Sampling Patagonia dust onboard FS Meteor on her transit from Walvis Bay (Namibia) to Talcahuano (Chile), Fall 2008

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Dierk Hebbeln
• Subject Area: Oceanography
• Term: from 2008 to 2010
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 89085480

Patagonian dust, which is nowadays blown from Argentina into the South Atlantic Ocean, isthought to have played a major role in the development of global glacial climate conditionsthrough fuelling of primary production in the High-Nutrient-Low-Chlorophyll waters of theSouthern Ocean2. In addition, there is an ongoing debate on the origin of wind-blown dustfound in Antarctic ice cores, and there are strong indications that South America was a majorsource of dust during glacial times3'4'5, although recent studies have demonstrated theimportance of Australia as a potential source of dust as well6. During glacial timesPatagonian dust was not only blown over the Atlantic Ocean towards the South Pole, butalso over the South American continent, and deposited in vast loess deposits downwind ofthe Argentinean pampas7. At present, the Patagonian dust plume is considered the secondmost important supplier of dust to the ocean on the southern hemisphere8, potentially stillacting as fertiliser for the South Atlantic. However, hardly any studies have been carried outon the chemical and mineralogical composition or dispersal patterns of this material.On its transit cruise from Walvis Bay (Namibia) to Talcahuano (Chile), RV Meteor will sailright through the Patagonian dust plume, which blows from Argentina into the AtlanticOcean. This is a unique opportunity to study this largely unknown source of dust, and byanalysing the dust's physical, (bio-) geochemical, and mineralogical composition, contributeto the discussion on the provenance of Antarctic dust.

• DFG Programme: Priority Programmes
• Subproject of: SPP 511: "Meteor" Expeditions
• Participating Person: Professor Dr. Jan-Berend Willem Stuut