ACE Input Variables

The following lists the default variables ACE inputs, more can be added using the Attribute Editor. We advise that when adding your own data to ACE, use a pre-existing header file from here and add new rows of your own using the tables below. The range and units for each data type are also shown in brackets.

Mandatory inputs for all samples:

id sample name (string)
nuclide (3He, 10Be, 14C, 21Ne, 26Al, 36Cl)
latitude sample site latitude (-90→90 degrees)
longitude sample site longitude (0→360 degrees)
elevation sample site elevation (0→9000 m asl)
density sample bulk density (0→10 g/cm3)
thickness sample thickness (0→20 cm).
shielding factor product of snow and topographic shielding factors (0→1 dimensionless)

Mandory Inputs for 3He, 10Be, 14C, 21Ne, 26Al samples:

cosmogenic inventory cosmogenic inventory (0→1E7 atoms/g). This is the measured inventory with thickness shielding already factored in.
cosmogenic inventory uncertainty the uncertainty in the cosmogenic inventory (0→1E4 atoms/g).

Mandatory inputs for 36Cl Samples:

Al2O3 Aluminium Oxide (0→30 % weight)
B Boron (0→100 ppm weight)
CO2 Carbon Dioxide (0→60 % weight)
CaO Calcium Oxide (0→60 % weight)
Cl Chlorine (0→10000 ppm weight)
Cl uncertainty 1-sigma Chlorine uncertainty (0→500 ppm weight, use 5% of Cl if unsure)
Fe2O3 Iron Oxide (0→20 % weight)
Gd Gadolinium (0→100 ppm weight)
K20 Potassium Oxide (0 →20 % weight)
MgO Magnesium Oxide (0 →20 % weight)
MnO Manganses Oxide (0 →2 % weight)
Na2O Nitrous Oxide (0 →10 % weight)
P2O5 Phosphorus Oxide (0 →5 % weight)
SiO2 Silicon Dioxide (0 →100 % weight)
Sm Samarium (0→100 ppm weight)
Th Thorium (0→100 ppm weight)
TiO2 Titanium Dioxide (0→5 % weight)
U Uranium (0→100 ppm weight)
clRatio ratio of 36Cl/total Cl x10-15 (0→1E5 dimensionless)
clRatio uncertainty uncertainty in the ratio of 36Cl/total Cl x10-15 (0→5000 dimensionless, use 5% of clRatio if unsure)
volumetric water Volumetric water content, such that the percentage water content is given by this number / sample density (x 100).  Default values of 0.005 are typical.

Mandory Inputs for Calibration Samples:

independent age Independently dated age of cosmogenic nuclide sample. For a sample from a calibration dataset. (yr)
independent age uncertainty Uncertainty of the age of an independent sample. For a sample from a calibration dataset (yr)

Optional Inputs for All Samples:

default lapse rate mean annual lapse rate at sample site. If unknown, values from the function ‘Atmospheric Factors‘ are automatically used. (2→10 °C/km)
default sea-level pressure mean annual sea level pressure at sample site. If unknown, values from the function ‘Atmospheric Factors‘ are automatically used. (950→1050 mb)
default sea-level temperature mean annual sea level temperature at sample site (°C). If unknown, values fom the function ‘Atmospheric Factors‘ are automatically used. (-30→40 °C)
depth sample depth below surface (cm). Must be positive and is only used during sample dating (>0)
erosion rate sample site erosion (cm/yr). This is only used during sample dating (>0)
landform group
Name of the landform from which the sample came, so that samples from the same landform can be sorted together (any string)
published age
Published age for samples from the literature. For comparison with ACE generated ages (yr)
published age uncertainty
Uncertainty in published age for samples from the literature. For comparison with ACE generated ages (yr)
sample set This is the name of the group of samples which were imported. This is a useful field if the samples all came from the same paper, study, fieldwork area, as samples can then be sorted by this attribute to see them together. If this field is not included, the imported file name and path is used instead.
source This is usually the digital object identifier which can be used to find the original data source. However it is an open string and can be used to track samples in any way.
vertical movement
Average rate of change of site elevation. For sites from tectonically/isostatically active regions. (-0.05→0.05 m/yr, negative for uplift, positive for subsidence)