Correlation between high-resolution climate records from a Nanjing stalagmite and GRIP ice core during the last glaciation

A 400-mm-long stalagmite from Tangshan Cave, Nanjing has been analyzed by a high-precision TIMS-U series dating method and also determined for oxygen and carbon stable isotopic compositions. The results provided a high-resolution paleoclimate record for eastern China during a time interval (from 54 000 to 19 000 aBP) of the last glaciation. The continuous record of oxygen-18 variations in the stalagmite, indicating a precipitation history of the East Asian monsoon, shows not only signals of the Heinrich events, but also the Dansgaard-Oeschger cycles which are first found in the last glacial climate record of the East Asian monsoon area. Although the stalagmite-based climatic signals match well with the GRIP ice core record, some differences between the two records can be recognized: (1) The last glacial climate changes in eastern China exhibited a long-term remarkably cooling trend, superimposed on which were four successive Bond’s cycles illustrated by the δ¹⁸O curve. This strong cooling tendency may be an effect of the strong summer monsoon event during the MIS 3 over the Tibetan Plateau. (2) There exist some phase differences of 1000–2000 years between the cooling events in the stalagmite-based climate signal and the GRIP ice core record. Such differences should be further verified by calibrations of multiple dating methods     

Humid Little Ice Age in arid central Asia documented by Bosten Lake, Xinjiang, China

Short sediment cores retrieved from Bosten Lake, the largest inland freshwater lake in China, were used to explore humidity and precipitation variations in arid central Asia during the past millennium. The chronology of the cores was established using 137Cs, 210Pb and AMS 14C dating re- sults. Multi-proxy high-resolution analysis, including pollen ratios of Artemisia and Chenopodiaceae (A/C), carbonate content and grain size, indicates that the climate during the past millennium can be divided into three stages: a dry climate between 1000―1500 AD, a humid climate during the Little Ice Age (LIA) (c. 1500―1900 AD), and a warm dry period after 1900 AD. On centennial timescales, the climate change in northwestern China during the past 1000 years is characterized by oscillations between warm-dry and cold-humid climate conditions. All the proxies changed significantly and indi- cate increased precipitation during the LIA, including increased pollen A/C ratios and pollen concen- trations, decreased carbonate content and increased grain size. The humid period during the LIA re- corded by the Bosten Lake sediments is representative of arid central Asia and is supported by nu- merous records from other sites. During the LIA, the water runoff into the Keriya River and Tarim River in the Tarim Basin increased, while the ice accumulation in the Guliya ice core increased. Additionally, the lake levels of the Aral and Caspian Sea also rose, while tree-ring analysis indicates that precipita- tion increased. We hypothesize that both the lower temperature within China and the negative anomalies of North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) during this period may have contributed to the humid climate within this area during LIA.     

Applications of interannual-resolution stable isotope records of speleothem: Climatic changes in Beijing and Tianjin, China during the past 500 years—the δ 18O record

δ¹⁸O of a stalagmite collected from Shihua Cave, 50 km southwest of Beijing is analyzed. The uppermost 2 cm was sampled at about 3-year intervals by a computer-controlled microsampling device. A total of 133 samples were analyzed, covering the last 480 years. A comparison of the δ¹⁸O record with the instrumentally recorded precipitation in Beijing and Tianjin back to 1840 AD shows that high precipitation correlates with negative δ¹⁸O peaks. The long-term δ¹⁸O trend records temperature changes. Between 1620 and 1900 AD, the temperature was cooler than the average value for the 480-year record, corresponding to the Little Ice Age. Temperatures warmer than the average prevailed during 1520–1620 and 1900—present. Superimposed on the long-term trend are about 14 δ¹⁸O cycles of 30–40-year periodicity, with wet periods centered around 1985, 1955, 1910, 1880, 1840, 1800, 1760, 1730, 1690, 1660, 1630, 1600, 1560 and 1530 AD. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 9615875).     

全新世镜泊湖粒度特征记录的该地区古降水变化历史

在湖泊沉积与环境演变研究中,粒度参数通常用来反映湖泊水动力条件的变化,进而反映湖面波动状况以及湖区环境有效湿度的变化．镜泊湖JPH-1钻孔沉积物粒度分析表明:全新世以来镜泊湖沉积物粒度的变化呈现明显的粗细交替变化的规律性．结合14C测年,镜泊湖沉积物粒度特征有效地指示了历史时期镜泊湖水动力变化的情况．进而揭示了该地区古降水的变化历史．9300-8540cal aBP,是一个降水较少的偏干旱时期;8540-6350 cal aBP,降水颇丰的湿润时期; 6350-3120cal aBF,气候波动频繁,前期(6350-4800 cal aBP)由湿润向干旱过渡,后期(4800-3120cal aBP左右)又由于早转向湿润,31 20-1 580 cal aBP,降水较多,气候湿润;1 580 cal aBP至今,降水变化波动剧烈,这阶段粒度特征的变化除了与降水的自然变化有关外,还与人类活动的剧烈影响有关系．湖区周围人类活动破坏了原始植被,大量地表裸露,降水冲刷地表作用明显增大,陆源物质被携带人湖,粗颗粒含量显著增多．     

青海湖全新世硬水效应随时间变化性及其对沉积物~(14)C年龄的校正

通过研究青海湖全新世硬水效应变化与大气~(14)C浓度(X_(atm))之间的关系,确定了湖水溶解无机碳(DIC)与大气~(14)C浓度之比值(X_(DIC)/X_(atm))约为0.790.利用已知X_(atm)随时间变化曲线重建了青海湖全新世的硬水效应,并对沉积物年龄作了相应校正.结果表明,青海湖全新世沉积物(有机质)~(14)C年龄偏老主要缘于湖泊硬水效应,从全新世早期的1000a左右升高到核爆近前的2300a左右,核爆效应之后2005AD又降至1500a左右,其变化至少在很大程度上受控于X_(atm)的波动(对应于以上3个时期,根据X_(atm)所恢复的硬水效应分别为1100a、2150a、1313a).在此基础上,利用硬水效应校正表对青海湖全新世沉积物~(14)C年龄进行了分阶段校正,基于此校正年龄的红度曲线较好地响应了9000-8000cal aBP、6000-5000cal aBP、4200-3800cal aBP、3500-2500cal aBP、1200-1000cal aBP和600-150cal aBP等全球性冷事件.     

Grain-size records at ODP Site 1146 from the northern South China Sea: Implications on the East Asian monsoon evolution since 20 Ma

273 samples from Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Site 1146 in the northern South China Sea (SCS) were analyzed for grain-size distributions using grain-size class vs. standard deviation method and end-member modeling algorithm (EMMA) in order to investigate the evolution of the East Asian monsoon since about 20 Ma. 10–19 μm/1.3–2.4 μm, the ratio of two grain-size populations with the highest variability through time was used to indicate East Asian winter monsoon intensity relative to summer monsoon. The mass accumulation rate of the coarsest end member EM1 (eolian), resulting from EMMA, can be used as a proxy of winter monsoon strength and Asian inland aridity, and the ratio of EM1/(EM2 EM3) as a proxy of winter monsoon intensity relative to summer monsoon. The combined proxies show that a profound enhancement of East Asian winter monsoon strength and winter monsoon intensity relative to summer monsoon occurred at about 8 Ma, and it is possible that the summer monsoon simultaneously intensified with winter monsoon at 3 Ma. Our results are well consistent with the previous studies in loess, eolian deposion in the Pacifc, radiolarians and planktonic foraminifera in the SCS. The phased uplift of the Himalaya-Tibetan Plateau may have played a significant role in strengthening the Asian monsoon at 8 Ma and 3 Ma.     

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.     

Precipitation variation in the northeastern Tibetan Plateau recorded by the tree rings since 850 AD and its relevance to the Northern Hemisphere temperature

With their high resolution and reliability, tree rings play a very important role in global climate change study. The long tree-ring chronology is considered as one of the most important information sources to study the climatic change in the past several thousands years. In recent years, the tree-ring researches in China have made great progress, and the temperature and precipita- tion in some areas were reconstructed[1-20] which on- tributed to the global change studies in China. Due to the…     

雁荡山湖泊沉积物记录的中国东部季风区小冰期以来气候干湿变化

中国东部季风区过去千年降水变化特征已有大量研究并取得重要进展,但多数研究集中在中国北方和中部地区,南方地区重建记录相对较少.本文对浙江雁荡山雁湖沉积物的总有机碳、色度和粒度等多指标进行分析,重点探讨小冰期以来研究区域的降水变化,结果显示:1)1400-1600 AD,湖区集水发育,研究区气候偏湿润;2)1600-1650 AD,降水量减少,气候偏干旱;3)1650-1750 AD,气候偏湿润;4)1750-2000 AD,研究区气候处于干旱状态,其中1500-1650 AD期间的干湿变化与历史文献记录的雁湖水位有良好的对应关系.在年代误差范围内,雁湖沉积物与浙江天目山泥炭、福建仙山泥炭以及湖光岩玛珥湖沉积物等记录的干湿变化同步,指示了小冰期期间中国东南地区气候波动的一致性.另外,中国东部南、北地区古气候记录反映的降水变化趋势相反,表明在百年时间尺度上,中国东部南北地区降水存在着"南涝北旱"和"北涝南旱"的空间特征.通过与太平洋年代际振荡(PDO)的对比,显示PDO对中国东部地区小冰期期间出现的南-北"偶极型"空间降水特征可能具有重要影响.     

Spatiotemporal variations of vegetation cover on the Chinese Loess Plateau (1981–2006): Impacts of climate changes and human activities

Spatiotemporal variations of Chinese Loess Plateau vegetation cover during 1981–2006 have been investigated using GIMMS and SPOT VGT NDVI data and the cause of vegetation cover changes has been analyzed, considering the climate changes and human activities. Vegetation cover changes on the Loess Plateau have experienced four stages as follows: (1) vegetation cover showed a continued increasing phase during 1981–1989; (2) vegetation cover changes came into a relative steady phase with small fluctuations during 1990–1998; (3) vegetation cover declined rapidly during 1999–2001; and (4) vegetation cover increased rapidly during 2002–2006. The vegetation cover changes of the Loess Plateau show a notable spatial difference. The vegetation cover has obviously increased in the Inner Mongolia and Ningxia plain along the Yellow River and the ecological rehabilitated region of Ordos Plateau, however the vegetation cover evidently decreased in the hilly and gully areas of Loess Plateau, Liupan Mountains region and the northern hillside of Qinling Mountains. The response of NDVI to climate changes varied with different vegetation types. NDVI of sandy land vegetation, grassland and cultivated land show a significant increasing trend, but forest shows a decreasing trend. The results obtained in this study show that the spatiotemporal variations of vegetation cover are the outcome of climate changes and human activities. Temperature is a control factor of the seasonal change of vegetation growth. The increased temperature makes soil drier and unfavors vegetation growth in summer, but it favors vegetation growth in spring and autumn because of a longer growing period. There is a significant correlation between vegetation cover and precipitation and thus, the change in precipitation is an important factor for vegetation variation. The improved agricultural production has resulted in an increase of NDVI in the farmland, and the implementation of large-scale vegetation construction has led to some beneficial effect in ecology. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 40671019) and the Knowledge Innovation Project of the Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research of Chinese Academy of Sciences     

Thermal regime transition in eastern North China and its tectonic implication

Many evidences published in recent years reveal that the thickness,chemical composition and thermal state of lithosphere in eastern North China have ex-perienced dramatic transition during the Phanero-zoic.Comparative study[1—8]of early Paleozoic dia-mond-and xenoliths-bearing kimberlites to Cenozoic mantle peridotite xenoliths-bearing alkali basalts indi-cates that the early Phanerozoic lithosphere is thick and stable to depths within the diamond stability field(180–200km)with depleted ma…     

Grain-size features of a Miocene loess-soil sequence at Qinan: Implications on its origin

In northern China, the Quaternary loess-soil se-quences[1] and the Hipparion Red-Earth Formation in the eastern Loess Plateau[2―6] provide a continental climate record for the past 8 Ma. The recently reported Miocene[7] and Pliocene[8] loess-soil sequences near Qinan constitute an eolian record of the western Loess Plateau from 22 to 3.5 Ma. Earlier studies[9] place the Miocene loess deposits into the so-called Gansu Sys-tem. Our investigations show that the Gansu System contains inde…     

Environmental characteristics of Mid-Holocene recorded by lacustrine sediments from Lake Daihai, north environment sensitive zone, China

One of the goals for paleaoenvironmental research is to predict the tendency of future climate and environmental changes based on the understanding of the past. The key approach is to find similar pictures which happened in the past. By understanding the background and mechanism of the paleaoenvironmen- tal changes, reliable parameters and verifications can be provided for the numerical model to predict the tendency of future climate and environmental changes. The Mid-Holocene as the nearest …     

Extreme climate events,migration for cultivation and policies:A case study in the early Qing Dynasty of China

Based on the historical records of the annual increase in the workforce (men older than 16 years of age), the annual new taxed cropland in the Shengjing area (Northeast China), the extreme climate events in North China, and related management policies in Northeast China during 1661―1680, a case study has been conducted to investigate the relationship between the extreme climate events in North China and the migration to Northeast China for cultivation. This study has found that the migration to Northeast China for cultivation from 1661 to 1680 was a response to the drought events that occurred in North China. The upsurge of migration, which occurred in 1665―1680, was a response to the drought period during 1664―1680 in North China while the fewer disasters period in Northeast China. There were three migratory peaks during the upsurge of migration, which corresponded to the three drought events. The peaks of migration, however, often lagged behind the drought events about 1―2 years. The encourag-ing-migration policy, which was adopted to encourage cultivation in Northeast China, did not produce much migration into the region in the early Qing Dynasty. It did, however, provide a policy background, which ensured more than 10000 migrants per year to Northeast China when North China suffered from drought/flood disasters. As a response to the highest peak of migration induced by the severe droughts in North China during 1664―1667, a prohibiting-migration policy restricted further migration to Northeast China was carried out in 1668. Although the prohibiting-migration policy could not entirely stop the migrants fleeing from famine in North China to Northeast China, the migrants and cultivation were significantly reduced under the policy. The frequent changes of the policy on the years when taxation started after the land was cultivated were also related to climate events. The extreme climate events in North China, migration to Northeast China for cultivation, and the related management poli-cies showed an impact-response chain, which reflected the interaction among extreme climate events, human behavior, and policies.     

Pollen-inferred vegetation and environmental changes in the central Tibetan Plateau since 8200 yr BP

The ecotone between alpine steppe and meadow in the central Tibetan Plateau is sensitive to climate changes. Here we used the pollen records from three lakes in this region to reconstruct the evolution of local vegetation and climate since 8200 cal. yr BP. The history of temperature and precipitation was reconstructed quantitatively with multi-bioclimatic indexes and a transfer function from pollen records. Results show that the steppe/meadow dominated during the period of 8200–6500 cal. yr BP, especially 8200–7200 cal. yr BP, indicating the central Tibetan Plateau was controlled by strong monsoon. The steppe dominated during the periods of 6000–4900, 4400–3900, and 2800–2400 cal. yr BP. The steppe decreased gradually and the meadow expanded during the period of 4900–4400 cal. yr BP. Three century-scale drought events occurred during 5800–4900, 4400–3900 and 2800 cal. yr BP, respectively. The first time when the regional climate shifted to the present level was at 6500 cal. yr BP in the central Plateau. Since 3000 cal. yr BP, the temperature and precipitation have decreased gradually to the present level. However, the cold climate between 700–300 cal. yr BP likely corresponds to the Little Ice Age. Supported by Chinese Academy of Sciences 100 Talents Project (Grant No. 29082762), National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 40671196, 40372085, 49371068, 49871078), and U.S. National Science Foundation (Grant Nos. ATM-9410491, ATM-008194)     

Temporal variations in gravity at Mt. Etna (Italy) associated with the 1989 and 1991 eruptions

 Results are presented from 11 microgravity surveys on Mt. Etna between 1987 and 1993, a period including the major 1989 and 1991–1993 flank eruptions and subordinate 1990 activity. Measurements were made with LaCoste and Romberg D-62 and D-157 gravity meters along a network around the volcano between 1000 and 1900 m a.s.l. and, since 1992, a N–S summit profile. Gravity changes of as much as 200 μGal were observed at scales from the size of the summit region to that of the volcano. None was associated with significant changes in ground elevation. The data show an increase in gravity for 2 years before the 1989 eruption. The increase is attributed to the accumulation of magma (0.25–1.7×10⁹m³) in an elongate zone, oriented NNW–SSE, between 2.5 and 6 km below sea level. Part of this magma was injected into the volcanic pile to supply the 1989 and 1990 eruptions. It also probably fed the start of the 1991–1993 eruption, since this event was not preceded by significant gravity changes. A large gravity increase (up to 140 μGal) detected across the volcano between June and September 1992 is consistent with the arrival in the accumulation zone of 0.32–2.2×10⁹m³ of new magma, thus favoring continued flank effusion until 1993. A large gravity decrease (200 μGal) in the summit region marked the closing stages of the 1991–1993 event and is associated with magma drainage from the upper levels of Etna's central feeding system. Received: 15 July 1995 / Accepted: 27 October 1997     

Paleoclimatological and paleoenvironmental records since 4 000 a B. P. in sediments of alpine lakes in Taiwan

The 3 310-m-high Chia-min Lake records the climatic history since 4 ka B. P. in Taiwan. The warm/wet period before 2.2 ka B.P. seemed to correspond to the later part of the Holocene Megathermal, and the cold/dry period during 0–2.2 ka B. P. corresponded to the Katathermal. Before the termination of the Megathermal, an especially warm and humid segment (2.2–2.4 ka B. P.) emerged. The paleoclimatic records from Yuen-yang and Chi-tsai Lakes support the notion that the Megathermal in Taiwan terminated during 2—2.3 ka B. P. A warm segment (820–1 320 AD) in the Katathermal could be considered the Medieval Warm Period. The climate turned cold and dry after 1 320 AD and this indicated the onset of the Little Ice Age. These paleoclimatic variations are also in good agreement with those recorded in Great Ghost Lake.     

龙感湖地区近3000年来的气候环境变迁

本文通过分析龙感湖沉积物中的色素、孢粉、硅藻研究结果,探讨该区近３０００年来环境气候波动特点,结果表明：３２００－２４００ａＢＰ,色素含量较高,与温度条件较好有关。该带孢粉浓度也最高,阔叶乔木绎种花粉丰富,湿生及水生植物经常出现。总体上为相对暖湿阶段,其中仍有凉湿波动。２４００－１６００ａＢＰ,具体分为两个阶段,前期约２４００－２０００ａＢＰ,ＣＤ、ＴＤ、Ｍｙｘ含量明显较低,水生、湿生草本减少,气     

平流层爆发性增温对中国天气气候的影响 及其在ENSO影响中的作用

本文通过分析1957~2002年平流层爆发性增温(SSW)的环流特征,研究平流层爆发性增温可能对我国天气气候的影响.平流层爆发性增温发生后平流层高纬地区有异常的环流变化,但是这种变化并不仅局限于平流层内部,其产生的环流异常能够向下传播,并对对流层的天气和气候产生影响.研究发现,平流层出现强爆发性增温后,平流层异常温度场和位势高度场在中、高纬度形成AO型振荡并向下传播,使得对流层低层西伯利亚高压增强、阿留申低压加深,500 hPa东亚大槽加深且偏西,导致东亚冬季风增强,我国北部大部分地区气温偏低.而在爆发性增温前,强行星波扰动使得东亚大槽加深,西伯利亚高压和阿留申低压同时增强,也可能导致东亚冬季风偏强.El Nio可能激发出强行星波,有利于强SSW事件的发生.通过上述的两个过程可能造成东亚冬季风的加强,这将会对"El Nio事件通过对流层过程而引起东亚冬季风减弱"的结论有一定影响. 因此,ENSO事件影响东亚冬季风及中国的天气气候存在不止一种途径,具体影响情况应该是几种途径的综合结果.