WAIS Divide Ice Core Oxygen Isotope Data for 68,000 Years

Oxygen isotope data from the WAIS Divide deep ice core in West Antarctica, covering a period from 68,000 years ago to 2000 C.E. The dataset contains 0.25 to 1 meter averages of d18O measurements, produced by researchers at the University of Washington Isolab. Primary findings from this data were published in a series of papers in Nature and related journals between 2013 and 2015.

Use Cases

• Reconstructing past Antarctic temperatures by analyzing the d18O isotope time series.
• Synchronizing climate events across hemispheres using the precise WD2014 chronology for age-depth modeling.
• Calibrating climate models by comparing simulated past climates with the high-resolution isotopic record.
• Investigating the phasing of abrupt climate changes during the last ice age using the 68,000-year d18O record.

Strengths

• Covers a 68,000-year temporal range from the last ice age to 2000 C.E.
• High measurement precision with d18O accuracy reported as <0.1 per mil.
• Data is tied to the well-documented WD2014 chronology, described in peer-reviewed literature.

Limitations

• Spatial coverage is limited to a single ice core site (WAIS Divide) in West Antarctica.
• Sample resolution varies between 0.25 and 1 meter averages, which may smooth some high-frequency climate signals.
• The dataset's most recent data point is from 2000 C.E., lacking the most recent decades of climate information.

Provenance

Source

University of Washington Isolab, produced under NSF Award 1043092.

Collection Method

Isotope ratio mass spectrometry analysis of ice core samples, normalized to the IAEA VSMOW/SLAP scale.

Time Range

68,000 years before 1950 C.E. to 2000 C.E.

Geography

WAIS Divide ice core site, West Antarctica.