200-year ice core bromine reconstruction at Dome C (Antarctica): observational and modelling results

• Published in: The Cryosphere
• Main Authors: Burgay, François, Fernández, Rafael P., Segato, Delia, Turetta, Clara, Blaszczak-Boxe, Christopher S., Rhodes, Rachael H., Scarchilli, Claudio, Ciardini, Virginia, Barbante, Carlo, Saiz-Lopez, A., Spolaor, Andrea
• Other Authors: European Commission, Programma Nazionale di Ricerche in Antartide, Royal Society (UK), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (France), Fernández, Rafael Pedro
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: European Geosciences Union 2023
• Subjects: Antarctic; East Antarctica; The Antarctic; Antarc*; Antarctica; Antartide; EPICA; ice core; Sea ice; The Cryosphere
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10261/309827; https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-391-2023; https://doi.org/10.13039/501100004794; https://doi.org/10.13039/501100000288; https://doi.org/10.13039/501100000780; https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/85147306920

15 pags., 4 figs., 2 tabs. Bromine enrichment (Brenr) has been proposed as an ice core proxy for past sea-ice reconstruction. Understanding the processes that influence bromine preservation in the ice is crucial to achieve a reliable interpretation of ice core signals and to potentially relate them to past sea-ice variability. Here, we present a 210 years bromine record that sheds light on the main processes controlling bromine preservation in the snow and ice at Dome C, East Antarctic plateau. Using observations alongside a modelling approach, we demonstrate that the bromine signal is preserved at Dome C and it is not affected by the strong variations in ultraviolet radiation reaching the Antarctic plateau due to the stratospheric ozone hole. Based on this, we investigate whether the Dome C Brenr record can be used as an effective tracer of past Antarctic sea ice. Due to the limited time window covered by satellite measurements and the low sea-ice variability observed during the last 30 years in East Antarctica, we cannot fully validate Brenr as an effective proxy for past sea-ice reconstructions at Dome C. This research has been supported by the Horizon 2020 (Beyond EPICA; grant no. 815384), by the Programma Nazionale per la Ricerca in Antartide (PNRA; project no. PNRA16_00295), and by the bilateral international exchange award Royal Society (UK)-CNR, titled “Antarctic sea-ice history: developing robust ice core proxies” (grant no. IEC/R2/202110), awarded to Rachael H. Rhodes and Andrea Spolaor. Peer reviewed