NSFGEO-DFG: Uncovering Atmospheric Composition during the Past 14,000 Years Using European Ice Cores

This project will develop and interpret unprecedented records of aerosols in Europe spanning approximately the past 14,000 years using ice cores, which represent a unique, information-rich archive of changes in atmospheric composition through time. Aerosols are small particles and droplets in air that come from sources such as desert dust, wildfires, volcanic eruptions, and human activities. The improved understanding of aerosols from this study is important because aerosols impact many Earth processes, including weather, atmospheric chemistry and ocean productivity, as well as human health. The study also includes public outreach such as participation in an internationally televised documentary, student and post-doctoral training, and fostering of international scientific collaborations. State-of-the art analytical methods and radiometric dating techniques will be used to develop robust, well-dated, high time resolution records of a broad range of aerosols from new ice cores to be collected as part of an international collaboration from the Dôme du Goûter and adjacent drill sites in the French Alps. Atmospheric aerosol transport and deposition modeling will be used to understand source regions and underpin interpretation. The probability of success is high because this study builds directly on findings from more limited, recent analyses of a 1999 ice core drilled from Dôme du Goûter that shows preservation of an aerosol record extending over the past ~14,000 years – the first such stratigraphically intact ice core record from Europe that extends into the last glacial period. This period captures the full range of aerosol concentrations, extending from the Ice Age to the current warm period, and spanning the growth of human societies from small hunter-gatherer populations to modern Europe. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.