Chemical Composition of Antarctic Ice

The principal sources of aerosol particles in the atmosphere are (Shaw 1989)  

Oxidation products of algae, phytoplankton, and bacteria that produce sulfuric acid 

Evidently, the chemical composition of Antarctic snow depends on the kind of water-soluble aerosol particles it contains, as well as on other factors such as the distance to the source of different kinds of aerosol particles, and on the rate of snow deposition. 

Kumai (1976) identified the aerosol particles in snow flakes deposited at South Pole Station and Delmas et al. (1985) reviewed the deposition of volcanic dust in Antarctica. The formation of anions from occluded gases was discussed by Delmas (1982), Delmas et al. (1982a), Herron (1982), Legrand and Delmas (1984, 1987, 1988), whereas Hanappe et al. (1968), Ragone and FineUi (1972), Delmas et al. (1982b) reported chemical analyses of snow and ice in Antarctica. 

The chemical composition of ice in the long cores that were recovered in East Antarctica at Dome C (74°39 S, 2A° 0 E), Vostok (78- 30 S, 106 54 E) and South Pole (90 S) were determined by Petit et al. (1981), deAngehs et al. (1984), and Delmas et al. (1982a), respectively. The ice in the core drilled at Byrd Station in West Antarctica was analyzed by Palais (1985) and Palais and Legrand (1985). 

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