Firn-air delta N-15 in modern polar sites and glacial-interglacial ice: a model-data mismatch during glacial periods in Antarctica?

The phase lag between atmospheric composition (air bubbles) and temperature (water isotopes) can be quantified from ice cores provided that the age difference between entrapped air and the Surrounding air can be correctly estimated. This difference depends on the lock-in depth (LID), when air no longer mixes with the atmosphere. The LID can be estimated from firnification models or from the air isotopic composition (delta(15)N and delta(40)Ar). Both methods give consistent results for Greenland and one coastal site in Antarctica (Byrd). New firn measurements in Greenland (NorthGRIP) and Antarctica (Berkner Island, BAS depot, Dome C) confirm that firnification models correctly reproduce the present LID over a large range of surface conditions. However, a systematic mismatch is observed for the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) in East Antarctic sites (Vostok, Dome C, Dome F) questioning the model's validity. Here we use new delta(15)N measurements from two coastal Antarctic sites (Kohnen Station and Law Dome) providing depth estimates again distinct from firnification model calculations. We show that this discrepancy can be resolved by revising the estimate of past accumulation rates. delta(15)N measurements can therefore help to constrain past accumulation rate and improve ice core dating. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.