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EPICA-MIS - New Paleoreconstructions from Antarctic Ice and Marine Records

Summary information

Funding:FP6 - Specific Targeted Research Project
Total cost:5470000
Ec contribution:2500000
Start date:2004-12-01
End date:2008-05-31
Duration:42 months
Coordinator:Dominique Raynaud (raynaud@lgge.obs.ujf-grenoble.fr)
Organisation:National Council for Scientific Research – France
Themes:Sea level rise; ice melting
Regio:Antarctic
Project name:EPICA-MIS - New Paleoreconstructions from Antarctic Ice and Marine Records
Project summary:Abstract
The objective of the Specific Targeted Research Project EPICA-MIS is to produce palaeoreconstructions and integrated climate analysis through marine and ice core studies. It will contribute to the development of novel palaeoreconstruction methods by providing unique palaeorecords and developing new proxies of critical properties of the climate system. The two Antarctic deep ice cores will be completed and they will for the first time reveal atmospheric records of greenhouse gases like CO2 and methane reaching 800,000 years back in time. Novel multi-parameter and high-resolution records of climate-relevant parameters like ice isotopes, greenhouse gases, dust and soluble impurities will be produced from the new Antarctic ice cores. They will be compared and correlated with palaeoreconstructions from marine, Greenland and other Antarctic regions. A key task here is to produce common timescales for the records by comparing the individual datings and by investigating novel tephra and palaeomagnetic correlation methods. The produced multiproxy reconstructions will provide an outstanding platform for understanding and modelling the past and present climate. Because the reconstructions from both ocean and ice cores will be integrated and will use novel indicators for instance for sea-ice, Antarctic insolation, iron or opal isotopes, climatic issues like the carbon cycle, sea surface temperature, and the climatic coupling between the northern and southern hemispheres can be addressed with new perspectives. As strategies for mitigation and adaptation to global change have to be based on predictions on future climate, the EPICA-MIS novel palaeoreconstructions will produce new evidence about climate dynamics and variability necessary to improve and test policy-relevant models. The Research Project goes a step further in integrating the European ice core research groups with marine palaeoclimate research groups, thus forming a strong European Research Area.

Objectives
The Project’s strategic objectives can be summarized as follows:
- State of knowledge
- Completion of the EPICA drillings
- Extending the ice record
- Developing novel proxies for paleoclimatic reconstruction
- Paleoreconstruction and integrated climate analysis through marine and ice core studies