Part 1—Download and Install Software and Data

Step 1 – Download and Launch GeoMapApp Software

1. Open the GeoMapApp home page in a new window.



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Provenance: Katharina Frazier
Reuse: This item is offered under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ You may reuse this item for non-commercial purposes as long as you provide attribution and offer any derivative works under a similar license.


• From the Download Links panel on the left of the page, click the link for your computer's operating system.
• On the new Web page that comes up for your computer, scroll to the bottom of the page, read the terms of distribution, and click AGREE to download the software.
2. When the download is complete, locate the program file on your computer (wherever your downloads are stored) and double-click the GeoMapApp icon to start the program.
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3. When GeoMapApp launches, three maps are displayed. Click Agree to select the default Base Map in South Polar projection. (The center map).
   
   

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   Provenance: Betsy Youngman, none
   Reuse: This item is offered under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ You may reuse this item for non-commercial purposes as long as you provide attribution and offer any derivative works under a similar license.
   
   
4. Once GeoMapApp is running, the base map is displayed.
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Note that you are looking at a South Polar projection of Earth's surface.


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Provenance: Betsy Youngman, none
Reuse: This item is offered under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ You may reuse this item for non-commercial purposes as long as you provide attribution and offer any derivative works under a similar license.


5. If you prefer, you can launch GeoMapApp directly from the Internet using Java Web Start. To do this, use the "here" link on the GeoMapApp home page instead of the Download Links. Click on the question mark if you need help using Java Web Start.
Show me where to launch GeoMapApp using Java Web Start and where to get help if the application does not start
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Provenance: Katharina Frazier
Reuse: This item is offered under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ You may reuse this item for non-commercial purposes as long as you provide attribution and offer any derivative works under a similar license.


6. Take a few minutes to explore the built-in tools and the base map.

Step 2 – Review a Short Video on recent Antarctic Research

1. Watch the short (2:46 minute) video of Dr. John Anderson, below, then answer the following questions in your journal.
   
   
   
   
   • How are sediment cores different from ice cores?
   • What clues were initially found in the sediment that allowed identification of a warm period?
   • Why is Antarctic research important to help us understand today's climate?
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   Unlike ice cores, sediment cores often contain microfossils: remains of ancient plants and animals. Pollen of past plants helps researchers to identify a past warm period. This research helps us put current rates of warming into perspective and understand changes we see today.
2. You may also want to read a short summary of Dr. Anderson's paper: Progressive Cenozoic cooling and the demise of Antarctica's last refugium. Anderson, et al (2011)

Step 3 – Review Data from the Core

Now that you have learned a little about John Anderson and his work, you will review the following table of data from the expedition and then answer some introductory questions, located below the table.

The data shown in the table, above, were collected during a research cruise to the Antarctic Peninsula. Fossil pollen recovered from core samples obtained by the scientists was identified and correlated to sediment age. According to the table:

• Which core sample is the oldest?
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  Core 3C-7 is the oldest.

Use the geologic timescale shown below, along with the age constraints shown in the table, above, to identify the epoch name and time period for each core sample. Click on the image for a larger view.

• What are the periods and epochs of the core samples?
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  Core sample 3C-7 can be dated to the late Eocene, core 12A-2 dates to the Oligocene, core 5D-12 dates to the Miocene and core 6C-2 dates to the Pliocene.

Now that you have a sense of the age of the core samples, compare the Nothofagidites fusca abundance with the conifer group abundance in the SHADRIL table, above.

• What pattern do you notice in the abundance data?
• What are the main classification differences between these two plant groups?
• Which is a conifer?
• Which is deciduous?
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  For example, you may notice that the younger core samples have no pollen while the older ones did. All of the Nothofagidites and the Proteaceae are angiosperms unlike the conifers. Angiosperms are flowering plants that produce fruits and seeds. Conifers, by contrast, are gymnosperms which produce a "naked seed" in cones.

Step 4 – Download the Core Data

In Part 2, you will upload the core data that you just analyzed into GeoMapApp. By mapping the data you will be able to make additional observations about the spatial patterns that exist in the core data.

1. Download and save the SHADRIL core data to use in Part 2. To download the file, right-click (PC) or control-click (Mac) on the link to the file, below.
2. Save the file on your desktop or in the documents folder so that you can easily locate it for use in Part 2. Pollen Averages Spreadsheet file (Excel 17kB Apr19 13)