Exploring the use of compound-specific carbon isotopes as a palaeoproductivity proxy off the coast of Adélie Land, East Antarctica

Ashley, Kate E.; Crosta, Xavier; Etourneau, Johan; Campagne, Philippine; Gilchrist, Harry; Ibraheem, Uthmaan; Greene, Sarah E.; Schmidt, Sabine; Eley, Yvette; Massé, Guillaume; Bendle, James

doi:https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-5555-2021

Articles | Volume 18, issue 19

https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-5555-2021

© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-5555-2021

© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 18, issue 19

Research article

|

14 Oct 2021

Research article |

| 14 Oct 2021

Exploring the use of compound-specific carbon isotopes as a palaeoproductivity proxy off the coast of Adélie Land, East Antarctica

Kate E. Ashley, Xavier Crosta, Johan Etourneau, Philippine Campagne, Harry Gilchrist, Uthmaan Ibraheem, Sarah E. Greene, Sabine Schmidt, Yvette Eley, Guillaume Massé, and James Bendle

Supplement

https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-5555-2021-supplement

Data sets

Adélie Drift, East Antarctic Fatty Acid Carbon Isotope Data from 1587–1998 CE K. Ashley, J. A. Bendle, X. Crosta, J. Etourneau, P. Campagne, H. Gilchrist, U. Ibraheem, S. Greene, S. Schmidt, Y. Eley, and G. Massé https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/paleo-search/study/34232

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Short summary

We explore the potential for the use of carbon isotopes of algal fatty acid as a new proxy for past primary productivity in Antarctic coastal zones. Coastal polynyas are hotspots of primary productivity and are known to draw down CO₂ from the atmosphere. Reconstructions of past productivity changes could provide a baseline for the role of these areas as sinks for atmospheric CO₂.