Data on dissolved organic matter, sea ice and environment in surface water of Antarctic Ocean

On behalf of my coauthors, I am pleased to submit a manuscript entitled “Sea ice melting is a factor driving dissolved organic matter change in surface waters of Antarctic Ocean close to the Prydz Bay”. The South Ocean (or Antarctic Ocean) is the largest sink for atmospheric CO2, and is sensitive to current global warming, characterized by rapid changes in sea ice. Here we measured the concentration and composition of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in surface waters from Antarctic Ocean close to the Prydz Bay, and tried to understand their changes in relation to sea ice melting processes. Our data based on optical spectra and high-resolution mass spectra revealed distinct differences in concentration and composition of DOM during sea ice melting and post-melting periods. Overall, with continuous sea ice melting, the underlying surface water had higher DOM concentration, lower chromophoric DOM concentration, and more protein-like labile components that were attributed to significant contributions of sea ice algae DOM, whereas the water during post-sea ice melting period had lower DOM concentration, higher chromophoric DOM concentration and more humid-like refractory components that were derived from microbial transformation of labile DOM.