read more on Subglacial environments and the search for life beyond the Earth
1 January, 2011
The Twentieth Century Reanalysis (20CR) project is an international effort to produce a comprehensive global atmospheric circulation dataset spanning the twentieth century, assimilating only surface pressure reports and using observed…1 January, 2011 by Peter Convey
Recent analyses of Antarctic terrestrial biodiversity data, in combination with molecular biological studies, have created a new paradigm that long-term persistence and regional isolation are general features of most of…Read more on Antarctic terrestrial biodiversity in a changing world
1 January, 2011 by Peter Convey, Stephen Roberts
The ecosystems of the western Antarctic Peninsula, experiencing amongst the most rapid trends of regional climate warming worldwide, are important “early warning” indicators for responses expected in more complex systems…Read more on Global southern limit of flowering plants and moss peat accumulation
1 January, 2011 by Mark Belchier, Peter Convey
The human-assisted establishment of two non-native predatory carabid beetles (Merizodus soledadinus (Guerin-M,n,ville), Trechisibus antarcticus (Dejean)) on the sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia occurred 30-50 years ago, but the distribution of…Read more on Recent range expansions in non-native predatory beetles on sub-Antarctic South Georgia
1 January, 2011 by Kevin Hughes, Peter Convey
The Antarctic continent is frequently cited as the last pristine continent on Earth. However, this view is misleading for several reasons. First, there has been a rapid increase in visitors…Read more on Non-indigenous microorganisms in the Antarctic: assessing the risks
1 January, 2011 by Jonathan Watkins
Antarctic krill are important in the South Georgia (548S 358W) marine ecosystem. They form aggregations that vary widely in packing density (,1 to 1000 s of individuals m23), length (tens…1 January, 2011 by Pierre Dutrieux
The Solomon Sea, in the western tropical Pacific, is part of a major oceanic pathway for waters connecting the tropics to the equator via low latitude western boundary currents. Shipboard…Read more on Observed circulation in the Solomon Sea from SADCP data
1 January, 2011
Diatom cells have distinctive optical characteristics, originating from their relatively large cell size, fucoxanthin content and silica cell wall. It has been proposed that diatom-dominated phytoplankton blooms can be identified…1 January, 2011 by Eugene Murphy
Determining the form of key predator-prey relationships is critical for understanding marine ecosystem dynamics. Using a comprehensive global database, we quantified the effect of fluctuations in food abundance on seabird…Read more on Global seabird response to forage fish depletion – one-third for the birds
1 January, 2011
The Citarum river basin of western Java, Indonesia, which supplies water to 10 million residents in Jakarta, has become increasingly vulnerable to anthropogenic change. Citarum's streamflow record, only similar to…1 January, 2011 by Eric Wolff, Liz Thomas
An abrupt cold event ca. 8200 cal. yr BP, is believed to have been caused by the catastrophic release of ice-dammed meltwater from Lake Agassiz and associated disruption of the…Read more on The 8200 yr BP cold event in stable isotope records from the North Atlantic region
1 January, 2011
The Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) on the Aura satellite has been used to measure temperatures in the stratosphere, mesosphere and lower thermosphere. The data used here are from August 2004…1 January, 2011 by David Barnes, Huw Griffiths, Katrin Linse
The Dumont d’Urville Sea (East Antarctic region) has been less investigated for DNA barcoding and molecular taxonomy than other parts of the Southern Ocean, such as the Ross Sea and…1 January, 2011 by Richard Phillips
There is growing evidence that migratory species are particularly vulnerable to rapid environmental changes arising from human activity. Species are expected to vary in their capacity to respond to these…1 January, 2011 by Janet Silk, Michael Dunn, Philip Trathan
ARGOS satellite telemetry and Global Location Sensors (geolocators) were used to identify the moult locations and the winter foraging dispersal of Adélie penguins after they left their breeding colonies on…1 January, 2011
On average, about 45 per cent of global annual anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions remain in the atmosphere, while the remainder are taken up by carbon reservoirs on land and…Read more on Economic value of improved quantification in global sources and sinks of carbon dioxide
1 January, 2011 by Claus-Dieter Hillenbrand, James Smith
The Amundsen Sea embayment is a probable site for the initiation of a future collapse of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. This paper contributes to a better understanding of the…1 January, 2011 by Huw Griffiths
For the first time, comatulid crinoid feeding behaviour is used to infer near-bottom current (NBC) directions on the Terre Adélie and George V shelf, East Antarctica. We analysed 47 still-image…1 January, 2011 by Roger Worland, Peter Convey
Signy Island has experienced a dramatic increase in fur seal numbers over recent decades, which has led to the devastation of lowland terrestrial vegetation, with the eradication of moss turfs…1 January, 2011 by Dominic Hodgson, Peter Convey
The evolutionary history and geographical isolation of the Antarctic continent have produced a unique environment rich in endemic organisms. In many regions of Antarctica, cyanobacteria are the dominant phototrophs in…1 January, 2011 by Lester Anderson, Fausto Ferraccioli, Tom Jordan
The Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains are the least understood tectonic feature on Earth, because they are completely hidden beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet. Their high elevation and youthful Alpine topography,…Read more on East Antarctic rifting triggers uplift of the Gamburtsev Mountains
1 January, 2011 by Victoria Peck
The concentrations of chlorins (chlorophyll transformation products indicative of phytoplankton production) and crenarchaeol (a marker for Crenarchaea abundance) are significantly positively correlated (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient r(s) > 0.75) in…1 January, 2011 by Nigel Meredith, Richard Horne
The fluxes of energetic particles in the radiation belts are found to be strongly controlled by the solar wind conditions. In order to understand and predict the radiation particle intensities,…Read more on Recent developments in the radiation belt environment model
1 January, 2011 by Richard Phillips
Identifying markers that are indicative of individual state, related to fitness, and which could be used to study life-history tradeoffs in wild populations is extremely difficult. Recently, it has been…1 January, 2011
In this study, we use various diagnostic techniques to investigate the synoptic evolution of the Pacific–North American teleconnection pattern (PNA). National Center for Environment Prediction/National Center for Atmospheric Research reanalysis…Read more on Synoptic analysis of the Pacific-North American teleconnection pattern
1 January, 2011
The persistence and climate noise properties of North Atlantic climate variability are of importance for trend identification and assessing predictability on all time scales from several days to many decades.…Read more on On the persistence and predictability properties of North Atlantic climate variability
1 January, 2011
The persistent regime behavior of the eddy-driven jet stream over the North Atlantic is investigated. The North Atlantic jet stream variability is characterized by the latitude of the maximumlower tropospheric…Read more on Persistent circulation regimes and preferred regime transitions in the North Atlantic
1 January, 2011 by Andrew Fleming, Helen Peat, Kevin Hughes, Peter Convey, Peter Fretwell
We present the first regional map of vegetation of anywhere on the Antarctic continent based on remote sensing (RS) data. We have used a normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) for…1 January, 2011 by Richard Phillips
The non-breeding movements of marine birds were poorly known until recently, but this information is essential to understanding the risk to different geographical populations from events on the wintering grounds.…1 January, 2011 by Adrian Jenkins, Ed King, Hugh Corr, Richard Hindmarsh, Richard Hindmarsh
The Glen exponent ncharacterizes the stress-dependence of ice deformation, directly influencing the rate at which ice masses respond to external forcing. The slow deformation in large ice-sheets makes laboratory rheometry…1 January, 2011 by Richard Phillips
Determining migratory strategies of seabirds is still a major challenge due to their relative inaccessibility. Small geolocators are improving this knowledge, but not all birds can be tracked. Stable isotope…Read more on Combining stable isotope analyses and geolocation to reveal kittiwake migration
1 January, 2011 by Robert Larter
The southern Bellingshausen Sea (SBS) is a rapidly-changing part of West Antarctica, where oceanic and atmospheric warming has led to the recent basal melting and break-up of the Wilkins ice…1 January, 2011
We review the Quaternary geology of the North Sea area, summarising evidence for extents, configurations and timing of former glacial activity, focusing attention on key sites across the basin, and…Read more on The Pleistocene glaciations of the North Sea Basin
1 January, 2011 by Zhaomin Wang
Recent observations suggest Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW) properties are changing. The impact of such variations is explored using idealised perturbation experiments with a coupled climate model, HadCM3. AAIW properties are…Read more on North Atlantic climate responses to perturbations in Antarctic intermediate water
1 January, 2011 by Richard Phillips
Fisheries have major impacts on seabirds, both by changing food availability and by causing direct mortality of birds during trawling and longline setting. However, little is known about the nature…Read more on Albatrosses following fishing vessels: how badly hooked are they on an easy meal?
1 January, 2011 by Lloyd Peck
Waters around the Antarctic Peninsula are experiencing one of the fastest rates of warming seen anywhere on Earth in the sea in recent times. Species inhabiting nearshore seabed sites in…1 January, 2011 by Lloyd Peck
Broadcast spawning invertebrates in the Antarctic encounter a very arduous and unforgiving environment, where consistently low temperatures, high seawater viscosities and at times high flow conditions undermine successful sperm-egg interactions.…1 January, 2011 by Huw Griffiths
Coordinated, circum-Antarctic sampling expeditions during International Polar Year 2008/09 have given access to comprehensive collections suitable for DNA barcoding. Collaborations between the Census of Antarctic Marine Life (CAML), the Marine…1 January, 2011 by Huw Griffiths, Sandra McInnes, Sandra McInnes
The pycnogonids of the Southern Ocean have been studied for almost two centuries and have played a key role in shaping previous biogeographic regions for the Antarctic benthos. The aim…Read more on Biodiversity and biogeography of Southern Ocean pycnogonids
1 January, 2011 by Andrew Clarke, Huw Griffiths
The documentation and analysis of broad-scale biological diversity requires modern databases. Here we describe the SCAR-Marine Biodiversity Information Network (SCAR-MarBIN) and demonstrate its value with a preliminary analysis of geographic…Read more on Quantifying Antarctic marine biodiversity: The SCAR-MarBIN data portal
1 January, 2011 by Hilmar Gudmundsson
The response of ice streams to ocean tides is investigated. Numerical modelling experiments are conducted using a two-dimensional flow-line model of coupled ice-stream and ice-shelf flow. The model includes all…Read more on Ice-stream response to ocean tides and the form of the basal sliding law
1 January, 2011 by Richard Phillips
Navigational control of avian migration is understood, largely from the study of terrestrial birds, to depend on either genetically or culturally inherited information. By tracking the individual migrations of Atlantic…1 January, 2011 by Katrin Linse
The marine ecosystem on the eastern shelf of the Antarctic Peninsula was surveyed 5 and 12 years after the climate-induced collapse of the Larsen A and B ice shelves. An…Read more on Biodiversity change after climate-induced ice-shelf collapse in the Antarctic
1 January, 2011 by Jaume Forcada
The interactions among diet, ecology, physiology, and biochemistry affect N and C stable isotope signatures in animal tissues. Here, we examined if ecological segregation among animals in relation to sex…1 January, 2011 by Philip Leat
New 40Ar–39Ar ages of 5.6 to 1.3 Ma for lavas from the fossil Phoenix Ridge in the Drake Passage show that magmatism continued for at least 2 Ma after the…1 January, 2011 by Victoria Peck
In order to monitor the evolution of the British-Irish Ice Sheet (BIIS) and its influence in surface ocean structure during marine isotopic stages (MIS) 2 and 3, we have analyzed…1 January, 2011
Recent research has raised concerns about the potential influence of rapid climate change on the stability of major ice sheets. The behaviour of glaciers is determined largely by the processes…1 January, 2011 by Teal Riley
The results of the first attempt to use Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) data for the purposes of lithologic mapping on the Antarctic Peninsula are presented for…1 January, 2011 by Vsevolod Afanasyev
We used light-level archival geolocators to track five Veeries (Catharus fuscescens) for one annual cycle as they migrated from Delaware to South America and back. Southward migration commenced in late…1 January, 2011 by Richard Phillips
Seabirds and other marine animals are at risk from anthropogenic activities that target them directly and those that can harm them incidentally. We integrate year-round tracking and vessel studies to…1 January, 2011 by Claire Allen
Major deepwater masses upwell and reach the surface in the Southern Ocean, forming an important conduit supplying nutrients and micronutrients to the surface and playing a key role in the…1 January, 2011 by Ed King
Despite significant advances over the past decades, our understanding of drumlin formation and associated ice-bed processes is still incomplete. In this paper, we present the integrated use of geomorphological, sedimentological…1 January, 2011 by Kevin Newsham
For the past 50 years there has been rapid warming in the maritime Antarctic1, 2, 3, with concurrent, and probably temperature-mediated, proliferation of the two native plants, Antarctic pearlwort (Colobanthus…1 January, 2011 by Kevin Newsham
Most nitrogen (N) enters many Arctic and Antarctic soil ecosystems as protein. Soils in these polar environments frequently contain large stocks of proteinaceous organic matter, which has decomposed slowly due…1 January, 2011 by Kevin Newsham
Nitrogen is a key regulator of primary productivity in many terrestrial ecosystems. Historically, only inorganic N (NH4+ and NO3-) and L-amino acids have been considered to be important to the…1 January, 2011 by Richard Hindmarsh, Richard Hindmarsh
A recent paper by Reference CalovCalov and others (2010) presents an intercomparison of several numerical ice-sheet models where the development of large-scale thermo-viscous instabilities is compared. In all but one…1 January, 2011 by Jaume Forcada, Susie Grant
Emerging Bayesian analytical approaches offer increasingly sophisticated means of reconstructing historical population dynamics from genetic data, but have been little applied to scenarios involving demographic bottlenecks. Consequently, we analysed a…Read more on Bayesian inference of a historical bottleneck in a heavily exploited marine mammal
1 January, 2011 by Andrew Clarke, Katrin Linse, Lloyd Peck
Life-history characteristics exert a profound influence upon the population structure of many marine organisms. However, relatively few genetic studies have compared direct with indirect-developing species in the same ecosystem or…1 January, 2011 by Andrew Clarke, Katrin Linse, Lloyd Peck
Although studies of population genetic structure are commonplace, a strong bias exists toward species from low latitudes and with relatively poor dispersal capabilities. Consequently, we used 280 amplified fragment length…1 January, 2011 by David Barnes, Huw Griffiths, Oliver Hogg
We attempt to quantify how significant the polar archipelago of South Georgia is as a source of regional and global marine biodiversity. We evaluate numbers of rare, endemic and range-edge…1 January, 2011 by Eric Wolff
The complex cyclical nature of Pleistocene climate, driven by the evolving orbital configuration of the Earth, is well known but not well understood. A major climatic transition took place at…Read more on The Mid-Brunhes Event and West Antarctic Ice Sheet stability
1 January, 2011 by Eric Wolff
Rapid, or abrupt, climate change is regarded as a change in the climate system to a new state following the crossing of a threshold. It generally occurs at a rate…Read more on Rapid climate change: lessons from the recent geological past
1 January, 2011 by Andrew Fleming, Kevin Hughes, Peter Fretwell
Globally, areas categorically known to be free of human visitation are rare, but still exist in Antarctica. Such areas may be among the most pristine locations remaining on Earth and,…Read more on Untouched Antarctica: mapping a finite and diminishing environmental resource