03255nas a2200277 4500008004100000022001300041245011100054210006900165260001200234300001100246520240400257653001502661653001302676653001102689653002902700653000902729653001702738100002102755700002402776700002002800700002102820700002502841700001702866700002202883856007202905 2024 eng d a2666017200aRemotely characterizing photosynthetic biocrust in snowpack-fed microhabitats of Taylor Valley, Antarctica0 aRemotely characterizing photosynthetic biocrust in snowpackfed m c02/2024 a1001203 a

Microbial communities are the primary drivers of carbon cycling in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica. Dense microbial mats, consisting mainly of photosynthetic cyanobacteria, occupy aquatic areas associated with streams and lakes. Other microbial communities also occur at lower densities as patchy surface biological soil crusts (hereafter, biocrusts) across the terrestrial landscape. Multispectral satellite data have been used to model microbial mat abundance in high-density areas like stream and lake margins, but no previous studies have investigated the lower detection limits of biocrusts. Here, we describe remote sensing and field-based survey and sampling approaches to study the detectability and distribution of biocrusts in the McMurdo Dry Valleys. Using a combination of multi- and hyperspectral tools and spectral linear unmixing, we modeled the abundances of biocrust in eastern Taylor Valley. Our spectral approaches can detect low masses of biocrust material in laboratory microcosms down to biocrust concentrations of 1% by mass. These techniques also distinguish the spectra of biocrust from both surface rock and mineral signatures from orbit. We found that biocrusts are present throughout the soils of eastern Taylor Valley and are associated with diverse underlying soil communities. The densest biocrust communities identified in this study had total organic carbon 5x greater than the content of typical arid soils. The most productive biocrusts were located downslope of melting snowpacks in unique soil ecosystems that are distinct from the surrounding arid landscape. There are similarities between the snowpack and stream sediment communities (high diversity of soil invertebrates) as well as their ecosystem properties (e.g., persistence of liquid water, high transfer of available nutrients, lower salinity from flushing) compared to the typical arid terrestrial ecosystem of the dry valleys. Our approach extends the capability of orbital remote sensing of photosynthetic communities out of the aquatic margins and into the drier soils which comprise most of this landscape. This interdisciplinary work is critical for measuring and monitoring terrestrial carbon stocks and predicting future ecosystem dynamics in this currently water-limited but increasingly dynamic Antarctic landscape, which is particularly climate-sensitive and difficult to access.

10aAntarctica10abiocrust10acarbon10areflectance spectroscopy10asnow10asoil ecology1 aPower, Sarah, N.1 aSalvatore, Mark, R.1 aSokol, Eric, R.1 aStanish, Lee, F.1 aBorges, Schuyler, R.1 aAdams, Byron1 aBarrett, John, E. uhttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S266601722400004X04020nas a2200241 4500008004100000245019000041210006900231260004000300490001000340520313500350653002103485653001703506653001503523653001903538653001703557653003803574653002903612653001803641653000903659100001903668700002403687856006703711 2016 eng d00aQuantifying sources, distribution, and processing of light absorbing aerosols in the cryosphere: A comparison of dissolved and refractory black carbon in polar and high mountain regions0 aQuantifying sources distribution and processing of light absorbi aBoulder, CObUniversity of Colorado0 vPh.D.3 a

Light absorbing aerosols (LAAs) in snow and ice are one of the least understood parameters in global climate models due to complicated physical processes within the cryosphere and too few in situ observations. Ground observations are limited due to the difficulty of collecting and preserving samples for analysis from remote environments.
In order to help build a larger repository of ground observations, this dissertation explores the concentration and composition of black carbon (BC) in snow and glacial melt-water across the polar regions in the Arctic and Antarctic, as well as major mountain regions such as the Himalayas, Rockies, and Andes Mountains.

Three state-of-the-art methods for BC detection are applied in this dissertation. The first chapter identifies chemical signatures of past and present sources of dissolved black carbon (DBC) in Antarctic lakes, utilizing a DBC molecular marker method. Here we find that DBC with a woody signature is preserved in the deep, ancient brines of Antarctic lake bottom waters. In contrast, the surface waters are enriched in BC from fossil fuels. The second chapter, which also utilizes the DBC molecular marker

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technique, explores DBC across the cryosphere. We show that DBC concentrations are surprisingly high in the bottom waters of Antarctic lakes compared to other remote regions of the cryosphere, even those located near point sources. Aged snow also contains higher DBC concentrations than fresh snow suggesting that dry deposition brings the majority of BC to the cryosphere. Additionally, the DBC composition across samples from the cryosphere are similar due to high amounts of solar exposure leading to photodegradation, except in fresh snow with a wildfire signature. The third and fourth chapters utilize the Single Particle Soot Photometer to measure refractory black carbon (rBC). The third chapter also applies spectral albedo measurements and the light absorption heating method to find that coal dust from an active mine in Svalbard, Norway significantly reduces the spectral reflectance of the surrounding Arctic surface snow. The fourth chapter reports aerosol rBC concentrations in the boundary layer of the McMurdo Dry Valleys, as well as in snow from the accumulation area of the Commonwealth Glacier. Here we determine that aerosol concentrations increase during high wind events, but there is no significant trend in deposition in the snow pit. This could be due to sporadic deposition during katabatic wind events.

These findings support the importance of real in-situ observations in order to fully understand the role of BC in the global carbon cycle. It is also evident that local environmental processes can control the concentrations and composition of BC in the cryosphere. These ground-based measurements will likely serve as ground validation for future remote sensing of snow/ice impurities and LAAs deposition models.

 

10aapplied sciences10ablack carbon10acryosphere10aearth sciences10aglacial melt10ahealth and environmental sciences10alight absorbing aerosols10apolar regions10asnow1 aKhan, Alia, L.1 aMcKnight, Diane, M. uhttps://search.proquest.com/docview/1834518541?accountid=14503