This dataset reports the water stable isotope composition (d18O, dD, D-excess) of precipitation at the Concordia Station, Antarctica. Daily precipitations are collected on benches (height: 1 m) in the clean area 800 m from the Station by the Concordia winter-over personnel. All samples are analyzed with laser spectroscopy (CRDS) or mass spectrometry (IRMS). 2008-2017 data are available here: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10197160; 2017-2021 data are available here: https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.971486

Here we present the snow pits collected along the international EAIIST project traverse, which took place in 2019-2020 Antarctic Campaign. We report the number of snow pits collected, the depth of the samplings and their geographic information.

The effects of sea ice melting, and the consequent changes in the trophic conditions in Antarctic ecosystems, have been focused on phytoplankton with cross-food web links from krill to penguins, while the consequences on the planktonic microbial food web (viruses, prokaryotes and unicellular eukaryotes), driving biogeochemical cycles, have been largely ignored. This research investigates how changes related to sea ice melting influence the diversity and functioning of planktonic microbes in the Ross Sea coastal ecosystem of Terranova Bay. The objectives are: i) to investigate the temporal changes of planktonic microbial biodiversity, ii) to investigate the biodiversity/ecosystem functioning relationships iii) to assess the role of viruses on biodiversity and biogeochemical cycles, iv) to identify the drivers that shape microbial biodiversity and functions, and v) to shed light on the interactions within the planktonic food web, and their response to the ice melting. META-ICE-ROSS integrates ad hoc sampling with sophisticated methodologies of high-throughput sequencing of microbial DNA (metagenomics), never documented in previous Italian expeditions at Terranova Bay. The sampling includes the collection of seawater beneath the pack ice at increasing distance from the MZ Station and characterised by different thermohaline conditions, on a weekly basis from early November to mid January. The groundbreaking nature of META-ICE-ROSS will allow to provide unprecedented evidences on the role of microbial interactions in the functioning of the Ross Sea coastal ecosystem, to improve knowledge on biological changes due to global climate changes and, nonetheless, to provide a baseline assessment of the functioning of the microbial food webs and carbon sequestration in the pelagic environment in the Ross Sea region, within the context of the Ross Sea Region Marine Protected Area (RSRMPA) and its monitoring and research plan.

Surface ozone data, collected through a UV-absorption analyzer (49i or 49c)

Disdrometric data from a Thies Clima 3D Stereo with 22 size classes and 20 velocity classes positioned at L'Aquila (Italy, 42.3831 N, 13.3148 E, 683 m a.s.l.), with monthly spectra and ancillary information.

PM10 time series at Concordia

The Concordia Research Station provides a unique location for preparatory activities for future human journey to Mars, to explore microbial diversity at subzero temperatures and monitor the dissemination of human-associated microorganisms within the pristine surrounding environment. The present study was performed in the frame of the BacFinder project (European Space Agency, ESA AO-13-Concordia) with the aim to unravel the environmental- and human-associated microbial diversity in the surrounding of the Concordia Station. This is the first intensive and extensive surface snow sampling performed monthly over a two-year period at three distances (10, 500, and 1000 m) from the Concordia Station, and investigated by a high-throughput sequencing approach. Emphasis was laid on the relation between microbial presence and both seasonality and distance from the Base. Data suggested that if present the anthropogenic impact was below the detection limit of the employed DNA sequencing-based techniques. On the other hand, our study corroborated the use of DNA sequencing for revealing microbial presence in remote and hostile environments, with implications for Planetary Protections and for life-detection in astrobiology relevant targets.

The datataset includes sound pressure levels acquired in the Ross Sea during project AMORS

Commandant Charcot. Italian National Research Council - Institute of Polar Sciences data from a local source.

This dataset reports the snow density, temperature and hardness observations from the surface to 1 m depth at the Concordia Station, Antarctica. A snow trench is dig once per month (or every three months during winter) in the clean area near the Station (< 1 km). The snow density measurements are taken inserting a core barrel (with a diameter of 4.5 cm and a length of 25 cm) horizontally into the snow every 10 cm from 0 to 1 m depth. The snow density is calculated from the weight. For each layer the temperature and the hardness (ranging from 1 to 6) are also recorded.