Black carbon (BC) from fossil fuel and biomass combustion darkens the snow and makes it melt sooner. The BC footprint of research activities and tourism in Antarctica has likely increased as human presence in the continent has surged in recent decades. This study reports measurements of BC concentration in snow samples from 28 sites across a 2,000 km transect of Antarctica. Surveys show that BC content in snow near research facilities and tourist sites is significantly higher than background levels. The resulting radiative forcing accelerates snow melting, shrinking the snowpack in impacted areas by up to 23 mm water equivalent per summer.

Raúl R. Cordero, Edgardo Sepúlveda, Sarah Feron, Alessandro Damiani, Francisco Fernandoy, Steven Neshyba, Penny M. Rowe, Valentina Asencio, Jorge Carrasco, Juan A. Alfonso, Pedro Llanillo, Paul Wachter, Gunther Seckmeyer, Marina Stepanova, Juan M. Carrera, Jose Jorquera, Chenghao Wang, Avni Malhotra, Jacob Dana, Alia L. Khan, Gino Casassa