Lake Vostok Water Research Articles

Evolution of climate, glaciation and subglacial environments of Antarctica from the deep ice core and Lake Vostok water sample studies (Key results of implementation of the Russian Science Foundation project, 2014–2016)

Work on the project focused on the following five areas: 1) field works in Antarctica at Vostok and Concordia stations; 2) experimental and theoretical studies in the field of ice core and paleoclimate research; 3) experimental and theoretical works related to the exploration of subglacial Lake Vostok; 4) development of technology and drilling equipment for deep ice coring and exploration of subglacial lakes; 5) upgrading the analytical instrumentation in the Climate and Environmental Research Laboratory (CERL) of the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute. The main achievements in the field of ice core and paleoclimate research include 1) further elaboration of a new method of ice core dating, which is based on the link between air content of ice and local insolation, 2) investigation of the possible applications of the 17O-excess measurements in ice core to the paleoclimate research, 3) a better understanding of the mechanisms of the formation of relief-related variations in the isotopic content of an ice core drilled in the area of Antarctic megadunes, and 4) obtaining the first reliable data set on the variations of the 17O-excess in the Vostok core corresponding to marine isotope stage 11. As part of our studies of subglacial Lake Vostok, we have obtained a large body of new experimental data from the new ice core recovered from the 5G-3 borehole to the surface of the subglacial lake. Stacked profiles of isotopic composition, gas content and the size and orientation of the ice crystals in the lake ice have been composed from the data of three replicate cores from boreholes 5G-1, 5G-2 and 5G-3. The study reveals that the concentration of gases in the lake water beneath Vostok is unexpectedly low. A clear signature of the melt water in the surface layer of the lake, which is subject to refreezing on the icy ceiling of Lake Vostok, has been discerned in the three different properties of the accreted ice (the ice texture, the isotopic and gas content of the ice). These sets of data indicate in concert that poor mixing of the melt (and hydrothermal) water with the resident lake water and pronounced spatial and/or temporal variability of local hydrological conditions are likely to be the characteristics of the southern end of the lake. A considerable part of the funding allocated by the RSF to this project was used for upgrading the analytical instrumentation for ice core studies in the CERL of AARI. Using this grant, we purchased and started working with the Picarro L-2140i, a new-generation laser mass analyzer, and set the upgraded mass spectrometer Delta V Plus into operation. The new equipment was used to carry out research planned as part of the project, including the setting up and carrying out of new measurements of 17О in ice cores.

Microbiology of the subglacial Lake Vostok: first results of borehole-frozen lake water analysis and prospects for searching for lake inhabitants.

This article examines the question of the possible existence of microbial life inhabiting the subglacial Lake Vostok buried beneath a 4 km thick Antarctic ice sheet. It represents the results of analysis of the only available frozen lake water samples obtained upon the first lake entry and subsequent re-coring the water frozen within the borehole. For comparison, results obtained by earlier molecular microbiological studies of accretion ice are included in this study, with the focus on thermophiles and an unknown bacterial phylotype. A description of two Lake Vostok penetrations is presented for the first time from the point of view of possible clean water sampling. Finally, the results of current studies of Lake Vostok frozen water samples are presented, with the focus on the discovery of another unknown bacterial phylotype w123-10 distantly related to the above-mentioned unknown phylotype AF532061 detected in Vostok accretion ice, both successfully passing all possible controls for contamination. The use of clean-room facilities and the establishment of a contaminant library are considered to be prerequisites for research on microorganisms from Lake Vostok. It seems that not yet recorded microbial life could exist within the Lake Vostok water body. In conclusion, the prospects for searching for lake inhabitants are expressed with the intention to sample the lake water as cleanly as possible in order to make sure that further results will be robust.

The prospective development of Climate and Environmental Research Laboratory of AARI, Roshydromet, after gaining the grant of Russian Science Foundation

In November 2010 a new research unit was inaugurated in Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (St. Petersburg) – Climate and Environmental Research Laboratory (CERL) – that became the first lab in Russia dedicated to the complex studies of ice cores, paleoclimate and subglacial environments in Antarctica. The total investments to construct the laboratory were 28.8 million rubles, provided by Roshydromet and AARI in frames of implementing the program of International Polar Year. The total area of the laboratory is about 300 m² that includes mass-spectrometric and gas analyses labs, cold chambers and utility rooms. The CERL’s equipment comprises laser stable water isotope analyzer Picarro L2120-i, IR mass-spectrometer Delta V Plus, system of gas extraction from ice, facilities for ice petrographic observations, for ice core treatment and storage. Before 2014 CERL was the head unit in the project “Complex studies of Lake Vostok and glaciological investigations of Antarctica” of the sub-program “Antarctica” of the FTP “World Ocean”. Now CERL is the leading organization in International Associated Laboratory “Ice archives of climatic and environmental data” that combines 4 French and 5 Russian scientific research groups. In 2014 the specialists of CERL won a grant of Russian Science Foundation for fundamental scientific works implemented by operating research laboratories. Project 14-27-00030 “Evolution of climate, glaciation and subglacial environments of Antarctica from the deep ice core and Lake Vostok water sample studies” (2014–2016) is intended to refine the reconstruction of Antarctic climate history over the past 400,000 years using the newly developed geochemical methods of ice core studies. Another goal is to develop the approaches to study the hydrological parameters of subglacial Lake Vostok using the samples of lake ice and water. The funding to be received through the grant (58.5 million rubles) will be mainly spent to develop the analytical infrastructure of the laboratory. In particular, we plan to equip the “Delta” with the dual inlet system and “Gas Bench II” device, as well as to purchase the new generation of laser isotope analyzer, Picarro L2140-i. This will allow us to measure precisely the concentrations of deuterium, oxygen 18 and 17 in water, snow and ice samples, to define the О₂/N₂ ratio in the gas probes, as well as to develop new methods of ice core analyses.

On the Abundances of Noble and Biologically Relevant Gases in Lake Vostok, Antarctica

Motivated by the possibility of comparing theoretical predictions of Lake Vostok's composition with future in situ measurements, we investigated the composition of clathrates that are expected to form in this environment from the air supplied to the lake by melting ice. To establish the best possible correlation between the lake water composition and that of air clathrates formed in situ, we used a statistical thermodynamic model based on the description of the guest-clathrate interaction by a spherically averaged Kihara potential with a nominal set of potential parameters. We determined the fugacities of the different volatiles present in the lake by defining a "pseudo" pure substance dissolved in water owning the average properties of the mixture and by using the Redlich-Kwong equation of state to mimic its thermodynamic behavior. Irrespective of the clathrate structure considered in our model, we found that xenon and krypton are strongly impoverished in the lake water (a ratio in the 0.04-0.1 range for xenon and a ratio in the ≈ 0.15-0.3 range for krypton) compared to their atmospheric abundances. Argon and methane were also found to be depleted in the Lake Vostok water by factors in the 0.5-0.95 and 0.3-0.5 ranges, respectively, compared to their atmospheric abundances. On the other hand, the carbon dioxide abundance was found to be substantially enriched in the lake water compared to its atmospheric abundance (by a factor in the 1.6-5 range at 200 residence times). The comparison of our predictions of the CO2 and CH4 mole fractions in Lake Vostok with future in situ measurements will allow disentangling between the possible supply sources.

First information about the geology of central antarctica based on study of mineral inclusions in ice cores of the Vostok station borehole

Study of mineral inclusions in the basal part of the central Antarctic ice sheet from the borehole at the Vostok station was carried out. Mineral inclusions were trapped during freezing of the subglacial Lake Vostok water on the base of the glacier, when it crossed a shallow coastal area. It is established that the mineral inclusions are aggregates consisting mainly of clay minerals and quartz up to 150 microns. Crystals of aragonite and sulfides detected in the inclusions may indicate the presence of modern hydrothermal activity beneath the ice. Small (up to 4.5 mm) fragments of siltstone and aleuropelite in some aggregates suggest that lithified clastic sediments are exposed on the western coast of Lake Vostok, where removal of debris material occurred at the expense of exaration. Detrital zircon and monazite, found in siltstones and aleuropelite, suggest the chronology of geological complexes of the provenance area, which is, as is assumed, located in the Gamburtsev mountains in the central Antarctic. The age of the provenance area is 0.8–1.2 to 1.6–2.0 billion years.

The bottom topography and subglacial Lake Vostok water body, East Antarctica

The bottom topography and subglacial Lake Vostok water body, East Antarctica

Ultra-low rare earth element content in accreted ice from sub-glacial Lake Vostok, Antarctica

This paper reports the first rare earth element (REE) concentrations in accreted ice refrozen from sub-glacial Lake Vostok (East Antarctica). REE were determined in various sections of the Vostok ice core in order to geochemically characterize its impurities. Samples were obtained from accreted ice and, for comparison, from the upper glacier ice of atmospheric origin (undisturbed, disturbed and glacial flour ice). REE concentrations ranged between 0.8–56 pg g −1 for Ce and 0.0035–0.24 pg g −1 for Lu in glacier ice, and between <0.1–24 pg g −1 for Ce and <0.0004–0.02 pg g −1 for Lu in accreted ice. Interestingly, the REE concentrations in the upper accreted ice (AC 1; characterized by visible aggregates containing a mixture of very fine terrigenous particles) and in the deeper accreted ice (AC 2; characterized by transparent ice) are lower than those in fresh water and seawater, respectively. We suggest that such ultra-low concentrations are unlikely to be representative of the real REE content in Lake Vostok, but instead may reflect phase exclusion processes occurring at the ice/water interface during refreezing. In particular, the uneven spatial distribution (on the order of a few cm) and the large range of REE concentrations observed in AC 1 are consistent with the occurrence/absence of the aggregates in adjacent ice, and point to the presence of solid-phase concentration/exclusion processes occurring within separate pockets of frazil ice during AC 1 formation. Interestingly, if the LREE enrichment found in AC 1 was not produced by chemical fractionation occurring in Lake Vostok water, this may reflect a contribution of bedrock material, possibly in combination with aeolian dust released into the lake by melting of the glacier ice. Collectively, this valuable information provides new insight into the accreted ice formation processes, the bedrock geology of East Antarctica as well as the water chemistry and circulation of Lake Vostok.

Estimating the depth and shape of subglacial Lake Vostok's water cavity from aerogravity data

We use aerogravity data to estimate the water depth of subglacial Lake Vostok in East Antarctica. The inversion produces the first bathymetry map covering the entire lake. Lake Vostok consists of two sub‐basins separated by a ridge with very shallow water depths. The deeper southern sub‐basin is approximately double the spatial area of the smaller northern sub‐basin. The close correlation between the pattern of basal melting and freezing and the bathymetric structure has important ramifications for the water circulation and the sediment deposition. We estimate the lake volume to be 5400 ± 1600 km3.

First Characterization and Dating of East Antarctic Bedrock Inclusions from Subglacial Lake Vostok Accreted Ice

Environmental Context.Lake Vostok is a large subglacial lake trapped below the East Antarctic ice sheet. The meteoric ice from deep Vostok ice cores has been used to document the climatic history of the Earth over hundreds of millennia, while the deeper part of the core preserves some basal rock fragments. These rock fragments represent unique geological samples of the inhospitable, ice-covered East Antarctic Plateau. Abstract.The Vostok (East Antarctica, 78°S, 106°E) ice core preserves, below the meteoric ice keeping the climatic memory of the last 420 000 years, ice formed by freezing of subglacial Lake Vostok water. This latter contains some bedrock fragments representing unique samples for the geological investigation of the East Antarctic Plateau, covered by ~2–4 km of ice. The first geochemical (87Sr/86Sr versus 143Nd/144Nd) and mineralogical characterization of these inclusions as well as the dating of one of them (Nd model age on whole-rock sample) has given evidence for a Mid-Proterozoic age of the basement lying below the ice sheet, consistent with recent geophysical data. The geochemical characteristics of bedrock inclusions within the accreted ice zone are markedly different from those of the mineral dust of aeolian origin archived in the uppermost part of the Vostok ice core and originating from deflation of the Southern Hemisphere continents, and easily discriminates between the two contributions.

Origin and fate of Lake Vostok water frozen to the base of the East Antarctic ice sheet.

The subglacial Lake Vostok may be a unique reservoir of genetic material and it may contain organisms with distinct adaptations, but it has yet to be explored directly. The lake and the overlying ice sheet are closely linked, as the ice-sheet thickness drives the lake circulation, while melting and freezing at the ice-sheet base will control the flux of water, biota and sediment through the lake. Here we present a reconstruction of the ice flow trajectories for the Vostok core site, using ice-penetrating radar data and Global Positioning System (GPS) measurements of surface ice velocity. We find that the ice sheet has a significant along-lake flow component, persistent since the Last Glacial Maximum. The rates at which ice is frozen (accreted) to the base of the ice sheet are greatest at the shorelines, and the accreted ice layer is subsequently transported out of the lake. Using these new flow field and velocity measurements, we estimate the time for ice to traverse Lake Vostok to be 16,000-20,000 years. We infer that most Vostok ice analysed to date was accreted to the ice sheet close to the western shoreline, and is therefore not representative of open lake conditions. From the amount of accreted lake water we estimate to be exported along the southern shoreline, the lake water residence time is about 13,300 years.

Isolation of bacteria and 16S rDNAs from Lake Vostok accretion ice

Lake Vostok, the largest subglacial lake in Antarctica, is separated from the surface by approximately 4 km of glacial ice. It has been isolated from direct surface input for at least 420 000 years, and the possibility of a novel environment and ecosystem therefore exists. Lake Vostok water has not been sampled, but an ice core has been recovered that extends into the ice accreted below glacial ice by freezing of Lake Vostok water. Here, we report the recovery of bacterial isolates belonging to the Brachybacteria, Methylobacterium, Paenibacillus and Sphingomonas lineages from a sample of melt water from this accretion ice that originated 3593 m below the surface. We have also amplified small-subunit ribosomal RNA-encoding DNA molecules (16S rDNAs) directly from this melt water that originated from alpha- and beta-proteobacteria, low- and high-G+C Gram-positive bacteria and a member of the Cytophaga/Flavobacterium/Bacteroides lineage.

More than 200 meters of lake ice above subglacial Lake Vostok, Antarctica.

Isotope studies show that the Vostok ice core consists of ice refrozen from Lake Vostok water, from 3539 meters below the surface of the Antarctic ice sheet to its bottom at about 3750 meters. Additional evidence comes from the total gas content, crystal size, and electrical conductivity of the ice. The Vostok site is a likely place for water freezing at the lake-ice interface, because this interface occurs at a higher level here than anywhere else above the lake. Isotopic data suggest that subglacial Lake Vostok is an open system with an efficient circulation of water that was formed during periods that were slightly warmer than those of the past 420,000 years. Lake ice recovered by deep drilling is of interest for preliminary investigations of lake chemistry and bedrock properties and for the search for indigenous lake microorganisms. This latter aspect is of potential importance for the exploration of icy planets and moons.