A 150 m deep ice core from the low-accumulation area of northeast Greenland was analyzed for sulphate, calcium, sodium and electrolytical meltwater conductivity at a depth resolution of approximately 1 cm by continuous flow analysis (CFA). the calcium and sodium profiles are used to establish a relatively precise ice-core chronology by annual-layer counting back to AD 830. Inspection of the novel CFA method for sulphate revealed relative errors typically around 15%, but at least ±20 ng g–1, for concentrations 5130 ng g–1, and a current detection limit for routine ice-core analyses of 40 ng g–1. Annual sulphate peaks are shown to occur over almost the entire core, with only a small shift in seasonality between the modern and pre-industrial sections. Inspection of volcanic horizons allowed more accurate timing of these peaks and clear identification of calcium-rich events. Disregarding clear volcanic peaks, significant long-term changes of sulphate are only seen over the industrial period. However, a higher frequency of important volcanic inputs was identified around AD 1200.

Measurements of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in a 122 m ice-core record from Lomonosovfonna, Svalbard, showed only naphthalene (NAP) to be detectable with our small (average 56 g) sample sizes. Prior to the 1930s,NAP was below our determination limit, but its concentration increased to a peak in the 1980s. In general, concentrations (5–53 ng kg–1) are six times lower than for Agassiz Ice Cap, Canada, but about 50 times higher than in Greenland. Correlation of NAP with physical and chemical parameters in the core strongly suggests winter time deposition of NAP with Arctic haze. Post-depositional effects of periodic melting appear slight, probably due to the hydrophobic nature of NAP. the contribution made to the record by small coal-mining activities on Svalbard appears to be small compared with anthropogenic emissions from long-range sources.

Detailed chemical analysis of the 122 m, relatively high-altitude and low-melt Lomonosovfonna ice core provides the best-dated record of nitrate from Svalbard. A very significant non-linear trend present in the record shows: (a) a rise in concentrations from the 12th to the mid-16th century, (b) reasonably stable concentrations until the mid-19th century, (c) a rise in concentrations into the 20th century, with (d) a rapid rise in the 1950s and (e) a decrease after the mid-1980s. Nitrate is well correlated with ammonium before 1920 and after 1960 but not in the intervening period. the correlation between ammonium and nitrate concentrations indicates that ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) has been common at Lomonosovfonna. There are also places in the core where nitrate is very closely associated with calcium.

A 40.9 m ice core was recovered from Far East Rongbuk Glacier (FER), Qomolangma (Mount Everest), Himalaya, and an 80.4 m core from neighboring East Rongbuk Glacier (ER). Both are dated by seasonal variations of δ18O and major-ionic profiles, together with references of β-activity peaks. In this paper we compare the chemical records of these two cores to show post-depositional modification processes. The smoothed β18O profiles of the two cores show a similar trend. However, the mean β18O value of the FER core for the period 1954—96 is 3.12%o less than that of the corresponding part of the ER core, and the major-ionic profiles of the two cores differ considerably. We suggest that melting-away of the snow layer deposited during the pre-monsoon season may account for lower β18O values of the FER than of the ER core, and higher terrestrial ion concentrations in the FER core for the period 1957-63 may contribute to changes by chemical reactions in the presence of snowmelting. The significantly decreased NH4 and, to a lesser degree, SO42 concentrations in the FER core could be caused by the ion elution process that moved most chemicals away with runoff.

Information about past atmospheric circulation and climate change can be revealed by the chemical constituents of ice cores. Based on the analytical results of Cl– and Na+ concentrations in an 18.5 m ice core, which contains 14 annual layers, from the Dasuopu glacier, central Himalaya, a significant correlation is found between Cl– and Na+ concentrations. This, along with the average Cl–/Na+ weight ratio of 1.9, indicates that moisture at the drilling site came mostly from oceans. Furthermore, there was a high positive correlation between the Cl–/Na+ ratio in the summer monsoon layers and the monsoon rainfall in northeast India, and there exists a teleconnection between the Cl– and Na+ concentrations in this shallow ice core and the North Atlantic Oscillation.

High-resolution chemical records from an 80.4m ice core from the central Himalaya demonstrate climatic and environmental changes since 1844. the chronological net accumulation series shows a sharp decrease from the mid-1950s, which is coincident with the widely observed glacier retreat. A negative correlation is found between the ice-core δ18O record and the monsoon precipitation for Indian region 7. the temporal variation of the terrestrial ions (Ca2+ and Mg2+) is controlled by both the monsoon precipitation for Indian regions 3,7 and 8, located directly south and west of the Himalaya, and the dust-storm duration and frequency in the northern arid regions, such as the Taklimakan desert, China. the NH4+ profile is fairly flat until the 1940s, then substantially increases until the end of the 1980s, with a slight decrease during the 1990s which may reflect new agricultural practices. the SO42– and NO3– profiles show an apparent increasing trend, especially during the period 1940s–80s. Moreover, SO42– concentrations for the East Rongbuk Glacier core are roughly double that of the nearby Dasuopu core at Xixabangma, Himalaya, due to local human activity including that of climbing teams who use gasoline for cooking, energy and transport.

A 43 year oxalate record has been recovered in a 14.08m ice core from Ürümqi glacier No. 1 (43˚06’N, 86˚49’ E), a mid-latitude glacier at Ürümqi river head, Tien Shan, western China. Averaging 3.6±9.2 ng g–1 the oxalate has a background level <2 ng g–1 with sporadic concentration enhancements. Most of the spikes reach beyond 10 ng g–1 and have durations 51 year. the oxalate variation correlates with that in Far East Rongbuk Glacier (27˚59’N, 86˚55’ E), Qomolangma (Mount Everest), which is located 1600 kmawayacross the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau and Taklimakandesert. Although the concentration enhancement in the latter is much higher, and lasts longer, oxalate reaches its highest concentration in both cores at the same time, during winter. the correlation of oxalate records suggests that the two areas may have had the same kind of local sources, but with a much larger (COO)22– flux in the Qomolangma area, or that they may have had a common source in the Indian subcontinent through the longitudinal atmospheric circulation. the concentration variation in the past 40 years coincides with industrial/economic development in southern Asia, and is mainly due to anthropogenic pollution.

Fast ion chromatographic (FIC) analysis of the first European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica (EPICA) Dome C ice core (788m deep) was used to obtain high-resolution profiles for Cl–, NO3– and SO42–, spanning the last 45000 years. About 19 000 determinations for each component, with an average resolution of 4.0 cm, were performed in the field on continuously melted firn- and ice-core sections. the measured core covers the Holocene, the glacial/interglacial transition and about one-third of the last ice age. In the glacial period, mean concentrations of 93.8, 24.4 and 178.4 mg L–1 were calculated for Cl–, NO3– and SO42–, respectively. the mean levels significantly increase in the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), when these compounds reach values of 149.6, 53.9 and 219.3 mg L–1. During the glacial/interglacial transition, the mean concentrations quickly decrease reaching the typical Holocene values of 19.1, 12.9 and 93.3 mg L–1, for Cl–, NO3– and SO42–, respectively. All species settle on Holocene-like values about 4000 years before the beginning of the warm period (from the isotopic curve) showing a low (chloride) and no (nitrate and sulphate) sensitivity to Antarctic Cold Reversal climatic change. the sulphate decrease is consistent with the dilution factor due to the higher accumulation rate in the interglacial conditions (about 2.5), suggesting no significant change in source intensity or transport efficiency occurred for this component. on the contrary, the Holocene values for chloride and nitrate, being much lower than those measured in the LGM, suggest a source-intensity and transport-efficiency enhancement during the LGM and/or a more effective fixing of HCl and HNO3 in the snow layers through the neutralizing effect of the higher atmospheric dust load.

In the past, ionic analyses of deep ice cores tended to consist of a few widely spaced measurements that indicated general trends in concentration. the ion-chromatographic methods widely used provide well-validated individual data, but are time-consuming. the development of continuous flow analysis (CFA) methods has allowed very rapid, high-resolution data to be collected in the field for a wide range of ions. In the European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica (EPICA) deep ice-core drilling at Dome C, many ions have been measured at high resolution, and several have been analyzed by more than one method. the full range of ions has been measured in five different laboratories by ion chromatography (IC), at resolutions of 2.5–10 cm. In the field, CFA was used to measure the ions Na+, Ca2+, nitrate and ammonium. Additionally, a new semi-continuous in situ IC method, fast ion chromatography (FIC), was used to analyze sulphate, nitrate and chloride. Some data are now available to 788 m depth. In this paper we compare the data obtained by the three methods, and show that the rapid methods (CFA and FIC) give an excellent indication of trends in ionic data. Differences between the data from the different methods do occur, and in some cases these are genuine, being due to differences in speciation in the methods. We conclude that the best system for most deep ice-core analysis is a rapid system of CFA and FIC, along with in situ meltwater collection for analysis of other ions by IC, but that material should be kept aside for a regular check on analytical quality and for more detailed analysis of some sections.

Measurements of the concentration and size distribution of dust particles found in the EPICA (European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica) Dome C ice core, East Antarctica, provide records covering the last 27000 years. the total concentration decreased drastically by a factor of 55 from the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) (800 ppb) to the Holocene (15 ppb), with a well-marked absolute minimum around 11500–11600 years ago. This latter almost corresponds to the end of the Younger Dryas in Greenland, which was marked by a methane peak related to the expansion of tropical wetlands. Assuming that the source region forAntarctic dust is the southern part of South America, the Antarctic dust minimum suggests a larger geographical extent for this wet period. the volume (mass)-size distribution of the particles displays a mode which is close to 2 μm in diameter, shifting from 1.9 μm in the glacial period to 2.07 μm in the Holocene. As opposed to previous results from old Dome C, EPICA suggests a greater proportion of large particles in Holocene samples than in LGM samples. In addition, for the period 13 000–2000BP, structured millennial-scale oscillations of the dust mode appear. These are especially well marked before 5000 years ago, with higher frequencies also present. the difference between LGM and Holocene particle distributions may be related to changes in the pattern of dust transport to East Antarctica. At Dome C the greater proportion of coarse particles observed during the Holocene suggests greater direct meridional transport. During the LGM, atmospheric circulation was likely more zonal, causing a greater amount of large dust particles to be removed from the atmosphere before reaching Antarctica. Changes in atmospheric circulation could also be the cause of the millennial-scale dust-mode oscillations during the Holocene.

The 320 kyr climatic record from the 2503 m Dome Fuji (Antarctica) ice core was analyzed using two electrical methods: AC-ECM and ECM (electrical conductivity measurements). AC-ECM is a method to detect the complex admittance between electrodes dragged on the ice surface with mm-scale resolution and uses 1V and 1 MHz. the ratio of the real to imaginary part of the admittance is the AC loss factor, which responds linearly to the amount of sulfuric acid and hydrogen ions. Both the AC loss factor and the ECM current respond to acid, but the ECM signal tends to saturate at high acidities. Dome Fuji ice was measured to be highly acidic, with background values of 2–7 μM, and had 4500 major peaks with acidities of up to 90 μM. This ice-core evidence and earlier snow-chemistry survey around the dome region indicates that Dome F may have a better connection to the stratosphere than have sites at lower altitude, which allows more stratospheric aerosol and gases to reach the snow surface. Acidity tends to be high in interglacial periods, but correlation between acidity and δ18O is not straightforward. Electrical signals decreased and smoothed out with increasing depth; the diffusion coefficients deduced from this smoothing were 10–102 times greater than in solid ice. the ice core exhibited electromechanical effects and expelling effects from sulfate peaks.

Laboratory experiments were done to better understand the electrical conduction mechanisms of impure, polycrystalline ice as represented by the 2503 m Dome Fuji (Antarctica) ice core. Also, two electrical measurement techniques for ice cores were compared and their usefulness for determining the acidity of ice cores was studied. We measured the electrical conductivity and complex permittivity of 167 slab-ice samples at frequencies from 20 Hz to 1 MHz. Measurements were performed at –21˚C for all samples, and at –110˚ to –20˚C for several samples, to examine the effects of temperature. We found linear relations between the AC loss factor and the molarity of sulfuric acid, and between the high-frequency-limit conductivity and the AC loss factor. Thus, the acidity levels can be determined from the AC loss factor. In contrast, the electrical conductivity measurement (ECM) current correlated weakly with the other parameters; furthermore, the correlation worsens at larger signal. In several samples containing high acidity, the dielectric properties had distinct changes near –81˚C. We argue that these changes were caused by a change from a liquid-vein-mediated conduction mechanism above the eutectic point of the solute/water/ ice system to a solid-phase conduction mechanism at lower temperatures.

Explosive volcanic eruptions can inject large quantities of sulphur dioxide into the stratosphere. the aerosols that result from oxidation of the sulphur dioxide can produce significant cooling of the troposphere by reflecting or absorbing solar radiation. It is possible to obtain an estimate of the relative stratospheric sulphur aerosol concentration produced by different volcanoes by comparing sulphuric acid fluxes determined by analysis of polar ice cores. Here,we use a non-sea-salt sulphate time series derived from three well-dated Law Dome ice cores to investigate sulphuric acid flux ratios for major eruptions over the period AD 1301–1995. We use additional data from other cores to investigate systematic spatial variability in the ratios. Only for the Kuwae eruption (Law Dome ice date AD 1459.5) was the H2SO4 flux larger than that deposited by Tambora (Law Dome ice date AD 1816.7).

A series of ice cores from sites with different snow-accumulation rates across Law Dome, East Antarctica, was investigated for methanesulphonic acid (MSA) movement. the precipitation at these sites (up to 35 km apart) is influenced by the same air masses, the principal difference being the accumulation rate. At the low-accumulation-rate W20k site (0.17m ice equivalent), MSAwas completely relocated from the summer to winter layer. Moderate movement was observed at the intermediate-accumulation-rate site (0.7m ice equivalent), Dome Summit South (DSS), while there was no evidence of movement at the high-accumulation-rate DE08 site (1.4m ice equivalent). the main DSS record of MSA covered the epoch AD 1727–2000 and was used to investigate temporal post-depositional changes. Co-deposition of MSA and sea-salt ions was observed in the surface layers, outside of the main summer MSA peak,which complicates interpretation of these peaks as evidence of movement in deeper layers. A seasonal study of the 273 year DSS record revealed MSA migration predominantly from summer into autumn (in the up-core direction), but this migration was suppressed during the Tambora (1815) and unknown (1809) volcanic eruption period, and enhanced during an epoch (1770–1800) with high summer nitrate levels. A complex interaction between the gradients in nss-sulphate, nitrate and sea salts (which are influenced by accumulation rate) is believed to control the rate and extent of movement of MSA.

In the framework of the European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica (EPICA) a glacio-chemical pre-site survey was carried out in Dronning Maud Land (DML), Antarctica, to investigate seasonal and spatial variations. All ion species show pronounced seasonal cycles with the exception of nitrate, which is subject to post-depositional alterations. Sea salt reaches maximum concentrations in late winter/spring, while sulphate, being mainly of marine biogenic origin, shows a double peak with high concentrations both in autumn and in late spring/summer. Methanesulphonate (MSA) also shows a strong autumn peak but only slight indications of a second peak in late spring/summer, as seen for sulphate. Due to post-depositional changes, the seasonal cycle of MSA vanishes further down in the firn. These changes are also reflected in the spatial distribution of MSA. While surface MSA concentrations decline with altitude and higher accumulation rates, concentrations of aged snow show a strong increase with higher accumulation rates in our ice cores. Non-sea-salt sulphate shows a 40% decrease with an increase in snow accumulation of about 80% in recent and aged snow. While the geographical variation is negligible for average nitrate concentrations, sea salt shows an exponential decline with altitude. the outcome of this study confirms that the data of the new EPICA deep drilling site in DML (75˚00.10’ S, 0˚04.07’ E) will be representative for this region, and high-resolution analytical methods will allow accurate stratigraphic dating of a deep ice core.

Interpretation of ice-core records in terms of changes in atmospheric concentrations requires understanding of the various parameters within air–snow transfer functions. the dry-deposition velocity is one of these parameters, dependent on local meteorological conditions and thereby also affected by climate changes. We have determined aerosol dry-deposition velocities by measurements of aerosol particle-number concentration and the vertical wind component with an eddy-covariance system close to the Swedish and Finnish research stations Wasa and Aboa in Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica. Measurements were performed over a smooth, snow-covered area and over moderately rough, rocky ground during 4 and 19 days, respectively, in January 2000. the median dry-deposition velocity determined 5.25 mabove the surface was 0.33 and 0.80 cm s–1, respectively. the large difference between the two sites was mainly due to the stratification of the surface boundary layer, the surface albedo and the surface roughness height. the dry-deposition number fluxes were dominated by the particle-size modes defined as ultrafine and Aitken, withmean diameters around 14 and 42 nm, respectively. A larger dry-deposition velocity, owing to stronger Brownian diffusion, for the smaller ultrafine mode was verified by the measurements.

A 15.2 m deep firn core and a 2.7 m snow pit were drilled in the western side of Lambert Glacier basin, East Antarctica, in January 1993. the sampling site LGB16 (72.8˚ S, 57.3˚ E) is located about 650 km from the coast, at approximately 2690ma.s.l. the concentration of methanesulfonate (MSA) was determined in the firn core and snow pit. the continuous MSA record from LGB16, spanning about 60 years from 1933 to 1992, displays a decreasing trend in general, and sharp differences between the upper 10.2 m (corresponding to AD 1952) and the bottom part from 10.2 to 15.2 m. the mean MSA concentration for the whole core is 11.3±14.5 ng g–1; for the upper 10.2 m it is 9.3 ±6.3 ng g–1, compared to 15.4±23.0 ng g–1 for the bottom part. the bottom part has a greater number of high MSA peaks, which is consistent with the Cl– and, to a lesser extent, Na+ records for this core. A negative correlation was observed between sea-ice area for the South Indian Ocean sector (40–90˚E) and MSA concentration in LGB16. No significant link was observed between the high MSA concentration and El Niño events at this location.

Firn-temperature profiles are calculated in a thermal model using continuous surface temperatures derived from automatic weather station data and passive-microwave data in the Greenland summit region during the period 1987–99. the results show that significant interannual variations of mean summer (June–August) and annual temperatures occur in the top 15 m, in addition to the normal seasonal cycle of firn temperature. At 5 m depth, the seasonal cycle is damped to 13% of the surface seasonal range, but even at 15m about 1% or 0.6˚C of the seasonal cycle persists. Both summer and mean annual temperatures decrease from 1987 to 1992, followed by a general increasing trend. Interannual variability is 5˚C at the surface, but is dampened to 3.2˚C at 5 m depth and 0.7˚C at 15 m depth. Dampening of the interannual variability with depth is slower than dampening of the seasonal cycle, because of the longer time constant of the interannual variation. the warmer spring and summer temperatures experienced in the top 5 m, due to both the seasonal cycle and interannual variations, affect the rate of firn densification, which is non-linearly dependent on temperature. During the 12 year period 1987–99, the annual mean surface temperature is –29.2˚C, and the annual mean 15 m temperature is –30.1˚C, which is >1˚C warmer than a 15 mborehole temperature representing the period around 1959 and warmer than the best-fit temperature history by Alley and Koci (1990) back to AD 1500.

A medium-length ice core was drilled at the ice divide on the Lomonosovfonna plateau (1230 m a.s.l.), Svalbard, in May 1997. As part of this project, temperature measurements were performed in the 120m deep borehole. At this site the ice thickness based on radar measurements is 126.5 m and the mean annual accumulation rate is 380 kg m–3. the measurements over the 15–120m depth interval show a nearly isothermal profile with a mean value of –2.8˚C and a standard deviation of 0.2˚C. the measurements reveal a temperature minimum at approximately 70m depth and a temperature gradient of 0.011 ±0.004˚Cm–1 near the bottom. the temperature minimum and relatively low temperature gradient cannot be explained in terms of a steady-state climate. Numerical calculations with a simple one-dimensional diffusion–advection model show that the temperature increased at a maximum rate of 0.02–0.025Ka–1 over the last 100 years, the total temperature increase amounting to 2.0–3.0K. Forcing the model with the observed record at Svalbard airport revealed that in the 19th century the surface temperature was at most 2.5 K lower, and that the instrumental observations started during a period with temperatures comparable to the end of the 19th century. the data are of particular interest for historical simulations since often no other temperature data are available in polar areas.

In 1997, three ice cores were recovered from Dasuopu glacier on the northern slope of the central Himalaya. the first core, 159.9 m long, was drilled at 7000ma.s.l. down the flowline from the top of the col. the second core, 149.2m long, was drilled on the col at 7200ma.s.l. the third core, 167.7 m long, was also drilled on the col at 7200ma.s.l., 100 maway from the second core. the present paper discusses the δ18O and methane results reconstructed for the past 1000 years based on the second core. the δ18O can be interpreted as an air-temperature signal. the methane concentration is mainly representative of atmospheric methane concentration. Both δ18O and methane records show an obvious increasing trend in the past 1000 years. Methane concentration in the record is similar to the fluctuations of δ18O, decreasing during cold periods and increasing during warm periods. the Little Ice Age was well recorded in the core by both δ18O and methane. the coldest period appeared in the late 18th century, accompanied by a decrease in methane concentration. the abrupt methane-concentration increase starting after the 18th century is no doubt due to anthropogenic input. the observed methane-concentration decrease during World Wars I and II clearly demonstrates the importance of the anthropogenic input to atmospheric methane concentration if further measurements prove that it is a true atmospheric signal.