Sr isotopic ratios of fog water near coastline in the Atacama Desert, northern Chile

Abstract: We collected 87Sr/86Sr data for fog collected in a near-coastal region in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. These data complement the elemental chemistry data obtained for the same samples, and elemental and Sr isotopic data for surficial Holocene salt deposits. The purpose of the Sr isotopic study is to differentiate among sources of the ions in calcium sulfate minerals that accumulate on the landscape in the Atacama Desert. These data are part of a test of the hypothesis that an important source of calcium sulfate is from offshore-generated stratocumulus clouds that create fog that transfers water droplets to the ground surface which, upon evaporation, leaves calcium sulfate crystals whose Sr will have a strong marine aerosol signal.

Other Description: Cosentino, N. J., Jordan, T. E., Derry, L. A., and Morgan, J. P., (2015), "87Sr/86Sr in recent accumulations of calcium sulfate on landscapes of hyperarid settings: A bimodal altitudinal dependence for northern Chile (19.5-21.5°S)." Geophysics, Geochemistry, Geosystems, Volume 16 (12), 4311-4328