A bibliography of references relating to the outcomes of the RiSCC project (Regional Sensitivity to Climate Change in Antarctic Terrestrial Ecosystems) from the Antarctic and subantarctic regions, dating from 1994 to 2006. The bibliography was compiled by Dana Bergstrom, and contains 162 references.

This dataset contains the underway data collected during the Aurora Australis Voyage 4 2000-01. This voyage departed Fremantle and visited Heard Island, Mawson, Davis and Sansom Island prior to returning to Hobart. Underway (meteorological, fluorometer and thermosalinograph) data are available online via the Australian Antarctic Division Data Centre web page (or via the Related URL section). For further information, see the Marine Science Support Data Quality Report at the Related URL section.

This dataset contains the underway data collected during the Aurora Australis Voyage 7 2001-02. This voyage carried out marine science activities associated with the AMISOR project in the Prydz Bay region. It also visited Davis and Mawson prior to returning to Hobart. Underway data are available online via the Australian Antarctic Division Data Centre web page (or via the Related URL section). For further information, see the Marine Science Support Data Quality Report at the Related URL section.

Ozone depletion over Antarctica increases UVB irradiances reaching the Earth's surface in the region. Marine microbes, that support the Antarctic food web and play an integral part in carbon cycling, are damaged by UVB. This research determines Antarctic UV climate, biological responses to UV from the molecular to community level, and combines these elements to predict UV-induced changes in Antarctic marine microbiology. A season of field work was undertaken over November and December 1994 based from Davis Station with the intention of making field measurements of ultraviolet radiation in the fast ice environment, as well as some of the lakes in the Vestfold Hills. Instrumentation The instrument for the measurements was a Macam spectral radiometer, owned by Geography and Environmental Studies, University of Tasmania. Field personnel were Dr Kelvin Michael (IASOS) and Mr Michael Wall (Honours student, Geography and Environmental Studies, UTas). The radiometer was equipped with a 25-metre quartz light pipe, with a cosine sensor attachment at the end. To make a measurement of ultraviolet irradiance, the sensor would be oriented so that its sensing surface was horizontal, and it would collect light which was then transmitted along the light pipe to the radiometer - a suitcase-sized unit which ran on battery power in the field. The radiometer was encased in a wooden box lined with polystyrene foam to provide protection from the elements and heat insulation. The radiometer was controlled via a laptop PC and the data were stored on the hard disk of the PC. Measurements Measurements of the attenuation of ultraviolet and visible radiation as a function of wavelength in water were made at the ice edge and lake measurement sites. At the ice edge, the light pipe was spooled over a wheel and lowered to preset depths (typically 1,2,4,8,16 and 32 m below the water surface). On a lake, a 25-cm augur hole was drilled, and the light pipe was lowered by hand to various depths, the exact depths chosen depended on the depth of the lake. Where the lake ice conditions permitted, a frame was lowered through the hole and used to lever the light pipe against the underside of the ice and a measurement of the ultraviolet and visible transmission of the sea ice was collected. In all cases, measurements of the ultraviolet and visible surface irradiance were collected before and/or after the sub-surface measurements. When the sky conditions were sufficiently clear, the direct and diffuse components of the ultraviolet and visible irradiance values were estimated, via the use of a shading apparatus. This would ensure that the radiometer would measure the diffuse component of the radiation field, allowing the direct component to be estimated by subtraction of the diffuse from the global (unshaded) measurement. On some occasions, the upwelling irradiance from the snow or ice surface was also measured, providing information on the spectral albedo of the surface. At each measurement, spectral irradiance values were generally collected for two spectral ranges: UV-B (280 - 400 nm, in 1-nm steps) and visible (400 - 700 nm, in 5-nm steps). In some cases, the wavelength boundaries were different - eg 280 - 350 nm for the UV-B, or 550 - 680 nm in the visible (corresponding to channel 1 of the NOAA AVHRR sensor). The data were stored by the PC as raw data files. The names of these files are automatically defined from the time on the logging PC as 'hhmmss.dti'. Note that the PC was operating on Australian Eastern Summer Time, 4 hours ahead of DLT. These data files were later read into Excel spreadsheets for manipulation. See the linked report for further information. The measurements are all in units of watts per metre squared per nanometre (Wm^-2 nm_-1) The heading UV-B refers to the fact that the data are collected in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum (280 - 400 nm) The heading AVHRR refers to the fact that the data are collected in the visible part of the spectrum (400 - 700 nm) The fields in this dataset are: UV Radiation Wavelength Depth AVHRR

This dataset contains the underway data collected during the Aurora Australis Voyage 1 2000-01. This voyage departed Hobart for Port Arthur to carry out calibrations prior to travelling on to Davis, Mawson, Heard Island, the McDonald Islands and then Fremantle. Underway (meteorological, fluorometer and thermosalinograph) data are available online via the Australian Antarctic Division Data Centre web page (or via the Related URL given below). For further information, see the Marine Science Support Data Quality Report at the Related URL below.

A bibliography of references relating to the research support of the RiSCC project (Regional Sensitivity to Climate Change in Antarctic Terrestrial Ecosystems) from the Antarctic and subantarctic regions, dating from 1875 to 2004. The bibliography was compiled by Dana Bergstrom, and contains 76 references.

This dataset contains the underway data collected during the Aurora Australis Voyage 8 2001-02. This voyage visited Macquarie Island, departing from and returning to Hobart. Underway data are available online via the Australian Antarctic Division Data Centre web page (or via the Related URL section). For further information, see the Marine Science Support Data Quality Report at the Related URL section.

This dataset contains the underway data collected during the Aurora Australis Voyage 5 1999-2000. This voyage visited Casey and Macquarie Island. Underway (meteorological, fluorometer, thermosalinograph and bathymetric) data are available online via the Australian Antarctic Division Data Centre web page (or via the Related URL section). For further information, see the Marine Science Support Data Quality Report at the Related URL section.

From the abstract of some of the papers: It has been suggested that increased springtime UVB radiation caused by stratospheric ozone depletion is likely to reduce primary production and induce changes in the species composition of Antarctic marine phytoplankton. Experiments conducted at Arthur Harbour in the Antarctic Peninsula revealed a reduction in primary productivity at both ambient and increased levels of UVB. Laboratory studies have shown that most species in culture are sensitive to high UVB levels, although the level at which either growth or photosynthesis is inhibited is variable. Stratospheric ozone depletion, with resultant increased springtime UVB irradiance, has been occurring with increasing severity since the late 1970's. Thus the phytoplankton community has already experienced about 20 years' exposure to increasing levels of UVB radiation. Here we present analyses of diatom assemblages from high-resolution stratigraphic sequences from anoxic basins in fjords of the Vestfold HIlls, Antarctica. We find that compositional changes in the diatom component of the phytoplankton community over the past 20 years cannot be distinguished from long-term natural variability, although there is some indication of a decline in the production of some sea-ice diatoms. We anticipate that our results are applicable to other Antarctic coastal regions, where thick ice cover and the timing of the phytoplankton bloom protect the phytoplankton from the effects of increased UVB radiation. Growth rate, survival, and stimulation of the production of UV-B (280 to 320 nm) absorbing compounds were investigated in cultures of five commonly occurring Antarctic marine diatoms exposed to a range of UV-B irradiances. Experimental UV-B exposures ranged from 20 to 650% of the measured peak surface irradiance at an Antarctic coastal site (0.533 J per square metre per second). The five diatom species (Nitzschia lecointei, Proboscia alata, P. inermis, Thalassiosira tumida and Stellarima microtrias) appear capable of surviving two to four times this irradiance. In contrast to Phaeocystis cf. pouchetti, another major component of the Antarctic phytoplankton, the concentrations of pigments with discrete UV absorption peaks in diatoms were low and did not change significantly under increasing UV-B irradiance. Absorbance of UV-B by cells from which pigments had been extracted commonly exceeded that of the pigments themselves. Most of this absorbance was due to oxidisable cell contents, with the frustule providing the remainder. Survival of diatoms did not correlate with absorption by either pigments, frustules or oxidisable cell contents, indicating that their survival under elevated UV-B irradiances results from processes other than screening mechanisms. Springtime UV-B levels have been increasing in Antarctic marine ecosystems since the 1970's. Effects on natural phytoplankton and sea-ice algal communities, however, remain unresolved. At the Marginal Ice Edge Zone, enhanced springtime UV-B levels coincide with a shallow, stratified water column and a major phytoplankton bloom. In these areas it is possible that phytoplankton growth and survival is adversely impacted by enhanced UV-B. In coastal areas, however, the sea ice, which attenuates most of the UV-B before it reaches the water column, remains until December/January, by which time UV-B levels have returned to long-term seasonal averages. Phytoplankton from these areas are unlikely to show long-term changes resulting from the hole in the ozone layer. Fjords of the Vestfold Hills, eastern Antarctica, have anoxic basins which contain high-resolution, unbioturbated sedimentary sequences. Diatom assemblages from these sequences reflect the diatom component of the phytoplankton and sea-ice algal assemblages at the time of deposition. Twenty-year records from these sequences show no consistent record of change in species composition, diversity or species richness. Six-hundred-year records from the same area also show changes in species abundance greater than those seen in the last 20 years. From these records it can be seen that recent changes in diatom abundances generally fall within the limits of natural variability and there is little evidence of recent changes that might be associated with UV-B-induced change.

This dataset contains the underway data collected during the Aurora Australis Voyage 4 2002-03. This voyage undertook extensive marine science activities North of Mawson. Mawson Harbour was visited twice during the cruise and Davis fly off position was reached once. Underway (meteorological, fluorometer, thermosalinograph and bathymetric) data are available online via the Australian Antarctic Division Data Centre web page (or via the Related URL section). For further information, see the Marine Science Support Data Quality Report at the Related URL section.