Chlorofluoromethane (Freon) Studies in the Filchner III Experiment

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This project is an analysis of the distribution of two species of chlorofluoromethanes (freons) in the southern Weddell Sea. The samples were obtained by the principal investigator as part of the Filchner III Expedition of the West German research vessel POLARSTERN. The analysis of freons, a time-dependent, anthropogenic tracer in the water column, is part of a collaborative chemical and hydrographical study of the circulation of Ice Shelf Water (a particular water type formed under the Filchner Ice Shelf). The outlow of this water type through the Filchner Depression, its subsequent evolution on the continental slope, and its penetration into the deep Weddell Sea will be followed, and the derived data used to study formation rates and transport paths of deep and bottom water masses in the Weddell Sea. Air samples that were collected on the cruise will be analyzed for freon concentrations in order to determine the extent of equilibrium between the surface sea water and the overlying atmosphere.