Regional features of variations in paleoproductivity of the Sea of Okhotsk in the Late Pleistocene and Holocene

Variations in the content of chlorin (a derivate of chlorophyll a) in 11 cores of bottom sediments from different parts of the Sea of Okhotsk are studied. The data show variations in paleoproductivity of this sea for the past 160000 years from the end of marine isotope stage (MIS) 6 until recently. A common pattern of the variation in paleoproductivity is established for the entire Sea of Okhotsk. During the interglacials (MIS 5e and 1), productivity increased, and in glacial periods, it decreased, probably due to the longer lasting marine ice cover throughout the year. The features of variations in productivity through time are recorded in the eastern part of the sea, which is more prone to the influence of inflowing Pacific waters.     

Paleoenvironment changes in the NW Okhotsk Sea for the last 18 kyr determined with micropaleontological,geochemical, and lithological data

Lithological, geochemical, and micropaleontological data indicate that the Late Glacial of the northwestern Okhotsk Sea (OS) is characterised by severe climatic and environmental conditions with mainly perennial sea ice coverage and low productivity accompanied by weak deep-water ventilation and a temperate formation of the upper Sea of Okhotsk Intermediate Water (SOIW). The age model of the studied core sediments was constructed by AMS ¹⁴C dating. The most severe environmental conditions occurred during the period 15.8–14.8 kyr, synchronous with cold Heinrich event 1. Insignificant regional environmental amelioration accompanied by an increase of productivity and ice weakening during summer occurred almost simultaneously with the Bølling–Allerøed (BA) warming. The obtained results distinguished both the Bølling and Allerøed warmings as having different environmental conditions. Oxygen content in the surface sediment was low, as seen from the production of the benthic foraminifera (BF) species. During 12.6–11.1 kyr, synchronous with the Younger Dryas (YD) cold event, the regional environment conditions were cold, but not as severe as the glacial ones. Some climatic warming since the Preboreal has stimulated sea ice melting and surface amelioration during the summer season, which in turn led to a productivity rise and changes in the water column and bottom environment. Some increase in the surface water stratification and the intensified oceanic diatom and surface radiolarian production is parallel with the development of a mesopelagic regime of productivity. The surface sediment condition favours BF abundance and domination by BF species tolerant to oxygen deficiencies. During the Boreal period more stable surface conditions were accompanied by continuously high productivity and an intensifying of its mesopelagic regime.Significant regional climate warming since the Atlantic (9 kyr ago) strongly intensified the summer sea ice melting in the OS, and this created considerable surface environment amelioration with the preferential transport of bacteria and phytodetritus into the SOIW. Further considerable warming of the regional climate from 6 kyr ago contributed to slight sea ice changes, surface water warming, and the enhancement of its stratification; all typical for most of the OS. Along with a high nutrient supply from the Amur River, the NW OS experienced a strong diatom production increase with the maximum amount occurring during the last 3.6 kyr. This changed the productivity type and organic matter export into the water column while increasing the feeding of the “productive” Plagoniidae spp. group and decreasing the microbial biomass supply into the upper SOIW. Some sea surface water cooling or saltier conditions at the beginning of the Subatlantic (2.4–1.8 kyr) was followed by its warming or freshening 1.5–1.0 kyr ago, which likely correlated with the Medieval Warm Period. In turn, that probably led to strong surface water stratification, productivity deterioration and considerable changes in the overall NW OS environment. The established sequence of the northwestern OS environmental changes during the Late Glacial–Holocene is related to the Northern Hemispheric climate changes and was likely forced by atmospheric teleconnection in line with the polar circulation index variability.     

Paleoenvironmental records from the northern South China Sea since the Last Glacial Maximum

Core ZHS-176 contains the paleoenvironmental records from the northern South China Sea (NSCS) since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). A coupled approach based on clay mineral assemblages, planktonic foraminiferal oxygen and carbon isotopes, and calcium carbonate content is used to trace the sources of the fine-grained sediment and to investigate the paleoenviornmental evolution in this area. Clay mineral assemblages are dominated by illite (average about 39%) and chlorite (about 27%), which comes mainly from Taiwan and the East China Sea. Kaolinite, which accounts for about 13%, comes mainly from the Zhujiang (Pearl) River, and Luzon Island is the main source for smectite (about 21%). The planktonic foraminiferal oxygen isotopic oscillations during the last glacial period are coeval with climate variations recorded in the Greenland ice core and Western Pacific sediment. These variations include the LGM, Heinrich event 1, Bφlling-Allerφd (B/A), and Younger Dryas. For the Holocene, three periods of strong precipitation (S1-S3) and three periods of weak precipitation (W1-W3) are identified. The oxygen isotopic record exhibits corre-lation with climate records from distant regions, including the high-latitude Northern Hemisphere, providing evidence for global tele-connection among regional climate. A brief, negative planktonic foraminiferal carbon isotopic excursion during B/A reflects increased methane released from marine gas hydrate due to the rapid warming of the water. By comparing calcium carbonate content curves of the core ZHS-176 with these of other five boreholes lying above the lysocline, a remarkable low calcium carbonate event is found during the early Holocene in NSCS.     

东亚边缘海区浮游植物春华的纬向与年际变化

Combined studies of latitudinal and interannual variations of annual phytoplankton bloom peak in East Asian marginal seas(17°–58°N, including the northern South China Sea(SCS), Kuroshio waters, the Sea of Japan and the Okhotsk Sea) are rarely. Based on satellite-retrieved ten-year(2003–2012) median timing of the annual Chlorophyll a concentration(Chl a) climax, here we report that this annual spring bloom peak generally delays from the SCS in January to the Okhotsk Sea in June at a rate of(21.20±2.86) km/d(decadal median±SD). Spring bloom is dominant feature of the phytoplankton annual cycle over these regions, except for the SCS which features winter bloom. The fluctuation of the annual peak timing is mainly within ±48 d departured from the decadal median peak date, therefore this period(the decadal median peak date ±48 d) is defined as annual spring bloom period. As sea surface temperature rises, earlier spring bloom peak timing but decreasing averaged Chl a biomass in the spring bloom period due to insufficient light is evident in the Okhotsk Sea from 2003 to 2012. For the rest of three study domains, there are no significant interannual variance trend of the peak timing and the averaged Chl a biomass. Furthermore this change of spring phytoplankton bloom timing and magnitude in the Okhotsk Sea challenges previous prediction that ocean warming would enhance algal productivity at high latitudes.     

Sea-surface bioproductivity changes in the Northwest Pacific over the last 25 kyr

The sea-surface bioproductivity changes over the last 25 kyr were inferred from published data on 30 sediment cores from the open Northwest Pacific (NWP), Sea of Okhotsk, Bering Sea and Sea of Japan accounting for the glacioeustatic sea-level changes. A novel method was developed to compare the variations of several independent productivity proxies relative to the present-day values. During the Last Glacial Maximum, the bioproductivity in the Sea of Okhotsk and the western Bering Sea (BS) was lower than at present, whereas the southern and southeastern Bering Sea and the open NWP are characterized by enhanced bioproductivity. During the early deglacial stage, an increase in bioproductivity was estimated only for the southeastern Bering Sea. High and fairly high bioproductivity was estimated for Heinrich 1 in the open NWP, above the Umnak Plateau and on the Shirshov and Bowers Ridges in the Bering Sea. The high productivity in the Bering Sea, Sea of Okhotsk and NWP during the Bølling/Allerød was caused by the global warming and enhanced nutrient supply by meltwater from the continent. During the Early Holocene, high productivity was estimated for almost the entire NWP. The Late Holocene sea-surface bioproductivity was generally lower than that of the Early Holocene. Proposed factors that have controlled the sea-surface bioproductivity during the last 25 kyr include: the location of the sea ice margin, the river runoff, gradual flooding of the Bering Sea and the Sea of Okhotsk shelf areas, the water mass exchange between the marginal seas and the open NWP, the eolian supply and the deep vertical mixing of the water column.     

Formation and transport of intermediate water masses in a model of the Pacific Ocean

A basin-wide ocean general circulation model of the Pacific Ocean was used to investigate how the interior restoration in the Okhotsk Sea and the isopycnal diffusion affect the circulation and intermediate water masses. Four numerical experiments were conducted, including a run with the same isopycnal and thickness diffusivity of 1.0×103 m2/s, a run employing the interior restoration of temperature and salinity in the Okhotsk Sea with a time scale of 3 months, a run that is the same as the first run except for the enhanced isopycnal mixing, and a final run with the combination of the restoration in the Okhotsk Sea and large isopycnal diffusivity. Simulated results show that the intermediate water masses reproduced in the first run are relatively weak. An increase in isopycnal diffusivity can improve the simulation of both Antarctic and North Pacific intermediate waters, mainly increasing the transport in the interior ocean, but inhibiting the outflow from the Okhotsk Sea. The interior restoration generates the reverse current from the observation in the Okhotsk Sea, whereas the simulation of the temperature and salinity is improved in the high latitude region of the Northern Hemisphere because of the reasonable source of the North Pacific Intermediate Water. A comparison of vertical profiles of temperature and salinity along 50°N between the simulation and observations demonstrates that the vertical mixing in the source region of intermediate water masses is very important.     

Linkage between winter air temperature over the subtropical Western Pacific and the ice extent anomaly in the Sea of Okhotsk

This study deals with the correlation between ice extent in the Sea of Okhotsk and the interannual variability of winter (December–February) air temperature over the subtropical Western Pacific from 1979 to 2008. The analysis indicates that the increase in sea ice extent coincides not only with cooling over the Sea of Okhotsk and the adjacent area, but also with significant warming over the subtropical Western Pacific that extends from the surface to the middle troposphere. This meridional dipole pattern of tropospheric temperature anomalies (cooling in the high latitudes and warming in the low latitudes) primarily results from dynamical processes driven by the large-scale atmospheric circulation change. A heat budget diagnosis reveals that when ice extent in the Sea of Okhotsk increases by one standard deviation, the tropospheric air temperature over the subtropical Western Pacific rises by about 0.25°C. It also suggests that the adiabatic heating and stationary eddy heat flux convergence may be the most important factors, which account for 30 and 15% of the warming, respectively. In addition, these two factors also coordinate to result in significant cooling over the Sea of Okhotsk and the adjacent regions.     

Late Pleistocene-Holocene Paleoceanography and Ventilation of the Gulf of California

Sediment cores collected in 1990 from the Gulf of California have been studied using stable isotope and radiocarbon techniques to reconstruct the climate and ventilation histories since the last glacial maximum. Benthic foraminiferal δ¹⁸O from core tops in a water depth range of 145 to 1442 m increases by about 2% with increasing depth. This is consistent with a composite temperature profile constructed from several hydrocasts in the various gulf basins. However, the δ¹⁸O water/salinity relationship is not sufficiently linear in gulf locations or in nearby open Pacific Geochemical Ocean Sections Study (GEOSECS) stations to be useful in solving paleotemperature equations. Of the most common benthic foraminifera, only Planulina ariminensis has δ¹³C that is consistent with the measured δ¹³C of ΣCO₂. Several cores in the depth range 500 to 900 m have the laminated Holocene and Bolling/Allerod sediments, and the nonlaminated glacial age and Younger Dryas sediments that are typical of the gulf and other locations such as Santa Barbara Basin. The best of those, Jumbo Piston Core (JPC) 56 from 818 m water depth on the western margin of Guaymas Basin, was sampled for intensive study. Oxygen isotope ratios in benthic and planktonic foraminifera show little evidence for deglacial temperature oscillations. Carbon isotope ratios are generally lower during warm epochs, but the most striking result is strongly lowered benthic and planktonic δ¹³C about 9500 years ago. This may reflect water column oxidation of locally released methane. Neither benthic δ¹³C in depth section nor paired benthic and planktonic ¹⁴C data in JPC56 are consistent with increased intermediate water ventilation during the glacial maximum and Younger Dryas. Likewise, ¹⁴C data from 5 pairs of foraminifera from the Okhotsk Sea fail to support better ventilation in that basin during the last glacial maximum. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Paleomonsoon precipitation deduced from a sediment core from the equatorial Indian Ocean

Rapid shifts in past climate recorded in polar ice sheets have elicited various explanations relating to either thermohaline circulation changes by ice-rafting or natural greenhouse gas concentrations modulated by climatic conditions in the tropics. To compare the tropical paleoclimate record with the polar record, one must choose sediment cores from highly productive ocean regions. Necessarily, such regions reflect the wind records in the tropics, because high productivity is associated with upwelling driven by winds. Comparing tropical precipitation records with high-latitude records is, however, a more difficult task because sediments recording paleoprecipitation usually have low sedimentation rates, and offer coarser resolution relative to polar ice cores. Here, we present δ ¹⁸O data of three planktonic species of Foraminifera (a proxy for precipitation) from such a sediment core, spanning the past 35 ka for the equatorial Indian Ocean, which falls under the southwest monsoon (SWM) realm. Results show that minimum SWM precipitation occurred at the Last Glacial Maximum, with a subsequent increase at Termination IA. During the Holocene, SWM precipitation intensified uniformly up to the core top (∼2.2 ka b.p.), as revealed by generally decreasing δ ¹⁸O values. Variations in precipitation are consistent with climate changes recorded in polar ice sheets. Although the different resolutions of the two records preclude a rigorous comparison, abrupt cooling/warming events appear to be accompanied by sudden reduction/enhancement in (SWM) rainfall. Thus, mechanisms with time scales much shorter than a millennium, such as natural greenhouse warming (e.g., CH₄ concentration), controlled by emissions from the tropics, could have played a major role in high-latitude climate change.     

晚第四纪南极阿蒙森海扇区冰盖与古生产力旋回变化

本文通过对阿蒙森海西北部陆隆AMS01岩心沉积物颜色、粒度及地球化学等多种指标分析,重建了该地区氧同位素9期(MIS9,大约距今34万年)以来冰盖与古生产力演变历史,结果表明:(1)岩心沉积物粒度与古生产力替代指标表现出明显的冰期–间冰期旋回变化特征;(2)MIS9、MIS7和MIS5等间冰期沉积速率较小,沉积物呈褐色,冰筏碎屑含量低,生源组分含量高,反映出该时期阿蒙森海地区气候温暖,冰盖发生了大规模退缩,冰盖–冰架–冰山等陆源冰对沉积物的影响减弱,海冰覆盖减弱,有利于浮游植物的生长和繁殖;(3)MIS8c、MIS8a、MIS6、MIS2等冰期沉积速率大,沉积物呈灰色,沉积物随之变粗,冰筏碎屑含量高,生源组分含量低,说明该时期冰盖大幅扩张,陆隆区成为近冰盖/冰架沉积环境,海冰和冰山密集,海洋生产力显著降低;(4)冰期、间冰期内,冰盖与古生产力也有不同程度的波动;特别是MIS8b期发育浅褐色间冰阶沉积,冰筏碎屑含量低,生产力水平与间冰期基本持平,说明阿蒙森海地区冰盖、海洋对气候变化的响应比东南极地区敏感。     

Recent changes of the halocline characteristics and warming of the intermediate water in the Kamchatka current and the Oyashio

The upper Oyashio intermediate water, one of the source waters for the Sea of Okhotsk intermediate water, is exhibiting a warming trend. The historical data show that the upper Oyashio temperature increased by 2.4°C during 1953 to 2007 at the potential density of 26.75 at depths of approximately 170 m. This rate of warming is much faster than that of the global ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk. The upper Oyashio warming is likely linked to the penetration of warm water of the Alaskan Stream westward. One mechanism of this warm Alaskan Stream water penetration is associated with large Aleutian eddies.     

The possibility of tsunami in the Sea of Okhotsk caused by deep-focus earthquakes

The earthquake that occurred on May 24, 2013, in the basin of the Sea of Okhotsk with a magnitude of 8.3 was the strongest in this region. We have modeled a possible tsunami caused by such an earthquake. The simulations confirm that the wave heights were sufficiently small because the earthquake epicenter depth was 640 km. We analyze the oscillations of the DART buoys in the vicinity of the earthquake source and show that they were not associated with the tsunami waves. Analysis of the available pressure gauge records at different points of the Sea of Okhotsk show that only in one case (Iturup Island) can the observed oscillations of the sea level with a height of approximately 4 cm be classified as tsunami waves.     

Warming of intermediate water in the sea of Okhotsk since the 1950s

Okhotsk Sea Intermediate Water (OSIW), the source water for ventilation of North Pacific Intermediate Water, exhibits a multidecadal warming trend. Historical data show that OSIW temperatures increased by 0.28, 0.57, 0.31 and 0.10°C during 1955 to 2003 at potential densities of 26.8, 27.0, 27.2 and 27.4σ _θ , at depths of approximately 250, 500, 700 and 900 m, respectively. This rate of warming is much faster than that of the global ocean. This OSIW warming is likely linked to the reduced ventilation of cold Dense Shelf Water associated with brine rejection during sea ice formation.     

白令海北部陆坡23 ka以来古生产力变化及其对海冰扩张的响应

本文基于白令海北部陆坡ARC6-B11岩心的沉积物粒度、颜色反射率、有机碳/氮含量和高分辨率化学元素XRF扫描数据,结合底栖和浮游有孔虫AMS14C测年资料,重建了研究区23 ka以来至中全新世的沉积记录,重点研究了海冰的扩张变化对生产力和沉积物输入的影响。研究结果显示,末次盛冰期白令海北部陆坡受到海冰南向扩张的影响而生产力较低,沉积物中砂粒级和冰筏碎屑（IRD）含量较高。HS 1时期由于受到常年冰的覆盖,沉积物中砂粒级和IRD含量存在低值,沉积物中较高的总有机碳（TOC）含量受陆源有机质的影响较大,异常的TOC含量峰值主要受到低海平面和海冰形成过程产生的富氧水团控制下的高浓度细粒物质携带的陆源有机质的快速沉积作用的影响,难以作为反映白令海古生产力的替代指标。B/A暖期和全新世生产力较高,在B/A暖期存在Ca/Ti峰值现象,Ca/Ti峰值现象的产生与碳酸盐补偿深度增加有关,水体通风条件的改变可能起到一定的作用,也不能忽视颗石藻对其产生的潜在影响。     

The reflection of the present distribution of the primary production in the bottom sediments of the Sea of Okhotsk

Using the authors’ data obtained during expeditions to the Sea of Okhotsk during the last decade, the primary phytoplankton production and the distribution of organic carbon and chlorophyll a degradation products (chlorin) in the bottom sediments were studied. Using the authors’ and published data, the spatial distribution of the production and paleoproduction indicators was plotted. The ratios of the chlorin and C_org content in the sediments was considered, and the correlation between these parameters was revealed. It was shown that the average annual primary production of phytoplankton and the paleoproduction indices were maximum in the coastal and upwelling zones and decreased towards the sea’s center. A quantitative correlation was found between the distribution of the present primary production in the photic layer and that of the rates of the accumulation of organic matter buried within the surface sediments. As a result, it was shown that the content of chlorin and C_org in the marine bottom sediments may be used to reconstruct the paleoproduction variability of the past.     

越南岸外上升流区48万年来高分辨率的生源组分记录及其古海洋学意义

南海西部越南岸外MD05-2901孔沉积物分析显示,该孔覆盖氧同位素1-12期,底界年龄约为48万年。生源组分记录显示表层古生产力冰期高、间冰期低,体现间冰期海平面下降、陆源物质输入增强的影响。生产力在末次冰期达到最高,体现末次盛冰期海陆差异增强,东北风发育对生产力提高的促进作用。碳酸钙含量变化呈现冰期早期含量低、冰消期和间冰期含量高的趋势。其冰消期的高值在MIS1/2、MIS3/4和MIS5/6分界处,与浮游有孔虫碳同位素低值对应,揭示该地区的碳酸钙沉积旋回是“稀释旋回”。同时碳酸钙含量变化领先于同一地区浮游有孔虫氧同位素的变化,证明低纬海区碳酸钙泵作用对大气二氧化碳浓度和温度有影响。滤波分析结果显示碳同位素存在23 ka的岁差周期和偏心率长周期,生源组分的含量变化显示出典型的岁差周期,体现南海季风环流的轨道响应,证明低纬热带过程是调节气候变化的重要因素。     

古海洋生产力的研究方法

海洋的初级生产力控制了温室气体CO2在海洋和大气中的分配,进而影响着全球气候变迁,只有通过运用不同的生产力标志物才能探讨地质历史上海洋初级生产力的变迁及其对气候的影响。介绍了国内外在古海洋生产力研究领域内使用的主要方法和动态,并分别对生源物质累积率、底栖有孔虫标志物和地球化学标志物等研究方法进行了全面的分析和评述,指出在运用生产力标志物研究古生产力时应充分考虑不同标志物的适用性和局限性。     

Application of biologic silicon in modern sedimentary section to reconstruction of phytoplankton changes in the East China Sea and the Huanghai Sea during last 200 years

Biomarkers had been widely used to reconstruct phytoplankton productivity,and this method was applied in the East China Sea and the Huanghai Sea (Yellow Sea).In this study,Biologic Silicon (BSi) was used as productivity proxy to reconstruct productivity change of phytoplankton during last 200 years.The results show that the BSi contents of surficial sediments were in the range of 0.018%-2.516%,averaging 0.726%,and had a similar variation trend with phytoplankton biomass.The vertical distribution profiles revealed that BSi contents were relatively stable,in accordance with the variations of the contemporary phytoplankton standing crop index.According to the stability analysis of BSi in sediments,BSi was not degradaded for the past two hundred years and remained in sediments steadily.Thus,BSi in sediments had the potential to invert paleoproductivity.To conduct further survey,the linear regression equation between BSi contents and phytoplankton biomass index could be used to calculate the phytoplankton productivity by BSi,so that paleoproductivity may be reconstructed during last 200 years.     

2万年来我国东部海陆环境变化的不同步现象

冲绳海槽DG9603孔高分辨率的硅藻、有孔虫、孢粉和植物硅酸体化石的记录，提供了联系海洋与陆地气候变化的直接证据。结果显示，中国东部及邻海区最近20kaBP以来海洋环境的文化滞后陆地气候的变化约1000a，初步认为这种滞后现象可能是北半球陆地气候快速变化的同步性和温盐环流从北大西洋缓慢传送到太平洋海域的时间差引起的。     

末次盛冰期以来南海西南海区对快速气候变化的响应特征

以南海西南巽他陆坡CG2岩心为材料,通过浮游有孔虫Globigerinoides ruber壳体的δ18O和Mg/Ca重建了近24ka以来的表层海水温度(SST)和盐度(SSS),结合浮游有孔虫定量统计数据分析了末次盛冰期(LGM)以来南海西南海区上部水体环境的演化特征。研究表明,在YD、H1、8.2ka冷事件期间,巽他陆架海区盐度变高,浮游有孔虫暖水种丰度减少,温跃层变浅。相比其他开放大洋站位末次冰消期的缓慢变暖,南海西南海区Bølling早期以及YD事件后期升温迅速,且H1期间具有明显的降温,是典型的"格陵兰式"升温,可能南海受东亚季风的影响强烈。东亚夏季风的强弱变化造成了海水盐度频繁的波动,在H1、YD期间,东亚夏季风突然减弱,盐度变高,B/A暖期夏季风增强,盐度变低,比较发现在这些气候事件期间,东、西太平洋站位的盐度变化特征几乎是一致的。LGM以来热带西太平洋海区的上层海水环境变化,与热带辐合带(ITCZ)的纬向移动及其相关的东亚季风异常有密切联系。