Acquisition of a new stable isotope mass spectrometer

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0926503SwartThis award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). Granted funds will support acquisition of a new stable isotope ratio mass spectrometer (SIRMS - Thermo MAT 253) to replace an existing Finnigan-MAT 251 (vintage 1985) in the Department of Marine Geology and Geophysics at the Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Sciences. The SIRMS will largely be dedicated to the analysis of stable isotopes carbon and oxygen in carbonates but also will be used for analysis of stable isotopes in natural waters and organics. The MAT 253, a large radius magnet, high voltage source instrument, also offers the capability to analyze isotopologues of carbon dioxide to investigate new proxies for paleothermometry. The PIs intend to explore this capability in the future. The new SIRMS will immediately support NSF funded research in paleoclimatology and paleoceanography including studies of Miocence sea level history based on the carbon isotopic composition of platform carbonates, high resolution studies of late Pleistocene tropical climate variability recorded with high fidelity in the varved sediments of the Cariaco Basin and studies of coral calcification rates in response to varying sea water pCO2.