---- Public Summary from Project ---- Understanding the strength of possible biological feedbacks is crucial to the science of climate change. This project aims to improve our understanding of one such feedback, the biogenic production of dimethylsulphide (DMS) and its impact on atmospheric aerosols. The Antarctic ocean is potentially a major source of DMS-derived aerosols. The project will investigate the coupling between satellite-derived aerosol optical depth, phytoplankton biomass and DMS production in the Antarctic Southern Ocean. From the abstract of the attached paper: We analysed the correlation between zonal mean satellite data on surface chlorophyll (CHL) and aerosol optical depth (AOD), in the Southern Ocean (in 5-degree bands between 50-70 degrees south) for the period 1997-2004), and in sectors of the Eastern Antarctic, Ross and Weddell Seas. Seasonality is moderate to strong in both CHL and AOD signatures throughout the study region. Coherence in the CHL and AOD time series is strong between 50-60 degrees south, however this synchrony is absent south of 60 degrees south. Marked interannual variability in CHL occurs south of 60 degrees south. We find a clear latitudinal difference in the cross-correlation between CHL and AOD, with the AOD peak preceding the CHL bloom by up to six weeks in the sea ice zone (SIZ). This is consistent with the ventilation of dimethysulphide (DMS) from sea-ice during melting, and supports field data that records high levels of sulfur species in sea-ice and surface seawater during ice-melt. The fields in this dataset are: Timeseries Worksheet: Date Mean Chlorophyll (mg CHL/cubic metre) Mean Aerosol Optical Depth (no units) 5 Day mean chlorophyll averages 5 day mean aerosol optical depth averages Correlation Worksheet: n - number lag r - correlation coefficient t - student t statistic Global Worksheet Column A = SeaWiFS filename Counter+1 is a counter to indicate the image number in series Date Mean Chlorophyll (mg CHL/cubic metre) Mean Aerosol Optical Depth (no units) Chlorophyll Standard Deviation Mean Aerosol Optical Depth Standard Deviation Chlorophyll Standard Error Mean Aerosol Optical Depth Standard Error Chlorophyll Count (the number of data 'pixels' in the image - the basic pixel size is 9x9km2) Mean Aerosol Optical Depth (the number of data 'pixels' in the image - the basic pixel size is 9x9km2)

This record relates to the Australian component of the Latitudinal Gradient Project. The LGP is largely a New Zealand, US and Italian venture, but a small contribution has been made by Australian scientists. The Australian component of this work was completed as part of ASAC projects 2361 and 2682 (ASAC_2361, and ASAC_2682). Data from this project were entered into the herbarium access database, which has been linked to this record. The list below contains details of where and when samples were collected, and also the type of sample and the method of sampling. Cape Hallett and vicinity (2000, 2004): Biodiversity assessment of terrestrial plants (mosses, lichens); Invertebrate collections (mites, Collembola); plant ecology and community analysis; photosynthetic physiology of mosses and lichens; molecular genetics of mosses and lichens. Random sampling for biodiversity studies; point quadrats, releves for vegetation analysis, field laboratory experiments for physiological studies. Dry Valleys: Taylor Valley (1989, 1996), Garwood Valley (2001), Granite Harbour (1989; 1994, 1996) - plant ecology; plant physiology; biodiversity; invertebrate collections; molecular genetics of mosses. Random sampling for biodiversity studies; point quadrats, releves for vegetation analysis, field laboratory experiments for physiological studies. Beaufort Island (1996) - plant biodiversity; molecular genetics of mosses. Random sampling for biodiversity studies; point quadrats, releves for vegetation analysis, laboratory studies for molecular genetics. Darwin Glacier (1994): plant biodiversity; molecular genetics of invertebrates and mosses (random sampling for biodiversity; laboratory studies of invertebrate and moss molecular genetics). Project objectives: 1. Investigate the distribution of bryophytes and lichens in continental Antarctica 1a). to test the null hypothesis that species diversity does not change significantly with latitude; 1b). to explore the relationships between species and key environmental attributes including latitude, distance from the coast, temperature, substrate, snow cover, age of ice-free substrate. 2. To continue to participate in the Ross Sea Sector Latitudinal Gradient Project and develop an Australian corollary in the Prince Charles Mountains, involving international collaborators, incorporating the first two objectives of this project. 3. To develop an international collaborative biodiversity and ecophysiological program in the Prince Charles Mountains that will provide a parallel N-S latitude gradient study to mirror the LGP program in the Ross Sea region as part of the present RISCC cooperative program (to be superseded by the EBA (Evolution and Biodiversity of Antarctica) program) to address the above objectives. Taken from the 2008-2009 Progress Report: Progress against objectives: Continuing identification of moss and lichen samples previously collected from Cape Hallett, Granite Harbour and Darwin Glacier region. Lecidea s.l. lichens currently being studied in Austria by PhD student. Field work in Dry Valleys significantly curtailed by adverse weather. Field work planned for Darwin Glacier region and McMurdo Dry Valleys, particularly Taylor Valley and Granite Harbour region was severely curtailed due to adverse weather, helicopter diversions due to a Medical Evacuation, and other logistic constraints. 10 days of field time were lost. Limitations on field travel in Darwin Glacier region restricted the field work to a biologically depauperate region. The Prince Charles Mountains N-S transect, the only continental transect possibility for comparison with the Ross Sea area, unfortunately appears to have been abandoned through lack of logistic support. Taken from the 2009-2010 Progress Report: Identification of samples collected from AAT and Ross Sea Region continued during the year, interrupted significantly by the packing of the collection and transfer of specimens to the Tasmanian Herbarium. Work is now proceeding at the Herbarium with sorting, databasing and incorporation of packets into the Herbarium collection. The merging of the collection provides long-term security of curation and significantly boosts the cryptogam collections (35000 numbers) of the Tasmanian Herbarium.