A layer of coarse cryogenic cave carbonate (CCCcoarse) is documented
within a subsurface ice outcrop (in-situ) in a cave of the Julian
Alps (southeastern Alps). This original finding, representing the
first alpine evidence of in-situ CCCcoarse and the first occurrence from
the southern side of the Alps, provides a unique opportunity to betterunderstand the processes associated with the formation of CCCcoarse
with respect to the cave ice mass balance.
Here, we discuss first considerations on the shape and characteristics
of CCCcoarse samples and their potential for palaeoclimate reconstructions
in the southern Alps. In the light of accelerated climate change, we
emphasize the need for scientific actions to exploit the available physical,
chemical, isotopic and biological records from still untapped and fragile
cryospheric archives such as ice caves.
