Magnetic properties of sediments in the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea: impact of rapid North Atlantic Ocean climatic events on the strength of the Indian monsoon

The results of a high-resolution mineral magnetic study combined with major element geochemistry analysis, oxygen isotopes and ¹⁴C AMS stratigraphy are reported for deep-sea gravity cores MD77-169 and MD77-180 located in the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal, respectively. Core MD77-169 covers the last 280 kyr and core MD77-180 covers the last 160 kyr. In both cores, rock magnetic parameters indicate that the magnetic assemblage is dominated by pseudo-single domain titanomagnetite grains, with grain-size variations following a strong 23 kyr periodicity. Smaller magnetic grain sizes are observed during periods characterized by a strong summer monsoon. In addition, in core MD77-180, we observe a correlation between magnetic grain size and a chemical index of alteration. This suggests that these magnetic grain-size changes are related to chemical weathering driven by summer monsoon rainfall. A comparison of the GISP2 ice core isotopic record and the magnetic grain-size record of the Bay of Bengal shows that rapid temperature variations documented in the ice core (Dansgaard–Oeschger cycles and Heinrich events), during the last glacial period are also present in the magnetic grain-size record. Heinrich events and cold stadial events are characterized by relatively large magnetic grain sizes. Furthermore, Heinrich events are characterized by lower values of the chemical index of alteration implying a lower degree of chemical weathering related to significantly drier conditions on the continent. We suggest that rapid cold events of the North Atlantic (Heinrich events) during the last glacial stages are characterized by a weaker summer monsoon rainfall over the Himalaya via an atmospheric teleconnection.     

Changes in the mode of Southern Ocean circulation over the last glacial cycle revealed by foraminiferal stable isotopic variability

Benthic foraminiferal oxygen and carbon isotopic records from Southern Ocean sediment cores show that during the last glacial period, the South Atlantic sector of the deep Southern Ocean filled to roughly 2500 m with water uniformly low in δ¹³C, resulting in the appearance of a strong mid-depth nutricline similar to those observed in glacial northern oceans. Concomitantly, deep water isotopic gradients developed between the Pacific and Atlantic sectors of the Southern Ocean; the δ¹³C of benthic foraminifera in Pacific sediments remained significantly higher than those in the Atlantic during the glacial episode. These two observations help to define the extent of what has become known as the ‘Southern Ocean low δ¹³C problem’. One explanation for this glacial distribution of δ¹³C calls upon surface productivity overprints or changes in the microhabitat of benthic foraminifera to lower glacial age δ¹³C values. We show here, however, that glacial-interglacial δ¹³C shifts are similarly large everywhere in the deep South Atlantic, regardless of productivity regime or sedimentary environment. Furthermore, the degree of isotopic decoupling between the Atlantic and Pacific basins is proportional to the magnitude of δ¹³C change in the Atlantic on all time scales. Thus, we conclude that the profoundly altered distribution of δ¹³C in the glacial Southern Ocean is most likely the result of deep ocean circulation changes. While the characteristics of the Southern Ocean δ¹³C records clearly point to reduced North Atlantic Deep Water input during glacial periods, the basinal differences suggest that the mode of Southern Ocean deep water formation must have been altered as well.     

Stable isotopic records of the glacial deep-water properties in the South China Sea

Based on the oxygen and carbon stable isotopic records of benthic foraminifera in nine deep-sea cores of the South China Sea (SCS), the bathymetric profiles of δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C since the last glacial maximum (LGM) are preliminarily established. The bathymetric gradients of deep-water δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C in the SCS are obviously greater during the LGM than during the Holocene, showing the existence of the deep thermocline and nutricline at water depth of about 2 000 m. Particularly, the differences in δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C between the LGM and Holocene, from which the ice-volume effect and the global mean shift have been subtracted respectively, are positive values at water depths of 1 000–2 500 m in the SCS. This indicates the existence of deep-water mass with relatively cool temperature or higher salinity, better ventilation and more δ¹³C within the water depth range of the SCS during the LGM, which is distinctly different from that at present. These changes further confirm the existence of the glacial “North Pacific Deep Water” which, however, is possibly confined to the water depth range of 1 000–2 500 m. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 49576286 and 49732060).     

Precise dating of East-Asian-Monsoon D/O events during 95―56 ka BP: Based on stalagmite data from Shanbao Cave at Shennongjia, China

Based on 23 U/Th analyses and 532 oxygen isotopic data, an averaged 80-a stalagmite oxygen isotopic composition series was established through 95 to 56 thousand years before present (ka BP) from two speleothems in Shanbao Cave, Shennongjia, central China. Shanbao Cave record (referred to as SB record) replicates well with Hulu Cave record, extending the characteristics of millennial oscillations in East-Asian-Summer-Monsoon (EASM) to the past 95 ka. The trend of the SB record generally follows mid-July solar insolation at 65°N, suggesting that mid-high northern latitude insolation, in the first order, controls changes of EASM intensity. Millennial oscillations of EASM recorded in the stalagmites are well related to the Greenland interstadials referred to as Dansgaard/Oeschger (D/O) events from 1 to 22, indicating that rapid ocean-atmosphere reorganization in North Atlantic has a remote effect in EASM. The well-dated D/O events by stalagmites probably provide an absolute calibration for chronologies of Greenland ice cores. The timings of D/O events in the SB record are different variously from those in Greenland ice cores. For D/O 19 and 20, the age offsets between the stalagmites' and the Greenland ice cores' record are significant, larger than the uncertainties of uranium-series dating. The two events in the SB record are younger than those in North GRIP time scale by 1―2 ka, and older than the counterparts in GISP2 by approximately 3―4 ka. A comparison between the SB and Brazil stalagmite record shows an anti-phase relation in millennial-scale monsoon precipitation between the two localities. This supports a mode for the coupled ocean-atmosphere "See-saw".     

The record of paleoclimatic change from stalagmites and the determination of termination II in the south of Guizhou Province,China

A high-resolution climate record from 163.00 kaBP to 113.80 kaBP has been obtained through TIMS-U series dating and carbon and oxygen isotope analysis of the three large stalagmites from two caves in the south of Guizhou Province, China. The record of the oxygen isotopes from the stalagmites reveals that the undulation characteristics between the cooling event of the glacial period and the warming event of the interglacial period in the research area can compare well to those of ice cores, lake sediments, loess and deep sea sediments on the scale of ten-thousand years or millennium time scale. The climate undulation provided by the record of the stalagmites has a coherence with the global changes and a tele-connection to the paleoclimate changes in the north polar region. Our results suggest that the direct dynamics of paleo-monsoon circulation changes reflected in the record of the stalagmites might be caused by changes of the global ice volume, and in turn related to various factors, including the solar radiation strength at the mid-latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere, the southern extension of the ice-rafted event in the North Atlantic, and changes of the equatorial Pacific sea surface temperature at the low-latitudes. Using °¹⁸O values, we have calculated the temperatures and the results show that the temperature difference between the penultimate glacial period (with an average temperature of 8.1°C, and a minimum temperature range from 0.65°C to-1.43°C at stage 6) and the last interglacial period (with an average temperature of 18.24°C at sub-stage 5e) was about 10°C. This temperature difference from the record of the stalagmites corresponds in general to the record temperature variation (about 10°C) of measured ice cores. The climate records from the three stalagmites in the two caves have shown that the circulation strength of the Asian summer monsoon and the winter monsoon in the penultimate glacial period and the last inter-glacial period had a clear change. With the TIMS-U series method, termination II of the penultimate glacial period has been precisely dated at an age of (129.28± 1.10) kaBP for the three stalagmites in the south of Guizhou Province, China. This borderline age represents the beginning of the last interglacial period or the boundary between the Middle Pleistocene and the Late Pleistocene, and corresponds to the beginning age of the last interglacial period shown by the ice cores and in the SPECMAP curve of the marine oxygen isotopes. The chronology determination of termination II is not only of stratigraphic and chronological significance, but also lays an important foundation for discussing the short time scales of climate oscillation and rapidly changing events of paleoclimate in the circulation region of the East Asian monsoon.     

The Y. D. and climate abrupt events in the early and middle Holocene: Stalagmite oxygen isotope record from Maolan,Guizhou, China

Changes of climate, especially the abrupt changesof precipitation and temperature lead frequently tograve effect in human productive and living activity.Since the 1950s, results of monitoring indicate thatatmosphere CO2 concentration rises by 1.4×10?6g/gevery year. The atmospheric greenhouse effect leadsprobably to global warming since the 1940s, whichbrings furthermore special attention of scientists andrelevant government organizations in various coun-tries. In the near 20 years, the …     

Change of Indonesian Throughflow outflow in response to East Asian monsoon and ENSO activities since the Last Glacial

The Indonesian Throughflow (ITF) links upper ocean waters of the west Pacific and Indian Ocean, modulates heat and fresh water budgets between these oceans, and in turn plays an important role in global climate change. The climatic phenomena such as the East Asian monsoon and El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) exert a strong influence on flux, water properties and vertical stratification of the ITF. This work studied sediments of Core SO18462 that was retrieved from the outflow side of the ITF in the Timor Sea in order to investigate response of the ITF to monsoon and ENSO activities since the last glacial. Based on Mg/Ca ratios and oxygen isotopes in shells of planktonic foraminiferal surface and thermocline species, seawater temperatures and salinity of both surface and thermocline waters and vertical thermal gradient of the ITF outflow were reconstructed. Records of Core SO18462 were then compared with those from Core 3cBX that was recovered from the western Pacific warm pool (WPWP). The results displayed that similar surface waters occurred in the Timor Sea and the WPWP during the last glacial. Since ～16 ka, an apparent difference in surface waters between these two regions exists in salinity, indicated by much fresher waters in the Timor Sea than in the WPWP. In contrast, there is little change in difference of sea surface temperatures (SSTs). With regard to thermocline temperature (TT), it increased until ～11.5 ka since the last glacial, and then remained an overall unchanged trend in the WPWP but continuously decreased in the Timor Sea towards the late Holocene. Since ～6 ka, thermocline waters have tended to be close to each other in between the Timor Sea and the WPWP. It is indicated that intensified precipitation due to East Asian monsoon and possible ENSO cold phase significantly freshened surface waters over the Indonesian Seas, impeding the ITF surface flow and in turn having enhanced thermocline flow during the Holocene. Consequently, thermocline water of the ITF outflow was cooling and thermocline was shoaling towards the late Holocene. It is speculated that, in addition to strengthening of East Asian winter monsoon, increasing ENSO events during the late Holocene likely played an important role in influencing thermocline depth of the ITF outflow.     

Oxygen and carbon isotope record of East Pacific core V19-30: implications for the formation of deep water in the late Pleistocene North Atlantic

A detailed oxygen and carbon isotope record has been obtained from benthic Foraminifera in core V19-30 from the Carnegie Ridge on the south side of the Panama Basin. Expressing these records and the oxygen and carbon isotope records previously published for Atlantic core M-12392 on a common timescale, it is apparent that the oxygen isotope records are very similar but that the carbon isotope records are quite different. By obtaining the carbon isotope gradient between the two sites as a function of time we show that the production of North Atlantic Deep Water has varied over a wide range during the late Pleistocene, and that the pattern of variation is not simply related to the well known oxygen isotope record. Although the two oxygen isotope records are very similar, changes in the interoceanic gradient are detectable and support the hypothesis that in the glacial mode the North Atlantic was colder, and less oxygenated, than it is today.Shackleton's [1] 1977 interpretation whereby the carbon isotope record from the Atlantic core reflects changes in the terrestrial biomass, is an over-simplification. However, the record from the Pacific core V19-30 probably can be explained in these terms since it probably approximates the carbon isotope record of global mean oceanic dissolved CO₂.     

Pleistocene radiolarian biostratigraphy in the South China Sea*

Based on a quantitative radiolarian analysis, 5 radiolarian zones (NR1-NR5) have been defined at Core. 17957-2 from the South China Sea, considering radiolarian zonations from low latitudes. The absolute age assignment of the radiolarian zones and the ranges of the six marker species is based on the direct correlation with the paleomagnetic and isotopic record, respectively. A comparison of the radiolarian stratigraphic data obtained from Core 17957-2 from the South China Sea with those from the equatorial Pacific and the tropical Indian Ocean shows a close similarity to the ages defined in the equatorial Pacific. The obtained biostratigraphic data provide an excellent tool for further dating of Pleistocene sediments in the China Sea. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 49291100) and by the German Federal Ministry for Education, Science, Research and Technology (BMBF) as part of a GermadChinese scientific cooperation program. This is Alfred Wegener Contribution No. 1473.     

Metallogenic focus-area and superlarge mineral deposits in the bordering zones between China,Russia and Mongolia

Two deep-sea cores in the northwest Pacific have been analysed for sedimentology, mineralogy and environmental magnetism. The results show that after eliminating the interference from volcanism, several proxies such as quartz content, mass susceptibility and anhysteretic magnetic remanence can be used to indicate the eolian deposit from East Asia, and provide information on paleo-atmospheric circulation. A comparison of eolian record in Cure RC10-175 with its oxygen isotopic curve has revealed that the peaks of eolian accumulation occurred at the climatic “optimum” of the Holocene and the last interglaciation, showing the fairly complex nonlinear relationship between continental/pelagic eolian records and the global glacial cycles as well as within the climatic and environmental system. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 9291104)     

Transition of Quaternary glacial cyclicity in deep-sea records at Nansha, the South China Sea

High-resolution oxygen isotope records over the last 2249 ka (MIS 1–86) have been obtained from cores of the upper section (105.08 m) at ODP Site 1143 (water depth of 2772 m) drilled in the Nansha area, southern South China Sea. The sampling resolution is at about 2 ka intervals, resulting in one of the best oxygen isotope records over the global ocean. The oxygen isotope curves, displaying details in the Pleistocene glacial cycles, have revealed a nearly 300 ka long stage of transition from a predominant 40 ka to 100 ka periodicity. Therefore, the “Mid-Pleistocene Revolution” should be considered as a process of transition rather than an abrupt change. Within the 100 ka glacial cycles, the changes in tropical sea surface water were found to lead those in high-latitude ice sheet. Our comparisons show that the ice sheet expansion and the glacial stage extension in the Northern Hemisphere with the 100 ka cycles must have been driven not by ice sheet itself, but by processes outside the high latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere.     

A quick cooling event of the East Asian monsoon responding to Heinrich Event 1: Evidence from stalagmite δ18O records

Based on TIMS U-series dating results and annual band counting method, an annual-resolution time scale from 17450 to 14420 aBP has been established for a stalagmite from the Hulu Cave at Tangshan, Nanjing. A high-resolution oxygen isotopic record reveals decadral-centural oscillations in air temperature in the East Asian monsoon climate area during the last glacial maximum. The most conspicuous feature in the oxygen isotopic record in the period is the particular cold event synchronized with the last Heinrich event (H1) in the northern Atlantic deep-sea records. This particular cold event, beginning at 16140 ( 100 aBP, shows a rapid cooling down with a magnitude of 7-8℃ in air temperature within 36 years. Furthermore, (6)18O record demonstrates that the event lasted 790 years with gradually warming tendency (10 cycles of air temperature oscillations) after the remarkable cooling down. We believed that this unique pattern of event recorded in the stalagmite ? 8O might be controlled by various factors including changes of insolation at mid-latitude Northern Hemisphere, the southern extend of the last ice-rafted event in the North Atlantic and changes of the Equatorial Pacific sea surface temperature.     

Stratigraphic gaps at northern South China Sea margin reflect changes in Pacific deepwater inflow at glacial Termination Ⅱ

To constrain short-term changes of climate and oceanography in the northern South China Sea(SCS)over interglacial marine isotope stage(MIS)5.5,we studied planktic and benthic 18O records of seven marine sediment cores with a time resolution of70–700 yr.Using 6–8 tie points the planktic records were tuned to the U/Th chronology of speleothem 18O records in China and Europe.The last occurrence of pink Globigerinoides ruber marks the top of Heinrich stadial 11(HS-11)near 128.4 ka.HS-11 matches a 2300-yr long positive 18O excursion by 1.5/0.8‰both in planktic and benthic 18O records.Hence half of the planktic 18O signal was linked to increased upwelling of18O-and12C-enriched deep waters in the southwestern SCS.The increase was possibly linked to a strengthened inflow of Pacific deep waters through the Bashi Strait,that form a boundary current along the northern slope of the SCS,building a major sediment drift.At its lower margin near 2300–2400 m water depth(w.d.)Parasound records reveal a belt of modern erosion.At the end of glacial termination 2,stratigraphic gaps deleted HS-11 in core MD05-2904 and subsequent peak MIS 5.5 at ODP Site 1144.Likewise hiatuses probably earmarked all preceding glacial terminations at Site 1144 back to 650 ka.Accordingly,boundary current erosion then shifted~300 m upslope to~2040–2060 m w.d.These vertical shifts imply a rise in boundary current buoyancy,that in turn may be linked to transient events of North Pacific deepwater formation similar to that traced in SCS and North Pacific paleoceanographic records over glacial termination 1.     

Responses of foraminiferal isotopic variations at ODP Site 1143 in the southern South China Sea to orbital forcing

The foraminiferal δ ¹⁸O and δ ¹³C records for the past 5 Ma at ODP Site 1143 reveal the linear responses of the Plio-Pleistocene climatic changes in the southern South China Sea to orbital forcing at the obliquity and precession bands. The phase of the δ ¹⁸O variations with the orbital forcing is opposite to that of the δ ¹³C, which may be caused by the frequent El Niño events from the equatorial Pacific. The amplification of the Northern Hemisphere Ice Sheet at ñ3.3 Ma probably affected the development of the 100-ka climatic cycles. Its further spreading may spur the 100-ka climatic cycle to become the dominant cycle in the late Pleistocene. The “Mid- Pleistocene Transition” event has localized influence on the isotopic variations in the southern South China Sea. The foraminiferal δ ¹³C records for the past 5 Ma at Site 1143 are highly coherent with the orbital forcing at the long eccentricity band, and lead the δ ¹⁸O records at the shorter eccentricity band, highlighting the importance of the carbon cycle in the global climate change.     

A quick cooling event of the East Asian monsoon responding to Heinrich Event 1: Evidence from stalagmite δ<Superscript>18</Superscript>O records

Based on TIMS U-series dating results and annual band counting method, an annual-resolution time scale from 17450 to 14420 aBP has been established for a stalagmite from the Hulu Cave at Tangshan, Nanjing. A high-resolution oxygen isotopic record reveals decadral-centural oscillations in air temperature in the East Asian monsoon climate area during the last glacial maximum. The most conspicuous feature in the oxygen isotopic record in the period is the particular cold event synchronized with the last Heinrich event (H1) in the northern Atlantic deep-sea records. This particular cold event, beginning at 16140 ± 100 aBP, shows a rapid cooling down with a magnitude of 7–8°C in air temperature within 36 years. Furthermore, δ¹⁸O record demonstrates that the event lasted 790 years with gradually warming tendency (10 cycles of air temperature oscillations) after the remarkable cooling down. We believed that this unique pattern of event recorded in the stalagmite δ⁸O might be controlled by various factors including changes of insolation at mid-latitude Northern Hemisphere, the southern extend of the last ice-rafted event in the North Atlantic and changes of the Equatorial Pacific sea surface temperature.     

Stepwise paleoceanographic changes during the last deglaciation in the southern South China Sea Records of stable isotope and microfossils

Quantitative analyses of microfossils and stable isotopic analysis were carried out for Core SCS-12 in the southwestern slope of the South China Sea (SCS). A high-resolution paleoceanographic record for the last 13 ka was revealed with the AMS¹⁴C dates. The southern SCS has experienced stepwise paleoceanographic changes since the last deglaciation. The oxygen isotopic stage 1/2 boundary around 12.05 ka B. P. and the end of the last deglaciation around 7.70 ka B.P. are two rapid change periods (corresponding to the terminationIa and terminationIb, respectively), in between is a slow change period. The authors infer that the sea level stood at - 110 m before the terminationIa, roughly the same as today after the termination I_B, and about - 50 m in between. Subsequently, the average winter sea surface temperature and salinity obviously increased while paleo-productivity decreased since 12.05 ka B.P. The early Holocene CaCO₃ preservation spike, coupled with a high abundance of pteropoda and CaCO₃ content, occurred around 7.70 ka B. P. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 49576286 and 49732086).     

Evolution of Atlantic-Pacific δC gradients over the last 2.5 m.y.

The evolution of interocean carbon isotopic gradients over the last 2.5 m.y. is examined using high-resolution δ¹³C records from deep sea cores in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Over much of the Northern Hemisphere ice ages, relative reductions in North Atlantic Deep Water production occur during ice maxima. From 2.5 to 1.5 Ma, glacial reductions in NADW are less than those observed in the late Pleistocene. Glacial suppression of NADW intensified after 1.5 Ma, earlier than the transition to larger ice sheets around 0.7 Ma. At a number of times during the Pleistocene, δ¹³C values at DSDP Site 607 in the North Atlantic were indistinguishable from eastern equatorial Pacific δ¹³C values from approximately the same depth (ODP Site 677), indicating significant incursions of low δ¹³C water into the deep North Atlantic. Atlantic/Pacific δ¹³C values converge during glaciations between 1.13-1.05 m.y., 0.83-0.70 m.y., and 0.46-0.43 m.y. This represents a pseudo-periodicity of approximately 300 kyr which cannot easily be ascribed to global ice volume or orbital forcing. This partial decoupling, at low frequencies, of the δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C signals at Site 607 indicates that variations in North Atlantic deep water circulation cannot be viewed simply as a linear response to ice sheet forcing.     

Stalagmite from the Austrian Alps reveals Dansgaard-Oeschger events during isotope stage 3:: Implications for the absolute chronology of Greenland ice cores

A mass-spectrometric uranium-series dated stalagmite from the Central Alps of Austria provides unprecedented new insights into high-altitude climate change during the peak of isotope stage 3. The stalagmite formed continuously between 57 and 46 kyr before present. A series of ‘Hendy tests’ demonstrates that the outer parts of the sample show a progressive increase of both stable C and O isotope values. No such covariant increase was detected within the axial zone. This in conjunction with other observations suggests that the continuous stable oxygen isotope profile obtained from the axial zone of the stalagmite largely reflects the unaltered isotopic composition of the cave drip water. The δ¹⁸O record shows events of high δ¹⁸O values that correlate remarkably with Interstadials 15 (a and b), 14 and 12 identified in the Greenland ice cores. Interstadial 15b started rapidly at 55.6 kyr and lasted ∼300 yr only, Interstadial 15a peaked 54.9 kyr ago and was even of shorter duration (∼100 yr), and Interstadial 14 commenced 54.2 kyr ago and lasted ∼3000 yr. This stalagmite thus represents one of the first terrestrial archives outside the high latitudes which record precisely dated Dansgaard-Oeschger (D/O) events during isotope stage 3. Provided that rapid D/O warmings occurred synchronously in Greenland and the European Alps, the new data provide an independent tool to improve the GRIP and GISP2 chronologies.     

Geomagnetic-assisted stratigraphy and sea surface temperature changes in core MD94-103 (Southern Indian Ocean): possible implications for North-South climatic relationships around H4

New records of past sea surface temperatures (SSTs) were derived in the 30-50 kyr B.P. time interval from a core located at 45°S in the Southern Indian Ocean, MD94-103. To investigate the climatic phasing between the Southern Indian Ocean, the Greenland and the Antarctic ice, the magnetic signal of core MD94-103 was synchronized at better than millennial accuracy in the vicinity of the Laschamp geomagnetic to a reference record, NAPIS-75, already placed on the GISP2 age model. Coccolithophorid and diatom species abundances both point to a cooling of surface waters during H4. Specific diatoms also indicate lower salinity waters during the same time interval. These observations do not support the idea that the South hemisphere warmed 1.5-2 kyr before the North hemisphere (Nature 394 (1998) 739). Rather, alkenone-derived SSTs suggest that cold conditions have characterized the surface waters in the south latitudes during H4 and H5, and that temperature at evaporation sites contributed to the isotopic events A1 and A2 visible in the isotopic records of central Antarctica (Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 177 (2000) 219). SSTs obtained from foraminifera assemblages depict somewhat different temperature patterns, possibly indicative of water stratification.