Climate History and Flow Processes from Physical Analyses of the SPICECORE South Pole Ice Core

Alley/1542778该奖项支持一项为期三年的南极冰芯物理特性研究，以帮助提供一个高时间分辨率的痕量气体和其他古气候指标的历史，这些指标来自一个特别寒冷的地点，具有高度的重要信号保存潜力。物理性质研究包括目视检查，以确定任何流动扰动，并确定年度层和其他特征，并结合气泡，颗粒和冰晶定向研究，以更好地了解冰中发生的影响气候记录和冰盖行为的过程。这些努力的成功将为其他研究冰芯的人提供必要的年龄和质量控制支持，以及确定现场的气候历史，流动状态和冰中的关键物理过程。该项目的智力价值包括更好地理解物理过程，古气候重建，冰的年龄和质量保证。对岩芯的目视检查将有助于查明可能破坏气候记录完整性的流动扰动证据，并将揭示火山层位和其他令人感兴趣的特征。将进行年度层计数，以帮助估计冰芯中记录的随时间推移的累积率。对C轴结构、粒度和形状以及气泡特征的测量将提供有关冰盖中发生的过程以及冰流历史、当前流动状态和冰如何流动以及未来流动的容易程度的信息。结合microCT数据分析这些数据将有助于揭示颗粒尺度过程。该项目更广泛的影响包括支持早期职业生涯，博士后研究人员，并改善社会相关的古气候数据。研究结果将纳入积极的教育和推广方案，该方案通过分享有关冰芯科学和古气候各个方面的信息和教育材料，教育了许多学生、公众和决策者。

Alley/1542778This award supports a three-year effort to study physical properties of the South Pole ice core to help provide a high-time-resolution history of trace gases and other paleoclimatic indicators from an especially cold site with high preservation potential for important signals. The physical-properties studies include visual inspection to identify any flow disturbances and for identifying annual layers and other features, and combined bubble, grain and ice crystal orientation studies to better understand the processes occurring in the ice that affect the climate record and the ice-sheet behavior. Success of these efforts will provide necessary support for dating and quality control to others studying the ice core, as well as determining the climate history of the site, flow state, and key physical processes in ice.The intellectual merits of the project include better understanding of physical processes, paleoclimatic reconstruction, dating of the ice, and quality assurance. Visual inspection of the core will help identify evidence of flow disturbances that would disrupt the integrity of the climate record and will reveal volcanic horizons and other features of interest. Annual layer counting will be conducted to help estimate accumulation rate over time as recorded in the ice core. Measurements of C-axis fabric, grain size and shapes, and bubble characteristics will provide information about processes occurring in the ice sheet as well as the history of ice flow, current flow state and how the ice is flowing and how easily it will flow in the future. Analysis of this data in conjunction with microCT data will help to reveal grain-scale processes. The broader impacts of the project include support for an early-career, post-doctoral researcher, and improved paleoclimatic data of societal relevance. The results will be incorporated into the active program of education and outreach which have educated many students, members of the public and policy makers through the sharing of information and educational materials about all aspects of ice core science and paleoclimate.