Abstract
Inclusions affect the behavior of ice, and their characteristics help us understand the formation history of the ice. Recently, a low-temperature magnesium sulfate salt was discovered. This paper describes this naturally occurring MgSO4·11H2O mineral, meridianiite, derived from salt inclusions in sea ice of Lake Saroma, Japan and in Antarctic continental core ice. Its occurrence is confirmed by using micro-Raman spectroscopy to compare Raman spectra of synthetic MgSO4·11H2O with those of the inclusions.