Two-hundred-year record of biogenic sulfur in a south Greenland ice core (20D)

Journal Article · Thu Jan 20 04:00:00 EST 1994 · Journal of Geophysical Research

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/93JD02732· OSTI ID:81536

Whung, P Y; Saltzman, E S ^[1]; Spencer, M J; Mayewski, P A ^[2]; Gundestrup, N ^[3]

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1. Univ. of Miami, FL (United States)
2. Univ. of New Hampshire, Durham, NH (United States)
3. Univ. of Copenhagen (Denmark)

The concentration of methanesulfonic acid (MSA) was determined in a shallow south central Greenland ice core (20D). This study provides a high-resolution record of the DMS-derived biogenic sulfur in Greenland precipitation over the past 200 years. The mean concentration of MSA is 3.30 ppb ({sigma} = 2.38 ppb, n = 1134). The general trend of MSA is an increase from 3.01 to 4.10 ppb between 1767 and 1900, followed by a steady decrease to 2.34 ppb at the present time. This trend is in marked contrast to that of non-sea-salt sulfate (nss SO{sub 4}{sup 2{minus}}), which increases dramatically after 1900 due to the input of anthropogenic sulfur. The MSA fraction ((MSA/(MSA + nss SO{sub 4}{sup 2{minus}})) * 100) ranges from a mean of 15% in preindustrial ice to less than 5% in recent ice. These MSA fractions suggest that approximately 15 to 40% of the sulfur in recent Greenland ice is of biological origin. It is suggested that there is a significant low-latitude component to the biogenic sulfur in the core and that variations in the MSA fraction reflect changes in the relative strengths of low- and high-latitude inputs. The data show no evidence for a strong dependence of dimethyl sulfide (DMS) emissions on sea surface temperature during the last century. There is also no indication that yields of MSA from DMS oxidation has been altered by increased NO{sub x} levels over the North Atlantic during this period. 49 refs., 7 figs.

• OSTI ID: 81536
• Journal Information: Journal of Geophysical Research, Journal Name: Journal of Geophysical Research Journal Issue: D1 Vol. 99; ISSN JGREA2; ISSN 0148-0227
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
AEROSOL MONITORING
AIR POLLUTION
DIMETHYL SULFIDE
DRILL CORES
DRILLING
ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS
GREENLAND
ICE
ORIGIN
SULFUR CONTENT