The Greenland Ice Core Chronology 2005, 15–42 ka. Part 2: comparison to other records

A new Greenland Ice Core Chronology (GICC05) based on multi-parameter counting of annual layers has been obtained for the last 42 ka. Here we compare the glacial part of the new time scale, which is based entirely on records from the NorthGRIP ice core, to existing time scales and reference horizons covering the same period. These include the GRIP and NorthGRIP modelled time scales, the Meese-Sowers GISP2 counted time scale, the Shackleton–Fairbanks GRIP time scale (SFCP04) based on ¹⁴C calibration of a marine core, the Hulu Cave record, three volcanic reference horizons, and the Laschamp geomagnetic excursion event occurring around Greenland Interstadial 10. GICC05 is generally in good long-term agreement with the existing Greenland ice core chronologies and with the Hulu Cave record, but on shorter time scales there are significant discrepancies. Around the Last Glacial Maximum there is a more than 1 ka age difference between GICC05 and SFCP04 and a more than 0.5 ka discrepancy in the same direction between GICC05 and the age of a recently identified tephra layer in the NorthGRIP ice core. Both SFCP04 and the tephra age are based on ¹⁴C-dated marine cores and fixed marine reservoir ages. For the Laschamp event, GICC05 agrees with a recent independent dating within the uncertainties.     

早全新世季风演化的高分辨率石笋δ18O记录研究--以河南老母洞石笋为例

基于豫西老母洞LM2石笋8个高精度230Th年龄,449个氧碳同位素,建立了达十年际分辨率的8.2~10.9 ka B.P.亚洲季风变化的δ18O记录序列.老母洞石笋δ18O值最为偏负达-12.0‰,最偏正为-8.2‰,振幅达3.8‰.早全新世10.13~10.9 ka B.P.时段内,河南西部老母洞石笋和东石崖石笋,陕西九仙洞C996-2石笋δ18O曲线揭示该时段内季风稳定,而中国南方的衙门洞石笋、三宝洞石笋和极地冰芯GRIP记录揭示该时段季风逐渐增强;同时季风达到顶峰的时期也不相同,进一步说明中国南北方早全新世10.13~10.9 ka B.P.时段季风演变过程的差异,可能与中国南北方气候的响应机制有关.从早全新世平均分辨率10年的LM2石笋记录中识别出8.2 ka,9.5 ka,10.2 ka和10.9 ka显著弱季风事件,尤其是8.2 ka和9.5 ka事件.对比分析老母洞与已发表的高分辨率石笋δ18O记录发现:石笋所揭示的某些冷事件发生时间在亚洲季风区存在差异,主要表现在事件内部变化特征及趋势上.LM2石笋δ18O曲线并没有明显记录9.3 ka弱季风事件,而是在9.3~9.6 ka B.P.左右记录了一个弱季风事件,与DSY09(2009)、Y1、HS-4记录相似,表明在该时段内存在季风的减弱事件,但是氧同位素传输的复杂性,使其在南北方表现不同.此外,在LM2石笋δ18O的8.2 ka B.P.开始时段,氧同位素曲线阶段性下降,且变幅达3‰,与Zhang等研究万象洞石笋提出的“中国8 200阶段”吻合,表明中国北方地区的8.2 ka事件是阶段性的事件,而南方的石笋氧同位素记录揭示的8.2 ka事件并未表现出阶段性特征,其原因有待于更多北方高精度石笋记录来进一步研究.LM2石笋氧同位素记录进行功率谱分析发现:在短尺度上季风变化与太阳活动密切相关,这与近年来对早全新世极端气候变化研究的驱动机制是一致的,早全新世亚洲季风的演化与太阳活动变化引起的太阳辐射能量的变化和北半球高纬气候的变化状况有关.     

Tracer transport in the Greenland Ice Sheet: constraints on ice cores and glacial history

The climate history and dynamics of the Greenland Ice Sheet are studied using a coupled model of the depositional provenance and transport of glacier ice, allowing simultaneous prediction of the detailed isotopic stratigraphy of ice cores at all the major Greenland sites. Adopting a novel method for reconstructing the age–depth relationship, we greatly improve the accuracy of semi-Lagrangian tracer tracking schemes and can readily incorporate an age-dependent ice rheology. The larger aim of our study is to impose new constraints on the glacial history of the Greenland Ice Sheet. Leading sources of uncertainty in the climate and dynamic history are encapsulated in a small number of parameters: the temperature and elevation isotopic sensitivities, the glacial–interglacial precipitation contrast and the effective viscosity of ice in the flow law. Comparing predicted and observed ice layering at ice core sites, we establish plausible ranges for the key model parameters, identify climate and dynamic histories that are mutually consistent and recover the past depositional elevation of ice cores to ease interpretation of their climatic records. With the coupled three-dimensional model of ice dynamics and provenance transport we propose a method to place all the ice core records on a common time scale and use discrepancies to adjust the reconstructed climate history. Analysis of simulated GRIP ice layering and borehole temperature profiles confirms that the GRIP record is sensitive to the dynamic as well as to the climatic history, but not enough to strongly limit speculation on the state of the Greenland Ice Sheet during the Eemian. In contrast, our study indicates that the Dye 3 and Camp Century ice cores are extremely sensitive to ice dynamics and greatly constrain Eemian ice sheet reconstructions. We suggest that the maximum Eemian sea-level contribution of the ice sheet was in the range of 3.5–4.5 m.     

Tracer transport in the Greenland ice sheet: three-dimensional isotopic stratigraphy

Polar ice cores can provide both a record of climate history and a sharp test of the performance of numerical ice dynamics models. The stratigraphic structure of an ice sheet is an expression of its full depositional and dynamic history and thus presents a greater challenge to computer models than merely matching the contemporary ice thickness and areal extent. We describe a coupled model of ice and tracer dynamics that is realized by adding a semi-Lagrangian tracer transport scheme to a conventional thermomechanical ice dynamics model. Model skill is demonstrated by using ice core data from the GRIP site near Summit Greenland to successfully predict the isotopic stratigraphy of ice cores at other deep drilling sites. The success of this effort indicates that, when compensated for the effects of ice flow and elevation, all the deep cores relate a coherent glacial history over the past 120,000 years. According to the simulation results, the oldest Greenland ice lies beneath the GRIP, GISP2 and NorthGRIP sites although comparably old ice may also be found in North Greenland and East Central Greenland.     

Sub‐arctic Holocene climatic and oceanographic variability in Stjernsund,northern Norway: evidence from benthic foraminifera and stable isotopes

A high‐resolution record, covering 9.3–0.2 ka BP, from the sub‐arctic Stjernsund (70°N) was studied for benthic foraminiferal faunas and stable isotopes, revealing three informally named main phases during the Holocene. The Early‐ to Mid‐Holocene (9.3–5.0 ka BP) was characterized by the strong influence of the North Atlantic Current (NAC), which prevented the reflection of the Holocene Climatic Optimum (HCO) in the bottom‐water temperature. During the Mid‐Holocene Transition (5.0–2.5 ka BP), a turnover of benthic foraminiferal faunas occurred, Atlantic Water species decreased while Arctic‐Polar species increased, and the oxygen isotope record showed larger fluctuations. Those variations correspond to a period of global climate change, to spatially more heterogeneous benthic foraminiferal faunas in the Nordic Seas region, and to regionally diverging terrestrial temperatures. The Cool Late Holocene (2.5–0.2 ka BP) was characterized by increased abundances of Arctic‐Polar species and a steady cooling trend reflected in the oxygen isotopes. In this period, our record differs considerably from those on the SW Barents Sea shelf and locations farther south. Therefore, we argue that regional atmospheric cooling triggered the late Holocene cooling trend. Several cold episodes centred at ～8.3, ～7.8, ～6.5, ～4.9, ～3.9 and ～3.3 ka BP were identified from the benthic foraminiferal faunas and the δ¹⁸O record, which correlated with marine and atmospherically driven proxy records. This suggests that short‐term cold events may result from reduced heat advection via the NAC or from colder air temperatures.     

Local ice caps in Finderup Land,North Greenland,survived the Holocene Thermal Maximum

Local glaciers and ice caps (GICs) comprise only ~5.4% of the total ice volume, but account for ~14–20% of the current ice loss in Greenland. The glacial history of GICs is not well constrained, however, and little is known about how they reacted to Holocene climate changes. Specifically, in North Greenland, there is limited knowledge about past GIC fluctuations and whether they survived the Holocene Thermal Maximum (HTM, ~8 to 5 ka). In this study, we use proglacial lake records to constrain the ice‐marginal fluctuations of three local ice caps in North Greenland including Flade Isblink, the largest ice cap in Greenland. Additionally, we have radiocarbon dated reworked marine molluscs in Little Ice Age (LIA) moraines adjacent to the Flade Isblink, which reveal when the ice cap was smaller than present. We found that outlet glaciers from Flade Isblink retreated inland of their present extent from ~9.4 to 0.2 cal. ka BP. The proglacial lake records, however, demonstrate that the lakes continued to receive glacial meltwater throughout the entire Holocene. This implies that GICs in Finderup Land survived the HTM. Our results are consistent with other observations from North Greenland but differ from locations in southern Greenland where all records show that the local ice caps at low and intermediate elevations disappeared completely during the HTM. We explain the north–south gradient in glacier response as a result of sensitivity to increased temperature and precipitation. While the increased temperatures during the HTM led to a complete melting of GICs in southern Greenland, GICs remained in North Greenland probably because the melting was counterbalanced by increased precipitation due to a reduction in Arctic sea‐ice extent and/or increased poleward moisture transport.     

Advance,deglacial and sea‐level chronology for Foxe Peninsula,Baffin Island,Nunavut

The impact of the Laurentide Ice Sheet (LIS) deglaciation on Northern Hemisphere early Holocene climate can be evaluated only once a detailed chronology of ice history and sea‐level change is established. Foxe Peninsula is ideally situated on the northern boundary of Hudson Strait, and preserves a chronostratigraphy that provides important glaciological insights regarding changes in ice‐sheet position and relative sea level before and after the 8.2 ka cooling event. We utilized a combination of radiocarbon ages, adjusted with a new locally derived ΔR, and terrestrial in‐situ cosmogenic nuclide (TCN) exposure ages to develop a chronology for early‐Holocene events in the northern Hudson Strait. A marine limit at 192 m a.s.l., dated at 8.1–7.9 cal. ka BP, provides the timing of deglaciation following the 8.2 ka event, confirming that ice persisted at least north of Hudson Bay until then. A moraine complex and esker morphosequence, the Foxe Moraine, relates to glaciomarine outwash deltas and beaches at 160 m a.s.l., and is tightly dated at 7.6 cal. ka BP with a combination of shell dates and exposure ages on boulders. The final rapid collapse of Foxe Peninsula ice occurred by 7.1–6.9 cal. ka BP (radiocarbon dates and TCN depth profile age on an outwash delta), which supports the hypothesis that LIS melting contributed to the contemporaneous global sea‐level rise known as the Catastrophic Rise Event 3 (CRE‐3).     

Deglaciation and catchment ontogeny in coastal south‐west Greenland: implications for terrestrial and aquatic carbon cycling

Here we present Holocene organic carbon, nitrogen, sulphur, carbon isotope ratio and macrofossil data from a small freshwater lake near Sisimiut in south‐west Greenland. The lake was formed c. 11 cal ka BP following retreat of the ice sheet margin and is located above the marine limit in this area. The elemental and isotope data suggest a complex deglaciation history of interactions between the lake and its catchment, reflecting glacial retreat and post‐glacial hydrological flushing probably due to periodic melting of local remnant glacial ice and firn areas between 11 and 8.5 cal ka BP. After 8.5 cal ka BP, soil development and associated vegetation processes began to exert a greater control on terrestrial–aquatic carbon cycling. By 5.5 cal ka BP, in the early Neoglacial cooling, the sediment record indicates a change in catchment–lake interactions with consistent δ¹³C while C/N exhibits greater variability. The period after 5.5 cal ka BP is also characterized by higher organic C accumulation in the lake. These changes (total organic carbon, C/N, δ¹³C) are most likely the result of increasing contribution (and burial) of terrestrial organic matter as a result of enhanced soil instability, as indicated by an increase in Cenococcum remains, but also Sphagnum and Empetrum. The impact of glacial retreat and relatively subdued mid‐ to late Holocene climate variation at the coast is in marked contrast to the greater environmental variability seen in inland lakes closer to the present‐day ice sheet margin. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A high-resolution speleothem proxy record of the Late Glacial in the European Alps: extending the NALPS19 record until the beginning of the Holocene

Previous research has shown that speleothems from the northern rim of the European Alps captured submillennial-scale climate change during the last glacial period with exceptional sensitivity and resolution, mimicking Greenland ice-core records. Here we extend this so-called NALPS19 record across the Late Glacial using two stalagmites which grew continuously into the Holocene. Both specimens show the same high-amplitude δ¹⁸O signal as Greenland ice cores down to decadal resolution. The start of the warming at the onset of the equivalent of Greenland Interstadial (GI) GI-1e at 14.66 ± 0.18 ka agrees with the North Greenland Ice Core Project (NGRIP) (14.64 ± 0.28 ka) and comprised a temperature rise of about 5–6 °C. The transition from the equivalent of GI-1a into the equivalent of Greenland Stadial (GS) GS-1 (broadly equivalent to the Younger Dryas) commenced at 13.02 ± 0.13 ka which is consistent with NGRIP (12.80 ± 0.26 ka) within errors. The onset of the Holocene started at 11.78 ± 0.14 ka (11.65 ± 0.10 ka at NGRIP) and involved a warming of about 4–5 °C. In contrast to δ¹⁸O, δ¹³C values show no response to (sub)millennial climate shifts due to strong rock-buffering and only record a long-term trend of soil development starting with the rapid warming at 14.7 ka.     

An event stratigraphy for the Last Termination in the North Atlantic region based on the Greenland ice-core record: a proposal by the INTIMATE group

It is suggested that the GRIP Greenland ice-core should constitute the stratotype for the Last Termination. Based on the oxygen isotope signal in that core, a new event stratigraphy spanning the time interval from ca. 22.0 to 11.5 k GRIP yr BP (ca. 19.0–10.0 k ¹⁴C yr BP) is proposed for the North Atlantic region. This covers the period from the Last Glacial Maximum, through Termination 1 of the deep-ocean record, to the Pleistocene–Holocene boundary, and encompasses the Last Glacial Late-glacial of the traditional northwest European stratigraphy. The isotopic record for this period is divided into two stadial episodes, Greenland Stadials 1 (GS-1) and 2 (GS-2), and two interstadial events, Greenland Interstadials 1 (GI-1) and2 (GI-2). In addition, GI-1 and GS-2 are further subdivided into shorter episodes. The event stratigraphy is equally applicable to ice-core, marine and terrestrial records and is considered to be a more appropriate classificatory scheme than the terrestrially based radiocarbon-dated chronostratigraphy that has been used hitherto. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Speleothem‐derived Asian summer monsoon variations in Central China, 54–46 ka

The oxygen isotope signature (δ¹⁸O) of stalagmite SI3 collected from Shizi Cave in north‐east Sichuan Province provides an Asian Summer Monsoon (ASM) record in Central China for the period 54–46 ka. The SI3 δ¹⁸O record clearly shows a negative δ¹⁸O excursion centred around 49.4 ka, which was reported in Hulu Cave in East China but not identified in the speleothem records from South‐west China. As a whole, this record displays a higher coherence with the two Hulu records from East China than with the speleothem δ¹⁸O records from South‐west China, suggesting that at 54–46 ka, Central China was influenced more by the East Asian Summer Monsoon than by the Indian Summer Monsoon. It also displays a significant negative δ¹⁸O excursion at 47.5–46.6 ka, which is not clearly documented in two other speleothem δ¹⁸O records previously reported from South‐west China. This suggests that details of the Greenland interstadial 12 warrant further investigations in future in monsoonal China. The SI3 δ¹⁸O record displays more significant centennial‐scale variations than the other four speleothem δ¹⁸O records from East and South‐west China, which may be due to the fact that the study site is closer to the north‐west boundary of the ASM and more sensitive to variations of the ASM than East and South‐west China. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

High‐resolution proglacial lake records of pre‐Little Ice Age glacier advance,northeast Greenland

Understanding Arctic glacier sensitivity is key to predicting future response to air temperature rise. Previous studies have used proglacial lake sediment records to reconstruct Holocene glacier advance–retreat patterns in South and West Greenland, but high‐resolution glacier records from High Arctic Greenland are scarce, despite the sensitivity of this region to future climate change. Detailed geochemical analysis of proglacial lake sediments close to Zackenberg, northeast Greenland, provides the first high‐resolution record of Late Holocene High Arctic glacier behaviour. Three phases of glacier advance have occurred in the last 2000 years. The first two phases (c. 1320–800 cal. a BP) occurred prior to the Little Ice Age (LIA), and correspond to the Dark Ages Cold Period and the Medieval Climate Anomaly. The third phase (c. 700 cal. a BP), representing a smaller scale glacier oscillation, is associated with the onset of the LIA. Our results are consistent with recent evidence of pre‐LIA glacier advance in other parts of the Arctic, including South and West Greenland, Svalbard, and Canada. The sub‐millennial glacier fluctuations identified in the Madsen Lake succession are not preserved in the moraine record. Importantly, coupled XRF and XRD analysis has effectively identified a phase of ice advance that is not visible by sedimentology alone. This highlights the value of high‐resolution geochemical analysis of lake sediments to establish rapid glacier advance–retreat patterns in regions where chronological and morphostratigraphical control is limited.     

Stable carbon isotope variations in northwest Europe during the last glacial–interglacial transition

Stable carbon isotope data that span part of the last glacial–interglacial transition (ca. 14-9 ka ¹⁴C BP; ca. 15–11 ka cal. BP), and which derive from organ-specific plant macrofossils recovered from two lake sediment profiles in the UK and one in Norway, are compared. The recorded temporal variations show similar trends, which, over a millennial time-scale appear to parallel the main drift in δ¹⁸O as determined for the GRIP ice-core. It is postulated that some smaller scale variations in the δ¹³C profiles may reflect the shorter term oscillations in δ¹⁸O values evident in the GRIP record, although this is less certain. Overall, however, the results suggest that stable carbon isotope measurements based on organ-specific terrestrial plant macrofossils may provide (i) a means for establishing correlations between terrestrial successions and (ii) additional paleoenvironmental information, as the apparent ‘shadowing’ of the GRIP record indicates a common forcing mechanism for both Greenland δ¹⁸O and northwest European δ¹³C variations. From the evidence available we suggest that the recorded δ¹³C variations reflect fluctuations in air temperature and/or changes in water vapour pressure in the atmosphere. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

早全新世降温事件的湖泊沉积证据

我国华北干旱－半干旱区封闭湖泊流域化学风化历史记录了全新世以来次级的气候环境波动过程。高精度的沉积物地球化学、物理及生物参数变化表明，在全新世早－中期过渡阶段存在一次强降温气候事件，具体表现为流域化学风化减弱（高Rb/Sr比）、湖泊产生力减弱（低有机碳）以及湖泊水位下降。虽然该事件的寒冷程度比Younger Dryas弱，但是其与来自湖沼（包括北极、非洲、北美、西欧、青藏高原、祁连山等）、海洋（比北大西洋、地中海、加勒比海等）、欧－美大陆生物组合、极地冰芯等在内的环境记录的冷事件发生时间基本一致，集中发生于8.0-8.5ka B.P.之间。     

A multi-proxy record of abrupt cooling events during the Windermere Interstadial at Crudale Meadow,Orkney, UK

Three clearly defined abrupt cooling events (ACEs) can be observed within Greenland Interstadial (GI)-1 in the Greenland ice-core records. However, the spatial variation in amplitude and timing of these ACEs is poorly understood due to the paucity of well-dated records with quantified temperature reconstructions. This study presents high-resolution chironomid-inferred July air temperature (T_Jul) and oxygen isotope (δ¹⁸O) records from Crudale Meadow (Orkney Isles, UK). Three centennial-scale ACEs punctuate the Windermere Interstadial at Crudale Meadow. The largest ACE shows an amplitude of 5.4 °C and a 1% isotopic decline and is centred on ~14.0 ka bp , consistent with the timing of the GI-1d event in the Greenland stratigraphy. The two other observed ACEs are of smaller magnitude and are centred on ~13.6 ka bp and ~13.2 ka bp , with these smaller magnitude events tentatively correlated with the GI-1cii and GI-1b events, respectively, but lack sufficient chronological constraint to fully assess their timing. When comparing the Crudale Meadow record with other locations in the British Isles a strong relationship can be observed between the magnitude of T_Jul cooling and latitude, with a reduced signal in more southerly locations, indicating that oceanic forcing may be a key driver of the ACEs.     

黄土高原西部石笋记录的H2事件特征

青藏高原与黄土高原过渡带的甘肃武都万象洞位于现代夏季风的边缘区, 对气候变化极为敏感.通过洞内一支石笋WX40D的6个高精度TIMS-U系定年数据和616个样品的氧同位素测定, 建立了28.3~23.0 ka B.P., 分辨率约为10年的亚洲季风气候变化序列. 石笋δ18O记录揭示Marine Isotope Stage 2 (MIS2)早期东亚季风气候具有10~100 a尺度高频震荡特征, 从中识别出北大西洋Heinrich 2 (H2)特强冷事件, 且记录显示该事件开始于24.6 ka B.P., 呈突发式降温之后持续跌宕式降温变化. 对比研究发现, 万象洞石笋δ18O记录H2事件与葫芦洞、天鹅洞的石笋记录有差别, 但是与湖南金滩湾洞穴石笋δ18O记录、33°N太阳辐射强度以及极地GRIP冰心记录变化趋势一致, 表明季风边缘区气候变化主要受北半球中纬度太阳辐射能背景、北大西洋冰漂碎屑带的扩张以及低纬太平洋海表温度变化等因素的控制, 同时万象洞特殊的地理位置使得区域气候更易受到与极地气候有密切联系的亚洲冬季风和西风环流变化的影响.      

全新世早期弱夏季风事件的精确定位及机制探讨--以湖南莲花洞LHD5石笋为例

全新世早期是太阳辐射加强、全球温度上升,并伴随着冰盖消融的重要时期,而其间发生的冷事件以及亚洲季风区的弱夏季风事件的成因一直是全新世早期研究的重点。对亚洲季风-海洋-极地联系研究有着重要的意义。通过分析湖南莲花洞LHD5石笋28个U/Th年龄和535个氧同位素数据重建了全新世亚洲季风演化特征,其中全新世早期分辨率达8年。LHD5石笋记录到YD结束时间为11748±30 a B.P.,全新世开始于11684±39 a B.P.,转换时间约为64年,与格陵兰gicc05记录在误差范围内一致。LHD5石笋记录到全新世早期6次弱夏季风事件,事件年龄中心点分别为11461±34 a B.P.、10354±36 a B.P.、9957±25 a B.P.、9062±36 a B.P.、8744±23 a B.P.、8144±24 a B.P.,其δ18O值的波动幅度分别为1.08‰、0.94‰、0.66‰、0.90‰、0.55‰、1.02‰,这些弱季风事件在亚洲季风区具有普遍的区域意义。除8.2 ka事件之外,10 ka B.P.之前的弱季风事件除了受到太阳活动的影响,还受到北大西洋IRD事件的影响,而之后更多地受到太阳活动和ITCZ南移的影响。     

Seismic stratigraphy records the deglacial history of Jakobshavn Isbræ, West Greenland

Jakobshavn Isbræ is one of the largest ice streams in the Greenland Ice Sheet, presently draining c. 6.5% of the Inland Ice. Here we present high‐resolution Chirp and Sparker sub‐bottom profiles from a seismic survey conducted just outside of the Jakobshavn Isfjord, which provides detailed insight into the glacimarine sedimentary history of the Jakobshavn ice stream during the Holocene. We observe acoustically stratified and homogeneous sediments that drape an irregular substratum and were deposited between ～10 and c. 7.6k cal a BP. The stratified lower units are interpreted as the product of ice‐proximal glacimarine sedimentation deposited rapidly when the grounded ice margin was located close to depositional basins on topographic highs. The upper acoustically homogenous units reflect suspension settling of fine‐grained material and gravitational flows that were extruded from an increasingly unstable ice margin as the ice retreated into the fjord. Proximity to the ice margin and bedrock topography were the dominant controls on sediment accumulation during deglaciation although the 8.2‐ka cooling event probably influenced the position of the ice margin at the fjord mouth. The post‐glacial sedimentary record is characterized by glacimarine and hemipelagic rainout with an increased ice‐rafted detritus fraction that records sedimentation following ice stream retreat into Jakobshavn Isfjord sometime after c. 7.8k cal a BP. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Chironomid‐inferred late‐glacial summer air temperatures from Lough Nadourcan,Co. Donegal,Ireland

Western Ireland, located adjacent to the North Atlantic, and with a strongly oceanic climate, is potentially sensitive to rapid and extreme climate change. We present the first high‐resolution chironomid‐inferred mean July temperature reconstruction for Ireland, spanning the late‐glacial and early Holocene (LGIT, 15–10 ka BP). The reconstruction suggests an initial rapid warming followed by a short cool phase early in the interstadial. During the interstadial there are oscillations in the inferred temperatures which may relate to Greenland Interstadial events GI‐1a–e. The temperature decrease into the stadial occurs in two stages. This two‐stage drop can also be seen in other late‐glacial chironomid‐inferred temperature records from the British Isles. A stepped rise in temperatures into the Holocene, consistent with present‐day temperatures in Donegal, is inferred. The results show strong similarities with previously published LGIT chironomid‐inferred temperature reconstructions, and with the NGRIP oxygen‐isotope curve, which indicates that the oscillations observed in the NGRIP record are of hemispherical significance. The results also highlight the influence of the North Atlantic on the Irish climate throughout the LGIT. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The response of NW Iberian vegetation to North Atlantic climate oscillations during the last 65 kyr

Pollen and oceanographic data from deep ocean core MD95-2039 provide a centennial to millennial scale record of conditions offshore and of the vegetation of north-west Iberia for the period 10–65 ka. The planktonic oxygen isotope record of this core, reflecting predominantly sea surface temperature (SST), shows a pattern of millennial-scale oscillations that is very similar to climatic changes recorded by the Greenland ice core records over the same interval. In turn, tree populations show a pattern of rapid expansions and contractions that follow the pronounced and abrupt isotopic shifts recorded offshore. Through Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3, this millennial-scale pattern of vegetation change, alternating between steppe and open woodland, is superimposed on a longer-term pattern of shrinking ericaceous heathland and decreasing size of successive interstadial tree populations. Trees persisted during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), at greater abundance than during many of the coldest episodes of MIS 3. This agrees with the marine data which indicate that LGM sea surface temperatures here were significantly warmer than the minima recorded in MIS 3. Our combined marine-terrestrial record, together with data from nearby sequences, provides a stepping stone between terrestrial sequences and the Greenland ice core and North Atlantic marine records. This will permit a better understanding of the behaviour of vegetation across different regions at several scales of climatic forcing.