Evidence for substantial accumulation rate variability in Antarctica during the Holocene, through synchronization of CO2 in the Taylor Dome, Dome C and DML ice cores

Abstract

High resolution records of atmospheric CO2 concentration during the Holocene are obtained from the Dome Concordia and Dronning Maud Land (Antarctica) ice cores. These records confirm that the CO2 concentration varied between 260 and 280 ppmv in the Holocene as measured in the Taylor Dome ice core. However, there are differences in the CO2 records most likely caused by mismatches in timescales. Matching the Taylor Dome timescale to the Dome C timescale by synchronization of CO2 indicates that the accumulation rate at Taylor Dome increased through the Holocene by a factor two and bears little resemblance to the stable isotope record used as a proxy for temperature. This result shows that different locations experienced substantially different accumulation changes, and casts doubt on the often-used assumption that accumulation rate scales with the saturation vapor pressure as a function of temperature, at least for coastal locations. © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.