This project is an integrated study of the optical and physical properties of the antarctic snow surface. It has several components which concern the processes by which global climatic variability is imprinted into the proxy data recorded in the antarctic ice. The effect of surface roughness (sastrugi orientation) on the angular distribution of reflected sunlight, and the spectral distribution of thermal infrared radiation will be measured to provide the knowledge necessary for the interpretation of Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) satellite data. The mechanism of dry deposition of atmospheric sulfates in the snow surface will be measured by observing the air flow in the permeable upper firn, and samples of hoarfrost and will be examined for their isotopic composition. The former will allow the evaluation of the extent to which the concentration of aerosols in the firn and ice represent contemporaneous concentrations in the atmosphere, while the latter will yield a comparative study of isotopic ratios to the ambient air temperatures. Earlier work had been concerned with austral summer conditions. The present project extends the measurement program to austral winter conditions.
