Recent inter-annual climate variability in coastal Dronning Maud Land , East Antarctica, based on statistical evaluation of meteorological and stable water isotope data

• Main Authors: Fernandoy, Francisco, Meyer, Hanno, Oerter, Hans
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2010
• Subjects: East Antarctica; Dronning Maud Land; Neumayer; Neumayer Station; Antarc*; Antarctica; DML
• Online Access: https://epic.awi.de/id/eprint/22728/; https://epic.awi.de/id/eprint/22728/1/Fer2010b.pdf; https://hdl.handle.net/10013/epic.35404; https://hdl.handle.net/10013/epic.35404.d001

Based on the study of stable water isotopes of several firn cores, snow pits and fresh snow samples from coastal Dronning Maud Land (DML) and the surroundings of the Neumayer Station, East Antarctica (Figure 1), a clear correlation between air temperature and stable water isotope composition has been demonstrated for this region (Fernandoy and others, 2010). This even allows extending the meteorological record of the Neumayer Station into the past. Consequently, stable climatic conditions for at least the last 50 years and beyond in this area are concluded. Nevertheless, an important seasonal variability is observed. From the time series analysis, different but marked patterns arise the stable isotope data. Time series are compared to some major climate forcing mechanisms (CFM) such as: El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), Southern Annular Mode (SAM) and Solar activity (sunspot numbers), showing that the local climate variability cannot be easily explained. Only weak correlations are found between the isotope data and CFM, being significant (at p-level 0.05) between δ18O (δD) and ENSO. Furthermore, a correlation of the secondary parameter deuterium excess (d excess = δD - 8*δ18O) and SAM is significant, but weak.