@article{oai:kitami-it.repo.nii.ac.jp:00008059, author = {Cunde, Xiao and Yuansheng, Li and Allison, Ian and Shugui, Hou and Dreyfus, Gabrielle and Barnola, Jean-Marc and Jiawen, Ren and Lingen, Bian and Shenkai, Zhang and Kameda, Takao}, journal = {Annals of Glaciology}, month = {}, note = {An assessment of the glaciological and meteorological characteristics of Dome A, the summit of the East Antarctic ice sheet, is made based on field investigations during the austral summer of 2004/05. Knowledge of these characteristics is critical for future international studies such as deep ice-core drilling. The assessment shows that: (1) Dome A is characterized by a very low 10 m depth firn temperature, ?58.3°C (nearly 3°C lower than at EPICA Dome C and 1°C lower than at Vostok). (2) Automatic weather station (AWS) measurements of snow surface height and reference layers in a snow pit indicate the present-day snow accumulation rate at Dome A is within the range 1?3 cm w.e.a?1. Densification models suggest a range of 1?2 cm w.e.a?1. This is lower than at other sites along the ice divide of East Antarctica (IDEA). Annual layers at Dome A are thus potentially thinner than at other sites, so that a longer record is preserved in a given ice thickness. (3) The average wind speed observed at Dome A (<4 m s?1) is lower than at other sites along IDEA. Together, these parameters, combined with radio-echo sounding data and information on the subglacial drainage distribution beneath Dome A, suggest Dome A as a candidate site for obtaining the oldest ice core.}, pages = {82--87}, title = {Surface characteristics at Dome A, Antarctica: first measurements and a guide to future ice-coring sites}, volume = {48}, year = {2008} }