Total dimethylsulphoniopropionate (DMSPt), chlorophyll a (Chl a), and algal marker pigments were measured in 12 fast ice cores collected from Prydz Bay, eastern Antarctica (68¿--69¿S, 77¿--79¿E) in October 1997 and November 1998. Patterns of DMSPt distribution through the ice were similar on spatial scales of meters to tens of kilometers within ice sheets grouped according to growth history. This reflects the association of DMSP in fast ice with autotrophic biomass distribution, which is intrinsically linked with ice growth and differed between the ice sheets. The 12 fast ice cores were divided into three groups on the basis of ice thickness and year. Concentrations of DMSPt ranged widely from 9 to 1478 nM with marked peaks occurring within each core. Mean DMSPt concentrations were higher (200 nM) in the medium first-year ice (0.7--1.2 m) than in the thick (>1.2 m) first-year ice (90 nM), mainly because of a local surface algal assemblage that may be atypical. The fast ice algal assemblages in surface, interior, and bottom ice were dominated by diatoms (Fucoxanthin:Chl a concentrations >80%). Dinoflagellates and haptophytes were generally small and variable components of the assemblages (Peridinin:Chl a 2--11% and 19'-hexanoyloxyfucoxanthin:Chl a 2--4%, respectively). Our data support the important contribution of diatoms to DMSP production in sea ice. Nutrient (nitrate, silicate, phosphate) concentrations were measured for one group of cores. Silicate and Chl a concentrations were significantly correlated (r = 0.30, P 1000 nM, n = 410), the mean DMSP concentrations during spring/summer were within the range of 107--322 nM, with an overall mean of 178 nM. Mean DMSP concentrations in Antarctic sea ice appear to be comparable between studies and across the Antarctic sea ice zone. We estimate that the Antarctic sea ice zone may contain up to 9 Mmole sulphur as DMSP.