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Nitrate flux has been determined in the snow sequence deposited at Windless Bight on the Ross Ice Shelf (Antarctica). The data were obtained from on-site analysis of nitrate concentrations from a glaciological pit and a firn core spanning the time interval from midwinter 1971 to January 1986. The high resolution data can be combined with precipitation records collected from adjacent areas to provide a record of nitrate flux. The resulting time series contains a signal which corresponds to the two major solar events of 1972 and 1984. The concentration and flux profiles may be useful in studies of Antarctic ozone depletion.

For the past 51 years nitrate deposition in snow and firn layers at the South Pole exhibits a significant linear relationship with sunspot numbers and the ‘aa’ index of geomagnetic activity. Currently known atmospheric processes may explain these results. A high resolution nitrate record from deep ice cores could be valuable for both Sun and climate studies.