Ukrainian Antarctic Journal

Linking weather variability and climatic pressure dipole in the Antarctic region of Amundsen – Bellingshausen – Weddell Seas

Larysa Pysarenko — 2025-12-30

The climatic pressure dipole, formed by the Amundsen Sea Low (ASL) and the high-pressure area east of the Antarctic Peninsula (AP), is a major contributor to weather variability in West Antarctica and the peninsula region. Under the ongoing climate change, the role of this pressure configuration often remains uncertain. Using ERA5 reanalysis data for 1991–2022, we investigated the response of precipitation types and near-surface meteorological fields to variability in the climatic pressure dipole. A deepening eastward shift of the ASL increased snowfall over the Amundsen and Bellingshausen Seas, particularly near the low-pressure center itself, while precipitation near the AP tended to shift from solid to mixed or liquid phases. Strengthening of high pressure over the western Weddell Sea – especially when displaced closer to the AP – led to an overall decrease in precipitation, but with more frequent freezing rains and ice pellets over the northeastern AP. These relationships, however, were highly heterogeneous and exhibited strong seasonal features. Near-surface meteorological parameters showed weaker responses to the pressure dipole than precipitation. A deepened ASL generally lowered air temperature and saturation point over the eastern Bellingshausen Sea, while its eastward displacement produced warmer conditions across the study area. A high-pressure ridge east of the AP strongly influenced the thermal regime over the Weddell Sea and Dronning Maud Land, and was associated with intensified southerly and westerly winds in the southern part of the AP. Overall, this study enhances understanding of how surface meteorological conditions generally respond to atmospheric pressure variability in the region.

Comparison of Antarctic total ozone behavior in pre-SSW, SSW, and post-SSW years

Ruixian Yu — 2025-12-30

Sudden stratospheric warmings (SSWs) are dramatic events characterized by sudden and sharp changes in the distribution of polar stratospheric temperatures, zonal winds, total ozone column, and other atmospheric parameters. SSWs are usual in the winter season in the Northern Hemisphere, but they are rare in the Antarctic stratosphere. Only one major SSW (September 2002) was observed in the southern polar stratosphere over the entire time of observations. In the paper, this event is considered in conjunction with the warmings of 1988 and 2019, which do not correspond to the major SSW definition, but were accompanied by significant temperature and total ozone increases, as well as zonal wind deceleration. The changes in the total ozone distributions over Antarctica are analyzed using Multi-Sensor Reanalysis (MSR-2) data. We have plotted and analyzed the spatial distribution of total ozone anomalies in the SSW years and adjacent years. A significant zonal asymmetry is noted between the Western and Eastern Hemispheres over Antarctica. In the East Antarctic stratosphere, total ozone increases several weeks before the central date of the warming, indicating preconditions for the event. Quasi-periodic oscillations associated with planetary waves were observed over East Antarctica in 1988 and 2002. On the contrary, total ozone over West Antarctica showed no clear features prior to the warming. The warmings have distinct spatial coverage: in particular, the 1988 event did not penetrate the inner region of the stratospheric polar vortex. In the adjacent years, total ozone was predominantly lower than climatological values, and we have concluded that total ozone decrease is most typical for the previous years (1987, 2001, 2018).

Influence of regional variations in ocean characteristics and trophic relationships on cadmium accumulation in Antarctic pelagic and benthic organisms

Roberto Bargagli — 2025-12-30

Cadmium (Cd) concentrations in Antarctic marine organisms are much higher than expected for such a remote, pristine environment. Bioaccumulation is principally due to water circulation and upwelling, as well as the nutrient-like behaviour of Cd in areas of high primary productivity. The low availability of zinc (Zn) and other trace elements favours Cd use by diatoms as a cofactor in carbon anhydrase, and the metal is also highly concentrated by small autotrophs and heterotrophs that develop a high surface-to-volume ratio. Thus, in pelagic food webs, grazing micro- and mesozooplankton, as well as the juvenile stages of Antarctic krill with a small oral apparatus, accumulate high concentrations of Cd and transfer the metal to amphipods and other secondary consumers. In coastal marine ecosystems with high primary productivity, such as those bordering the Ross Sea, a large amount of phytoplankton sinks in the summer, contributing to Cd accumulation in benthic invertebrates. Total body Cd concentrations are lower in benthic and pelagic fish, seabirds, and marine mammals than in many invertebrate species. Seabirds that feed on amphipods and other crustaceans smaller than Antarctic krill accumulate higher amounts of Cd. Comparisons of Cd content in representative benthic invertebrate species, fish, and penguins from coastal marine ecosystems at King George Island and Terra Nova Bay (Ross Sea) indicate much higher bioaccumulation in the latter area. This is likely due to enhanced upwelling of seawater, high concentrations of soluble Cd in surface waters, notable algal blooms in spring and summer, and the involvement of invertebrate taxa other than Antarctic krill in transferring energy and metals along pelagic food webs.

Deschampsia antarctica population dynamics given the trends in air temperature and penguin activity

Nataliia Miryuta — 2025-12-30

The main objective of the study is to describe the dynamics of the total size of Deschampsia antarctica population of Galindez Island, Argentine Islands, the maritime Antarctic, during 1964–2021, both in total and as eight sectoral groups of populations and eleven separate populations. The first task is to search for possible dependence of the dynamics of the total number of plants on the average monthly air temperature. Assessing the robustness of the Galindez population (G-population), sectoral groups of populations (sectoral populations), and individual populations (populations) by phase trajectories to relate them to the effects of meteorological and other variables is the next task. Methods for estimating the population size, the cover, and morphometric parameters (leaf length and flower length, respectively) of D. antarctica were used for the 2013/2014–2020/2021 and 2013/2014–2023/2024 seasons. Meteorological data from a long-term meteorological observations database were used. Topological analysis was used to determine population robustness. The dependence of the plants’ total number dynamics in the period 1964–2021 on the average monthly air temperature in September and February was shown. The dynamics of the sectoral populations and populations were compared with meteorological variables and other factors. The general dynamic of the G-population was described by a third-degree polynomial fit. At the same time, we managed to find a connection between the G-population and air temperature only in certain critical months of seasonal development – September and February. The individual sectors of the island exhibited significantly heterogeneous plant population trends, which may be attributed to environmental heterogeneity. The topological analysis allows to expand the populations’ classification under the external factors’ influence in the dynamics. Changing external conditions can lead to some populations’ transitioning from one robust state to another, or from an unrobust state to a robust one and vice versa. In particular, the penguin invasion over the past 3 years has destroyed the D4 population, whose state was described by a strange attractor over 8 seasons; the D6 population also influenced by penguins has transitioned from a stable torus state to a strange attractor state, the D10 population has transitioned from an unrobust torus state to a limit cycle state in the last three of the 11 years of research.

The description of Pseudobenedenia gunnari sp. n. (Monopisthocotyla: Capsalidae) from the mackerel icefish (Champsocephalus gunnari) in South Georgia Island, South Atlantic

Nataliya Y. Rubtsova — 2025-12-30

The mackerel icefish Champsocephalus gunnari (Channichthyidae) is a highly specialised Antarctic species inhabiting cold sub-Antarctic waters, particularly around South Georgia. Although the helminth fauna of this host is relatively well documented, only one representative of Monopisthocotyla collected in 1926 during the “Discovery” expedition, later prepared as a whole mount by D. I. Gibson in the 1970s and identified as Pseudobenedenia nototheniae Johnston, 1931, has been registered so far. The present study is based on a re-examination of a museum specimen preserved in the parasitological collection of the Natural History Museum in London, United Kingdom. Standard morphological techniques were used to examine and illustrate the specimen, including analysis of key reproductive, adhesive, and haptoral structures. The new species is diagnosed by a unique combination of features, including a bilobed terminal end of penis curved anteriorly; both male and female genital ducts opening into a shared genital orifice, but at distinctly separate positions within it, and vagina not adjacent to the vitelline reservoir. An additional unique feature is an exceptionally large body size (12 mm) and proportionally larger reproductive organs. A combination of these morphological features has not been previously reported in any other Pseudobenedenia Johnston, 1931 species. Reporting this unique form of Pseudobenedenia on a new host, ecologically isolated from all previously known hosts, emphasises the novelty of our discovery. The rarity of Pseudobenedenia records on C. gunnari, despite intensive examination of the host species, underscores the difficulty of obtaining fresh material for modern morphological analyses. Distinctive features of the genital system and marked size differences provide strong evidence of reproductive isolation and support the establishment of a new Pseudobenedenia species.

Renewable energy-based power generation in Antarctica: Roadmap for optimal sizing, placement and uncertainties prediction using AI-guided technological advances

Muhammad Fahad Shinwari — 2025-12-30

Antarctica, the most remote and environmentally extreme region on Earth, presents unique challenges for energy generation due to its harsh climate, isolation, and logistical constraints. The continent’s research stations, vital for advancing global understanding of climate change, glaciology, ecosystem, and environmental studies, have historically relied on fossil fuels for power, which poses significant logistical and environmental risks, high operational costs, and ethical concerns related to fossil fuel usage in such a pristine environment. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the current landscape of renewable energy adoption in Antarctica, focusing on key research stations such as Princess Elisabeth Station, McMurdo Station, and others that have adopted solar, wind, and hybrid power systems. The paper also discusses the major challenges to widespread renewable energy adoption, including extreme weather conditions, temperature fluctuations, equipment reliability issues, seasonal energy variability, and technological limitations in energy capture and storage systems capabilities. In response to these challenges, the paper explores the potential of advanced computational and artificial intelligence methods to enhance renewable energy system planning in Antarctica. Furthermore, it highlights emerging opportunities for improving renewable energy efficiency and reliability by integrating advanced technologies such as Grey Wolf Optimisation for optimal energy source placement, Random Forest Regression for weather prediction, and innovations in hybrid solar and wind power. The findings underscore the critical need for technological advancements and international collaboration with the Polar Research Institute, Türkiye, to improve energy sustainability, specifically in Horseshoe Island, as well as across the broader Antarctic region. The research concludes by offering recommendations for future research directions, including the implementation of robust data-driven forecasting models and high-performance energy storage technologies. These strategies aim to support the full transition of Antarctica’s energy infrastructure to renewable sources, in alignment with urgent global goals to reduce carbon emissions and the imperative to protect one of the Earth’s most fragile ecosystems.