I proudly present the 2nd research article of my PhD project #PALICE published in @EGU_CP together with @iso_topel and many other fantastic colleagues.
What did we find? Some #scicomm in the following 16 tweets:
@AWI_media @theAGU @EuroGeosciences https://bit.ly/342OQ5m 

1.The title is “Sea ice dynamics in the Bransfield Strait, Antarctic Peninsula, during the past 240 years: a multi-proxy intercomparison study” and part of the C-Side special issue "Reconstructing Southern Ocean sea-ice dynamics on glacial-to-historical timescales" #openaccess

2.We studied how sea ice evolved in the last 240 years at the Antarctic Peninsula. We used a molecule IPSO₂₅- produced by sea ice algae. After growing in spring, sea ice algae die, sink down, their body disappears quickly but IPSO₂₅ remains in the ocean floor for many years.

3.IPSO₂₅ is an indirect fingerprint of sea ice produced by a living thing. We call this “organic biomarker”. The big question now: what can IPSO₂₅ tell us? Was the sea ice thick/thin, wide spread/local, with long/short seasons? What influences the abundance of IPSO₂₅?

4.But hey stop! Why do we need such studies? Because adaptation to and mitigation of #globalwarming requires precise global climate models. Data from past Antarctic sea ice is a key for climate projections but barely studied yet. Ok, let’s go on. What does IPSO₂₅ tell us?

5.For the past 40 years: every time satellites showed a high/low spring sea ice cover the concentration of IPSO₂₅ was also very high/low. This is a very good sign that IPSO25 represents the extent of spring sea ice in this area - Check!

6.We also saw that IPSO₂₅ varies with the influence of different water masses: warm, low-sea ice Bellingshausen Sea Water (brought to you by #AntarcticCircumpolarCurrent) against cold, sea ice-rich Weddell Sea Water. That means you always have a strong regional impact – Check!

7.Past 240 years: all known sources (ice cores, models, organic aerosols) told us the sea ice extent got less – but IPSO₂₅ got more. Very fishy! But we know that the ice cores etc. show sea ice of a much bigger area. Again: IPSO₂₅ has a strong regional impact – Doublecheck!

8.A look on ocean temperatures: all sources tell us air got warmer. Our temperature biomarkers told us that the water got colder. Fishy again but: sea ice formation produces very cold water and leads to mixing with deep, cold water masses. That could be it – cautious Check!

9.Talking about ocean temperatures: the ocean at the Antarctic Peninsula didn’t care much about #globalwarming for a long time but since the 1990s the warming hit hard and ocean temperatures were shooting up. #climateactionnow

10.Also interesting: IPSO₂₅ and biomarkers for an ice-free ocean were evolving equal. We think: heavy growth and melt of sea ice promotes the growth of both algae types because melting sea ice is always a source of nutrients and produces algae-friendly water conditions - Check!

11.We think that high IPSO₂₅ doesn’t show “lots of sea ice” but rather “wow, the sea ice grows so heavy in autumn and melts so fast in spring, it’s an awesome party for all algae”. Scientifically we spoke of “high seasonal contrasts promoting phytoplankton productivity” -Check!

12.El Niño Southern Oscillation #ENSO and Southern Annular Mode #SAM influence the water masses along the Antarctic Peninsula. Was this recorded by IPSO₂₅? Yeah (remember tweet 6). See how #SAM is the dominant driver for sea ice distribution in our lovely key figure – Check!

13.On top, melt water from melting glaciers make everything even more complicated. Confusion level elevated – Check!
#stopfossilfuels #stopemissions #seriously #wearerunningoutoftime

14.Can we answer how much sea ice exactly has been there in the past? Not really but we know much more about HOW the sea ice was & IPSO₂₅ does not work the way it was supposed to work. Knowing the limits of your sea ice biomarker prevents misinterpretations! #moreresearchneeded

15.This study was an international collaboration with many fantastic scientists from Germany, Chile and China. The political protests in Chile 2019 and the Covid-10 pandemic slowed us down but didn’t stop us. By the way: the authorship is 57% female.

16. Here I tag (also in the photo) important humans who have Twitter and were inspiring me during the #ICP13 to stay in science and finish that damn study. Thank you so, so much. End of thread. Have a nice day.
@sci_kel @LA_Diatom @ClimateNerilie

Me receiving the message about the publication.