Two EPICA ice cores revealing 800,000 years of climate history: An overview.

Hans Oerter & EPICA team

Alfred-Wegener-Institut für Polar- und Meeresforschung in der Helmholtz-Gemeinschaft, Bremerhaven

23. Internationale Polartagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Polarforschung, Münster, 10.-14. März 2008 Neumayer Antarctic EPICA-DML, Peninsula 2774m, >250 ka Kohnen JARE 3029m, >700 ka

Dome F Dyer Pl. B15 Berkner Is.

China, planned Siple St. Russia, F, US 3700m, 420 ka Vostok Byrd EPICA-DC, Siple D. 3270m, 800 ka

Dome C Law Dome Deep ice Taylor D. cores in I, F, D, UK Talos D. layout: w. rack, h. oerter, AWI

23. Internationale Polartagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Polarforschung, Münster, 10.-14. März 2008 2 European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica (EPICA) Dronning-Maud-Land : 10° W 0° 10°E 21. Dec. 2004 68°S 70°S SANAE III Novolazerevskaja 3272m 500 Neumayer 1000 ca. 800 ka Ekström- 1500 Weddell Sea isen 2000 (~2x Vostok) 2500 72°S

SANAE IV Jutulstraumen 70°S Wegenerisen 3000

H.U.Sverdrupf. DML: Ritscherflya Mario Zuchelli 74°S Isen Kottas 17. Jan. 2006 Camp Kirwanv. DML05 72°S Wasa

2774 m Larsen- KohnenKohnen

> 250 ka Riiser- 76°S

Heimefrontf. Amundsenisen Brunt 3000 EPICA comprises two ice cores: 74°S Ice Shelf 2500 1000 1500 500 2000 Dome C Halley 0 km 500 (75 ° 06.10' S, 123° 23.71‘E, 3233 m; 30°W 20°W 10° W 0° 10°E -2 -1 Sea Ice shelf Inland ice, grounded ice 2000 contour line grounding line ice 3250 ±25m, -54.5 °C, 25 kg m a ) Traverse routes: U.K. Sweden Germany Norway Dronning Maud Land (DML, Kohnen) (75 ° 0.10' S, 0° 4.07' E, 2892 m; 10 European nations working together: ice 2782 ±10m, -44.6 °C, 64 kg m-2 a-1) Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom

Funding by the European Commission and by national contributions. For Germany AWI & DFG 23. Internationale Polartagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Polarforschung, Münster, 10.-14. März 2008 3 Schematic Cross Section Through an Ice Sheet

typical for Greenland Antarctica

Ice thickness Summit Ice thickness Accumulation Accumulation Equilibrium line Grounding line

Melting Inland ice / max: 4775 m mean: 1667 m mean: 3080 m Ablation Ice sheet Iceberg mean: 2078 m calving Iceberg calving Ice shelf

Rock , 2004 subglacial melting Ocean WI / hans oerter A 500 - 1000 km ca. 2000 km 100 - 700 km grafic: Ablation Accumulation

23. Internationale Polartagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Polarforschung, Münster, 10.-14. März 2008 4 , 2006 foto: hans oerter The drill trench 23. Internationale Polartagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Polarforschung, Münster, 10.-14. März 2008 5 10 mm Thin sections CFA 18 2 33 x 33 mm δ O, δ H 10 15 mm 24 mm Be 54 mm 44 mm Archive

55 mm Gases, dust

CO2, CH4, N2O 98mm & isotopes foto: hans oerter, 2006 Cutting scheme for EPICA ice cores 23. Internationale Polartagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Polarforschung, Münster, 10.-14. März 2008 6 Antarctic stable isotope records a) -38 MIS5.5 T show synchronous millennial MIS1 -36 su ] variations during the last glacial, MIS4 EDML -40 rf

°° -43 whereas rapid variations are MIS3 -44 [° °/ LGM [ encountered in Greenland. -48 C] 18 -48 a) EDML δ O record (purple, rr -52 0.5-m resolution; grey, 15-m co -53 running O -330 δ mean) after sea level and 18 -58 D upstream correctionover the past δ -370 -63 co EDC rr 150 kyr. The record shows -410 features similar tothose of the [ EDC (blue) and the Dome F b) °/ -32 -450 °° (pink) isotope records but with ] DO1 23 ] more fine structure during MIS3 20 21 24 25 -490 °° 16 -36 1112 14 19 and MIS4. We note that 3 6 810 1517 22 [°/ 45 7 EDML and EDC are plotted on 2 9 13 18 -530 the new common -40 synchronized by EDC3 timescale while Dome F is O Methane 18 plotted on its individual δ -44 NGRIP concentrations timescale. The temperature axis on the right side indicates -48 1000 du approximate surface

EDML st temperatures at EDML as derived from the c) [ spatial δ18O/temperature 100 p gradient. pb] b) δ18O record of 25-50 the NGRIP (grey). EDC 10 c) Mineral dust records of the EDML (red) and EDC (pink) ice cores at 1,000-yr 0 50000 100000 150000 resolution; these dust records were used for synchronization of EDML age [yrs BP] the cores.

EPICA Community Members: nature 444, 9 November 2006. doi:10.038/nature06301 The EPICA EDML-ice core

23. Internationale Polartagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Polarforschung, Münster, 10.-14. März 2008 7 Each Antarctic Bipolar seesaw depending on AMOC Isotope Maximum (AIM) in the EDML- ice core AIM corresponds to a D/O event in Greenland (NGRIP)

Warming in D/O Antarctica starts in a cold phase (Stadial) of the North, Cooling in a warm phase (Interstadial)

Age on new NGRIP time scale (kyrs BP) AMOC: Atlantic Meridional Overturning Source: EPICA community members: Nature ,Vol. 444 , November 9, 2006) Circulation Comparison Antarctica (EDML) - Greenland (NGRIP)

23. Internationale Polartagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Polarforschung, Münster, 10.-14. März 2008 8 °C d 18O North e 0 DO events AIMs appear also in 5 1 24 25 GRIP in ‰ -35 6 10 16 21 23 8 12 14 19 20 22 O (‰) 4 7 11 17 earlier glacials 5 13 15 18 18

3 δ 2 4.1 9 18.1 -40 0 Strength of T II -45 T MIS 5.5 interglacials -5 I MIS 4

ctic temperatur MIS change (°C) ACR MIS 5.1

2 North GRIP depending on MIS 5.3 MIS 5.2 MIS 5.4Age (ky BP) MIS 3

whether obliquity Antar -10 MIS MIS MIS 7.5 50 9.3 100 °C e and precession MIS 7.3 7.1 0 peak in phase or MIS 11.1 MIS 11.3 MIS TV 7.4 T T not MIS 6 III IV MIS 12.3 MIS MIS 10 MIS -5 MIS 12.2 12.4 Back to 140 ky B.P., 100-year mean values 7.2 MIS 11.2 are shown, whereas for earlier periods MIS 9.2 ctic temperatur MIS 8 change (°C) (middle and lower traces), DTs is calculated e Age (ky BP) -10 from 0.55-m raw data; a smooth curve 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 using a 700-year binomial filter is super- Antar imposed on this detailed record. 0 MIS MIS MIS 13.3 14.3 In the upper trace (which is plotted on a 15.3 MIS more highly resolved time axis), the MIS MIS T 18.3 15.1 15.5 VII MIS T MIS V III T correspondence is shown between the DO -5 MIS T 17.3 MIS IX 13.1 VI MIS 16.4 16.2 MIS 19.3 ctic temperatur events as recorded in the North Greenland change (°C) MIS 18.2 13.2 MIS MIS MIS Age (ky BP) Ice Core Project isotopic record and MIS 14.214.4 15.2 15.4 MIS 16.3 AIM events recorded in the EDC tem- -10 perature record during the last glacial Antar 500 550 600 650 700 750 800 period and the last deglaciation. We have indicated the successive MIS, and the Age (ky B.P.) transitions are labeled from TI to TIX. Jouzel, J. et al.:, Science 317, 793-796 (2007)

Dome C temperature anomaly over 810 ky 23. Internationale Polartagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Polarforschung, Münster, 10.-14. März 2008 9 Antarctic ice core records: Vostok and EPICA CO2, CH4 and DD at present 375 300 Vostok (black) and Dome C (blue) data vor 1850 AD 270

240

(ppmv) 2 210 CO 180 EPICA Dome C data Warm -390

Cold -420 D ice (‰) D

-450 Vostok (black) and Dome C (blue) data 700 600

(ppbv) 4 500

CH 400 300 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 today Age / kyr BP EPICA data are plotted on EDC2, Vostok data on GT4 timescale

Petit et al., 1999 (Vostok), Siegenthaler et al., 2005 (Dome C - CO2),

Spahni et al., 2005 (Dome C - CH4), EPICA community members, 2004 (DD)

23. Internationale Polartagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Polarforschung, Münster, 10.-14. März 2008 10 EPICA has produced the definitive ice-core records of climate and evironmental change from Antarctica. EPICA extended the ice-core records back to 800,000 years BP.

Greenhouse gases (CO2, CH4, N2O) are now at their highest concentrations of the past 650,000 years.

CO2 and Antarctic climate have been tightly coupled over the entire period (providing great constraints on the role of the ). Each of the rapid Dansgaard-Oeschger events, has an Antarctic counterpart (AIM), strongly supporting the idea that the mechanism was reorganisation of ocean heat transport. , 2008 foto: hans oerter Summary

23. Internationale Polartagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Polarforschung, Münster, 10.-14. März 2008 11