The National Science Foundation Division of Polar Programs awarded Purdue University $294,737 in Project Grant funding on June 1, 2027, under the Polar Programs assistance listing (CFDA 47.078) to develop reliable techniques for extracting in situ carbon-14 signals from quartz-poor whole-rock samples in Antarctica and other globally quartz-poor landscapes.
Current in situ carbon-14 measurements in quartz have been applied to polar glacial landscapes to resolve multiple exposure and burial episodes over the last 30,000 years, complementing longer-lived cosmogenic nuclides used in dating glacial advances and retreats. However, quartz-poor regions globally currently prevent application of in situ carbon-14 techniques. The project investigates how different whole-rock compositions impact the carbon-14 signal and develops methodologies to extend in situ carbon-14 applications into settings where quartz is scarce, thereby improving the capacity to date recent glacial retreat in polar regions where traditional approaches are limited by multiple exposure-burial histories.
Work is performed at Purdue University's West Lafayette, Indiana location. The period of performance runs from June 1, 2027 through May 31, 2029.