Drought in Western Australia Linked to Increased Antarctic Snowfall
08.02.2010 - Atmosphere & Space, Ice & Snow, Antarctic
Findings from a study looking at an Antarctic ice core by Australian Antarctic Division glaciologist Dr. Tas van Ommen and published in the journal Nature Geoscience, shows a link between drought in south-west Western Australia and increased snowfall in Antarctica.
The glaciologist analyzed the 750-year old ice core taken from Law Dome in East Antarctica and compared its modern section to meteorological records from Australia. They found that a change in atmospheric circulation patterns off southern Australia was responsible, with changing high and low pressure systems directing more warm, moist air towards the coast of Antarctica and dry, cold air north in the winter.
Since the late 1960s winter rainfall in south-west Western Australia has declined by 15 to 20%, while there has been a 10% increase in snowfall at Law Dome over the same period. Dr. van Ommen mentioned that "this does not appear to be in the range of natural variability”, believing that such changes would, under normal circumstances, only appear once every 38,000 years without some change in climate patterns. Given the connection with Western Australia, it would suggest that the drought is not a natural event.
The hopes are that the research will lead to improved projections of future change that can be used to shape land-use policy in Australia.
