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Sulfur isotopic composition of surface snow along a latitudinal transect in East Antarctica
Author(s) -
Uemura Ryu,
Masaka Kosuke,
Fukui Kotaro,
Iizuka Yoshinori,
Hirabayashi Motohiro,
Motoyama Hideaki
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1002/2016gl069482
Subject(s) - transect , sulfate , snow , sulfur , geology , ice core , range (aeronautics) , oceanography , sea salt , fractionation , volcano , atmospheric sciences , aerosol , geochemistry , chemistry , geomorphology , materials science , organic chemistry , composite material
The sulfur stable isotopic values (δ 34 S) of sulfate aerosols can be used to assess oxidation pathways and contributions from various sources, such as marine biogenic sulfur, volcanoes, and sea salt. However, because of a lack of observations, the spatial distribution of δ 34 S values in Antarctic sulfate aerosols remains unclear. Here we present the first sulfur isotopic values from surface snow samples along a latitudinal transect in eastern Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica. The δ 34 S values of sulfate showed remarkably uniform values, in the range of 14.8–16.9‰, and no significant decrease toward the inland part of the transect was noted. These results suggest that net isotopic fractionation during long‐range transport is insignificant. Thus, the δ 34 S values can be used to infer source contributions. The δ 34 S values suggest that marine biogenic sulfur is the dominant source of sulfate aerosols, with a fractional contribution of 84 ± 16%.