Using an Ice Core to Characterize the Climatic History of Antarctica

Between 20 November and 14 December 1984, a remote tent camp was operated in the Dominion Range (center point, 85° 15\u27 S 166° 10 \u27E) on an ice-covered massif located at the confluence of the heads of the Beardmore and Mill Glaciers in the Transantarctic Mountains. The camp was occupied by four members of the Glacier Research Group (University of New Hampshire) and three members of the Polar lee Coring Office (PICO) (University of Nebraska). The main task at the site was to retrieve an ice core from which chemical and physical time series will be made available to help in assessing: (1) current stability of the east antarctic ice sheet, (2) current models concerning the recent glacial history of the Transantarctic Mountains, (3) the presence of relatively high frequency (100 per 100 years) climatic signals, and (4) the possible relationships between volcanic and/or solar activities and climatic change