| Antarctica: Geomorphology and Climate Trends | p. 1 |
| Introduction | p. 1 |
| Physical Characteristics | p. 2 |
| Geology and Mineral Resources | p. 5 |
| Geology | p. 5 |
| Geochemical Anomalies and Mineral Resources | p. 9 |
| The Antarctic Climate and Its Role in the Global Climate System | p. 11 |
| The Antarctic Climate | p. 11 |
| Solar Radiation | p. 14 |
| Temperature | p. 17 |
| Clouds and Precipitation | p. 19 |
| Wind Regime | p. 22 |
| Atmospheric Interactions of Antarctica with Lower Latitudes | p. 24 |
| Global Warming and Climate Variations in Antarctica | p. 26 |
| Climate Variability and Changes Due to Human Activities | p. 26 |
| Trends of Surface Air Temperature in Antarctica | p. 31 |
| Extending Spatio-Temporal Temperature Trends | p. 34 |
| Moisture and Precipitation Trend | p. 36 |
| Summary | p. 40 |
| Glacial, Terrestrial and Freshwater Ecosystems | p. 43 |
| Introduction | p. 43 |
| Glacial Systems | p. 44 |
| Antarctic Ice Sheets | p. 47 |
| Ice Core Records of Climate and Environmental Change | p. 53 |
| Ice Shelves | p. 56 |
| Life in Snow and Ice | p. 58 |
| Ice-Free Areas and Terrestrial Habitats | p. 60 |
| Antarctic Soils | p. 64 |
| Terrestrial Ecosystems | p. 66 |
| Freshwater Ecosystems | p. 70 |
| Antarctic Ecosystems as Indicators of Change | p. 75 |
| Climate-Change Indications | p. 76 |
| Future Research in Antarctic Periglacial Areas | p. 79 |
| Summary | p. 80 |
| The Southern Ocean Environment: Anthropogenic Impact and Climate Change | p. 83 |
| Introduction | p. 83 |
| The Southern Ocean | p. 85 |
| Water Masses and Circulation Patterns | p. 86 |
| Air-Sea Exchanges | p. 89 |
| Sea Ice | p. 91 |
| Antarctic Sea Ice and the Global Climate System | p. 94 |
| Biogeochemical Cycles of C, Fe, S and Other Elements in the Southern Ocean | p. 97 |
| Pelagic Ecosystems | p. 102 |
| Primary Productivity | p. 104 |
| Effects of UV-B on Phytoplankton and Primary Production | p. 106 |
| The Ecological Role of Sea Ice | p. 108 |
| Ice-Edge Processes and Communities | p. 110 |
| Krill and Pelagic Food Webs | p. 112 |
| Benthic and Epibenthic Organisms | p. 116 |
| Antarctic Marine Food Webs and the Impact of Human Activity | p. 120 |
| Summary | p. 122 |
| Persistent Contaminants in the Antarctic Atmosphere | p. 125 |
| Introduction | p. 125 |
| The Atmosphere of the Southern Hemisphere | p. 127 |
| Trace Gases | p. 129 |
| The Impact of Biomass Burning | p. 132 |
| Aerosols | p. 133 |
| Volcanic Emissions | p. 137 |
| Persistent Contaminants in the Antarctic Atmosphere | p. 140 |
| The Mercury Cold Trap | p. 142 |
| Trace Elements in Antarctic Aerosol | p. 146 |
| Radionuclides | p. 151 |
| Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) | p. 153 |
| Antarctic Scientific Stations as Sources of Atmospheric Contaminants | p. 158 |
| Summary | p. 160 |
| Persistent Contaminants in Snow, Terrestrial Ecosystems and Inland Waters | p. 163 |
| Introduction | p. 163 |
| Atmospheric Contaminant Deposition and Their Incorporation into Ice | p. 164 |
| Dry, Wet and Occult Deposition in Polar Regions | p. 165 |
| Air-Snow Interactions and Post-Depositional Processes | p. 169 |
| Snow and Ice Core Records of Airborne Trace Metals | p. 171 |
| Lead as a Paradigm of Hemispheric-Scale Anthropogenic Impact | p. 172 |
| Natural and Anthropogenic Inputs of Lead to Antarctic Snow | p. 175 |
| Copper, Cadmium and Zinc | p. 178 |
| Mercury and Other Trace Metals | p. 183 |
| Persistent Organic Contaminants | p. 186 |
| Monitoring of Persistent Contaminants Around Scientific Stations Through Snow | p. 189 |
| Contaminants in Antarctic Soils | p. 191 |
| Cryptogamic Organisms as Biomonitors of Atmospheric Contaminants | p. 196 |
| Accumulation of Persistent Contaminants in Antarctic Lichens | p. 196 |
| The Potential Role of Bryophytes as Biomonitors | p. 200 |
| Anthropogenic Impact on Lakes and Streams | p. 203 |
| Summary | p. 206 |
| Contaminants in Antarctic Seawater and Sediments | p. 209 |
| Introduction | p. 209 |
| Trace Elements in Antarctic Marine Waters | p. 211 |
| Element Input from Atmospheric Dust in the Southern Ocean | p. 212 |
| Biogeochemistry of Cobalt, Copper, Nickel and Zinc | p. 216 |
| The "Cadmium Anomaly" in the Southern Ocean | p. 219 |
| Natural and Anthropogenic Sources of Lead | p. 221 |
| A Neglected Element: Mercury | p. 224 |
| Particles Fluxes and the Composition of Surface Sediments | p. 226 |
| Environmental Pollution in Marine Coastal Areas | p. 231 |
| The Impact of Disused Whaling Stations in Peri-Antarctic Islands | p. 232 |
| Accidental Oil Spills | p. 233 |
| The Impact of Coastal Scientific Stations | p. 237 |
| Effects of Local Environmental Pollution on Benthic Communities | p. 242 |
| Summary | p. 246 |
| Persistent Contaminants in Antarctic Marine Food Chains | p. 249 |
| Introduction | p. 249 |
| Trace Elements and POPs in Pelagic Plankton | p. 251 |
| Bioaccumulation of Persistent Contaminants in Euphausia superba (Krill) | p. 255 |
| Transfer of Contaminants in Pelagic Food Chains | p. 259 |
| The (Hyper) Accumulation of Cd and Hg in Pelagic Seabirds | p. 261 |
| POPs and Heavy Metals in Pelagic Marine Mammals | p. 266 |
| Contaminants in Coastal Benthic Organisms | p. 270 |
| Metal Accumulation and Homeostasis in Antarctic Molluscs | p. 273 |
| Antarctic Fish and the Transfer of Contaminants to Higher Vertebrates | p. 276 |
| Contaminants in Birds and Seals Breeding in Antarctica | p. 279 |
| Penguins as Biomonitor Organisms | p. 280 |
| Contaminants in Seals and in a Top Predator Bird: the South Polar Skua | p. 282 |
| Summary | p. 287 |
| Climate Change, Anthropogenic Impact and Environmental Research in Antarctica: a Synthesis and Perspectives | p. 291 |
| Introduction | p. 291 |
| Climate Change and Pathways of Persistent Contaminants | p. 294 |
| Future Trends in Trace Metal Deposition | p. 295 |
| The Unpredictable Pathway and Temporal Trend of POPs | p. 297 |
| The Development of Large-Scale Monitoring Networks | p. 299 |
| Regional Baseline Concentrations of Persistent Contaminants | p. 301 |
| Circumpolar Biomonitoring of Coastal Marine Ecosystems | p. 304 |
| Global Environmental Challenges and the Reduction of Adverse Impacts in Antarctica | p. 307 |
| Science and the Protection of the Antarctic Environment | p. 309 |
| Summary | p. 311 |
| References | p. 315 |
| Geographical Index | p. 379 |
| Subject Index | p. 385 |
| Taxonomic Index | p. 393 |
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