1
|
Spötl C, Fohlmeister J, Reimer P, Zhang H. First insights into the age of the giant ice deposits in the Eisriesenwelt cave (Austria). Sci Rep 2024; 14:11001. [PMID: 38745013 PMCID: PMC11094106 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-61668-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2024] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Frozen water is the most widespread type of ice present in ice caves and forms ice stalagmites and stalactites as well as floor ice, which is often several meters thick. Organic macroremains are commonly rare in this type of cave ice, which makes it difficult to establish a chronology and severely limits the use of such ice deposits as paleoenvironmental archives. Here, the chronology of such ice deposits in the inner part of the glaciated Eisriesenwelt, one of the world's largest ice caves located in the European Alps of Austria, is determined by a combination of radiocarbon and 230Th dating of cryogenic calcite. The data suggest that this cave ice has formed over the last three millennia, with a marked increase in the average accumulation rate during the thirteenth century, coinciding with the onset of the Little Ice Age in the Alps. Data from a second site closer to the entrance suggests that large parts of this tourist cave were likely ice-free during the Medieval Warm Period and that a substantial part of the ice is probably a relic of the Little Ice Age. The current warming has already penetrated deeper into the cave than during the Medieval Warm Period, although air exchange during the warm season is restricted by a door at the cave entrance.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Christoph Spötl
- Institute of Geology, University of Innsbruck, 6020, Innsbruck, Austria.
| | - Jens Fohlmeister
- German Federal Office for Radiation Protection, Koepenicker Allee 120, 10318, Berlin, Germany
| | - Paula Reimer
- Centre for Climate, the Environment and Chronology (14CHRONO), School of Natural and Built Environment, Queen᾿S University Belfast, Belfast, BT7 1NN, UK
| | - Haiwei Zhang
- Institute of Global Environmental Change, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710054, China
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
A Tibetan ice core covering the past 1,300 years radiometrically dated with 39Ar. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2022; 119:e2200835119. [PMID: 36161936 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2200835119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Ice cores from alpine glaciers are unique archives of past global and regional climate conditions. However, recovering climate records from these ice cores is often hindered by the lack of a reliable chronology, especially in the age range of 100 to 500 anni (a) for which radiometric dating has not been available so far. We report on radiometric 39Ar dating of an ice core from the Tibetan Plateau and the construction of a chronology covering the past 1,300 a using the obtained 39Ar ages. This is made possible by advances in the analysis of 39Ar using the laser-based detection method atom trap trace analysis, resulting in a twofold increase in the upper age limit of 39Ar dating. By measuring the anthropogenic 85Kr along with 39Ar we quantify and correct modern air contamination, thus removing a major systematic uncertainty of 39Ar dating. Moreover, the 85Kr data for the top part of the ice core provide information on firn processes, including the age difference between the ice and its enclosed gas. This first application of 39Ar and 85Kr to an ice core facilitates further ice cores from nonpolar glaciers to be used for recovering climate records of the Common Era, a period including pronounced anomalies such as the Little Ice Age and the Medieval Warm Period.
Collapse
|
3
|
Tong AL, Gu JQ, Jia ZH, Yang GM, Hu SM, Jiang W, Lu ZT, Ritterbusch F, Sun LT. Fast atom-trap analysis of 39Ar with isotope pre-enrichment. THE REVIEW OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS 2022; 93:023203. [PMID: 35232153 DOI: 10.1063/5.0068661] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
We demonstrate fast analysis of 39Ar/Ar at the 10-16 level using a mass spectrometer for isotope pre-enrichment and an atom trap for counting. An argon gas sample first passes through a dipole mass separator that reduces the dominant isotope 40Ar by two orders of magnitude while preserving both the rare tracer isotope 39Ar and a minor stable isotope 38Ar for control purposes. Measurements of both natural and enriched samples with atom trap trace analysis demonstrate that the 39Ar/38Ar ratios change less than 10%, while the overall count rates of 39Ar are increased by one order of magnitude. By overcoming the analysis-speed bottleneck, this advance will benefit large-scale applications of 39Ar dating in the earth sciences, particularly for mapping ocean circulation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Amin L Tong
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Ji-Qiang Gu
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Ze-Hua Jia
- Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, China
| | - Guo-Min Yang
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Shui-Ming Hu
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Wei Jiang
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Zheng-Tian Lu
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Florian Ritterbusch
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Liang-Ting Sun
- Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, China
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Fischer A, Stocker-Waldhuber M, Frey M, Bohleber P. Contemporary mass balance on a cold Eastern Alpine ice cap as a potential link to the Holocene climate. Sci Rep 2022; 12:1331. [PMID: 35079007 PMCID: PMC8789798 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-04699-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2021] [Accepted: 12/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Alpine cold ice caps are sensitive indicators of local climate. The adequate interpretation of this information in an ice core requires detailed in situ glaciological and meteorological records, of which there are few. The Weißseespitze summit ice cap (3499 m) presents an ideal case to compare past and present climate and mass balance, with limited ice flow, but close to 6000 years locked into about 10 m of ice. First-ever meteorological observations at the ice dome have revealed that over 3 years of observation most of the accumulation took place between October and December and from April to June. In the colder winter months, between January and March, wind erosion prevents accumulation. Melt occurred between June and September, ice was only affected during short periods, mainly in August, which caused ice losses of up to 0.6 m (i.e. ~ 5% of the total ice thickness). Historical data points at a loss of of 34.9 ± 10.0 m between 1893 and 2018 and almost balanced conditions between 1893 and 1914. The local evidence of ice loss lays the basis for the interpretation of past gaps in the ice core records as past warm/melt events.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Fischer
- Institute for Interdisciplinary Mountain Research, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Innsbruck, Austria.
| | - Martin Stocker-Waldhuber
- Institute for Interdisciplinary Mountain Research, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Innsbruck, Austria
| | | | - Pascal Bohleber
- Institute for Interdisciplinary Mountain Research, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Innsbruck, Austria
- Department for Environmental Science, Informatics and Statistics, Ca'Foscari University of Venice, Venice, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Tong AL, Gu JQ, Yang GM, Hu SM, Jiang W, Lu ZT, Ritterbusch F. An atom trap system for 39Ar dating with improved precision. THE REVIEW OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS 2021; 92:063204. [PMID: 34243571 DOI: 10.1063/5.0050620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2021] [Accepted: 05/23/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Cosmogenic 39Ar dating is an emerging technique in dating mountain glacier ice, mapping ocean circulation, and tracing groundwater flow. We have realized an atom-trap system for the analysis of the radioactive isotope 39Ar (half-life = 269 years) in environmental samples. The system is capable of analyzing small (1-5 kg) environmental water or ice samples and achieves a count rate of 10 atoms/h for 39Ar at the modern isotopic abundance level of 8 × 10-16. By switching frequently between counting 39Ar atoms and measuring the stable and abundant isotope 38Ar, drift effects in the trapping efficiency are largely suppressed, leading to a more precise measurement of the isotope ratio 39Ar/38Ar. Moreover, cleaning techniques are developed to alleviate cross-sample contamination, reducing the background 39Ar count rate down to <0.5 atoms/h. These advances allow us to determine the 39Ar age in the range of 250-1300 years with precisions of <20%.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Amin L Tong
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Ji-Qiang Gu
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Guo-Min Yang
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Shui-Ming Hu
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Wei Jiang
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Zheng-Tian Lu
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Florian Ritterbusch
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Dong XZ, Ritterbusch F, Chu YQ, Gu JQ, Hu SM, Jiang W, Lu ZT, Yang GM, Zhao L. Dual Separation of Krypton and Argon from Environmental Samples for Radioisotope Dating. Anal Chem 2019; 91:13576-13581. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.9b02716] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Xi-Ze Dong
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Florian Ritterbusch
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Yan-Qing Chu
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Ji-Qiang Gu
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Shui-Ming Hu
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Wei Jiang
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Zheng-Tian Lu
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Guo-Min Yang
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Lei Zhao
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, CAS Center for Excellence in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
| |
Collapse
|