THE EFFECT ON THE CLIMATE OF THE CURRENT WORLDWIDE INCREASE OF ATMOSPHERIC CO2 IS A GENERAL AND VERY SIGNIFICANT ISSUE FOR THE NEAR FUTURE. SEVERAL APPROACHES CAN BE USED TO ASSESS THIS EFFECT INCLUDING CLIMATE MODELING AND RESEARCH OF ANALOGUES FROM THE PAST HISTORY.

THERE IS AN UNIQUE RECORD OF THE GLOBAL EVOLUTION OF THE PAST ATMOSPHERIC CO2 FROZEN INTO THE GLACIAL ICE. FURTHERMORE ICE CORE STUDIES (IN PARTICULAR THROUGH THE STABLE ISOTOPE COMPOSITION OF THE ICE) PROVIDE A DETAILED RECORD OF THE CLIMATIC HISTORY. IMPORTANT INFORMATION CAN BE, THUS, OBTAINED ABOUT ATMOSPHERIC CO2 CONTENT AND CLIMATE INTERACTION INCLUDING THE COMPARATIVE TIMING OF THE IMPORTANT CHANGES IN CO2 CONTENT AND CLIMATE, AND THE SOURCES AND SINKS FOR THE GLOBAL ATMOSPHERIC CO2. CONVENIENT ANALOGUES OF THE NEAR-FUTURE ATMOSPHERIC CO2 - CLIMATE SITUATION CAN BE REVEALED, FOR INSTANCE BY FOCUSING INTEREST ON THE SITUATION 25,000 YEARS AGO : CLIMATE A FEW DEGREES WARMER AND SEA LEVEL A FEW METERS HIGHER THAN TO-DAY.

OUR PROPOSAL DEALS ZWITH THIS APPROACH AND INCLUDES :
1)DETAILED MEASUREMENTS OF CO2 RECORDS FROM ICE CORES COVERING THE HOLOCENE AND THE LAST ICE AGE (SEVERAL OF SUCH ICE CORES ARE ALREADY AVAILABLE) AND REACHING ICE FORMED DURING THE PRECEEDING INTERGLACIAL, 125,000 YEARS AGO.

2)ADDITIONAL MEASUREMENTS OF THE 13C/12C RATIO OF THE CO2 TRAPPED IN ICE IN ORDER TO OBTAIN INFORMATION ABOUT THE ORIGIN OF THE ATMOSPHERIC CO2 CHANGES.

3)PHYSICO-CHEMICAL INVESTIGATIONS ON CO2 - ICE INTERACTIONS IN ORDER TO UNDERSTAND THE PROCESSES WHICH COULD AFFECT THE RECORD PRESERVED IN ICE CORES