A Strontium, Oxygen and Carbon Isotopic Study of Cenozoic Marine Biogenic Carbonate from Antarctica

本研究将证明生物碳酸盐的锶、碳和氧同位素比值对冰川期海洋环境沉积物定年和解释南极大陆架古气候条件的有用性。该奖项将支持对渐新世至近代沉积物中有孔虫和双壳类的同位素（锶、氧和碳）研究，这些沉积物是从南极洲的几个钻孔和露头中恢复的。基于Sr同位素分析的年龄估计将提供有关南极洲沉积和冰川过程的有用信息，并允许对冰川海洋序列进行对比，并帮助它们与低纬度沉积序列进行对比。本研究的目的是提供目前缺乏的南极边缘海新生代气候的直接信息。古海洋学将由氧和碳同位素比值推断。南极双壳类和有孔虫的同位素数据将与已发表的低纬度和高纬度新生代表层和深水的记录进行比较。这将澄清世界海底水形成的来源以及高纬度和低纬度气候之间的关系。

This study will demonstrate the usefulness of strontium, carbon, and oxygen isotopic ratios of biogenic carbonate for dating sediments from glaciomarine environments and interpreting paleoclimatic conditions in Antarctic continental shelves. The award will support an isotopic (strontium, oxygen and carbon) study of foraminifera and bivalves from sediments of Oligocene to Recent age recovered from several drillholes and outcrops on Antarctica. Age estimates based on Sr isotope analyses will provide useful information about sedimentary and glacial processes in Antarctica, as well as permit correlation of glaciomarine sequences and assist in their correlation to lower latitude sedimentary successions. It is the goal of this study to provide direct information about the Cenozoic climate of Antarctic marginal seas, which is presently lacking. Paleoceanography will be inferred from oxygen and carbon isotope ratios. Isotopic data from Antarctic bivalves and foraminifera will be compared with published records for Cenozoic surface and deep waters at low and high latitudes. This will clarify the sources of bottom water formation in the world in the world ocean and the relation between high and low latitude climates.