Late Quaternary Seasonal Sea-Ice History of the Northeastern Japan Sea

The Late Quaternary sea-ice history of the northeastern Japan Sea is discussed on the basis of the occurrence of dropstones and ice-rafted debris (IRD) in fine sediment cores. IRD was found in all strata except those from the Holocene and oxygen isotope stage 5.5. The largest expansion of sea ice was recognized at the last glacial maximum (LGM; oxygen isotope stage 2), when the southern margin of seasonal sea ice was probably located in the vicinity of the Matsumae Plateau. The margin might occasionally have expanded further southward to off the Oga Peninsula. Sea ice expanded southward from mid-stage 5 to the LGM in response to global cooling, but with much fluctuation. Sea ice remained during deglaciation until around 10 ka, but after 10 ka it retreated northward rapidly in response to global warming and changes in surface water conditions. Greater fluctuations in IRD were found in core GH95-1208 collected from off Rumoi, Hokkaido, Japan. More IRD was found in sediments from late stage 3, late stage 5, and early stage 6. The fluctuations were not concordant with global climate changes (based on the standard oxygen isotope curve), and may have been controlled by regional climate factors such as the strength of the winter monsoon, which is related in turn to high-latitude atmospheric circulation. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Paleoceanographic evolution of the SW Svalbard margin (76°N) since 20,000 C yr BP

Two cores from the southwestern shelf and slope of Storfjorden, Svalbard, taken at 389 m and 1485 m water depth have been analyzed for benthic and planktic foraminifera, oxygen isotopes, and ice-rafted debris. The results show that over the last 20,000 yr, Atlantic water has been continuously present on the southwestern Svalbard shelf. However, from 15,000 to 10,000 ¹⁴C yr BP, comprising the Heinrich event H1 interval, the Bølling-Allerød interstades and the Younger Dryas stade, it flowed as a subsurface water mass below a layer of polar surface water. In the benthic environment, the shift to interglacial conditions occurred at 10,000 ¹⁴C yr BP. Due to the presence of a thin upper layer of polar water, surface conditions remained cold until ca. 9000 ¹⁴C yr BP, when the warm Atlantic water finally appeared at the surface. Neither extensive sea ice cover nor large inputs of meltwater stopped the inflow of Atlantic water. Its warm core was merely submerged below the cold polar surface water.     

白令海盆17ka以来的古海洋与古气候记录

通过白令海盆08BR02钻孔(57°0.06'N,174°29.97'E,水深3 805 m)的AMS14C测年数据、颜色反射率b*与NGRIP(North Greenland Ice Core Project)氧同位素曲线及白令海4个钻孔颜色反射率b*记录作对比,建立该孔的地层年代框架,顶、底部沉积物年龄分别为4.2 ka和17.0 ka。该孔自17 ka以来,IRD(ice-rafted detritus:冰筏碎屑)、粒度的砂组分以及敏感组分中的33—63μm组分百分含量在全球性冷事件H1(Heinrich event 1)、B/A(Blling/Allerd)中期和YD(Younger Dryas)期间明显增加。IRD和有孔虫丰度在H1、B/A和YD期间同步增加,可能反映海冰融化为表层水提供营养物质,促使表层钙质生产力勃发并将有机质进一步输送至海底,为底栖生物提供营养物质。     

西北冰洋楚科奇海台08P23孔氧同位素3期以来的古海洋与古气候记录

通过中国第三次北极科学考察在北冰洋楚科奇海台采集的08P23孔样品的多项指标分析以及与其他孔的沉积记录综合对比,将08P23孔沉积物初步分为氧同位素3期(MIS 3)-MIS 1的沉积序列。MIS 3以来,楚科奇海台08P23孔可以识别出5个显著的冰筏碎屑(Ice-Rafted Detritus,IRD)事件,分别出现在MIS 2和MIS 3。其中,MIS 3的IRD事件中碎屑碳酸盐岩主要来自于加拿大北极群岛分布广泛的古生代碳酸盐岩露头,MIS 2的IRD事件中碎屑石英可能来源于欧亚大陆边缘。该孔大部分层位浮游有孔虫左旋厚壁新方球虫Neogloboquadrina pachyderma(sinistral)(Nps)的δ18O和δ13C都轻于表层沉积物中的平均值。MIS 3中两个褐色层中偏轻的Nps-δ18O和Nps-δ13C值是由冰融水造成;MIS 1和MIS 3灰色层中偏轻的Nps的δ18O和δ13C值指示海冰形成速率的提高,导致轻同位素卤水的生产和下沉。MIS 2的Nps的δ18O和δ13C值变化趋势相反,是因为温度急剧降低导致Nps-δ18O变重,海水冻结成冰,海气交换明显降低使得Nps-δ13C偏轻。MIS 1和MIS 3的Nps的δ18O和δ13C受到融冰水或轻同位素卤水影响导致同时偏轻。     

Seeking a Holocene drift ice proxy: non‐clay mineral variations from the SW to N‐central Iceland shelf: trends,regime shifts,and periodicities

Quantitative X‐ray diffraction analysis of the <2 mm sediment fraction was carried out on 1257 samples (from the seafloor and 16 cores) from the Iceland shelf west of 18° W. All but one core (B997‐347PC) were from transects along troughs on the NW to N‐central shelf, an area that in modern and historic times has been affected by drift ice. The paper focuses on the non‐clay mineralogy of the sediments (excluding calcite and volcanic glass). Quartz and potassium feldspars occupy similar positions in an R‐mode principal component analysis, and oligoclase feldspar tracks quartz; these minerals are used as a proxy for ice‐rafted detritus (IRD). Accordingly, the sum of these largely foreign minerals (Q&K) (to Icelandic bedrock) is used as a proxy for drift ice. A stacked, equi‐spaced 100 a record is developed which shows both low‐frequency trends and higher‐frequency events. The detrended stacked record compares well with the flux of quartz (mg cm^?2 a^?1) at MD99‐2269 off N Iceland. The multi‐taper method indicated that there are three significant frequencies at the 95% confidence level with periods of ca. 2500, 445 and 304 a. Regime shift analysis pinpoints intervals when there was a statistically significant shift in the average Q&K weight %, and identifies four IRD‐rich events separated by intervals with lower inputs. There is some association between peaks of IRD input, less dense surface waters (from δ¹⁸O data on planktonic foraminifera) and intervals of moraine building. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Alkenones and coccoliths in ice‐rafted debris during the Last Glacial Maximum in the North Atlantic: implications for the use of UK37′ as a sea surface temperature proxy

The U^K₃₇′ index has proven to be a robust proxy to estimate past sea surface temperatures (SSTs) over a range of time scales, but like any other proxy, it has uncertainties. For instance, in reconstructions of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) in the northern North Atlantic, U^K₃₇′ indicates higher temperatures than those derived from foraminiferal proxies. Here we evaluate whether such warm glacial estimates are caused by the advection of reworked alkenones in ice‐rafted debris (IRD) to deep‐sea sediments. We have quantified both coccolith assemblages and alkenones in sediments from glaciogenic debris flows in the continental margins of the northern North Atlantic, and from a deep‐sea core from the Reykjanes Ridge. Certain debris flow deposits in the North Atlantic were generated by the presence of massive ice‐sheets in the past, and their associated ice streams. Such deposits are composed of the same materials that were present in the IRD at the time they were generated. We conclude that ice rafting from some locations was a transport pathway to the deep sea floor of reworked alkenones and pre‐Quaternary coccolith species during glacial stages, but that not all of the IRD contained alkenones, even when reworked coccoliths were present. We speculate that the ratio of reworked coccoliths to alkenone concentration might be useful to infer whether significant reworked alkenone inputs from IRD did occur at a particular site in the glacial North Atlantic. We also observe that alkenones in some of the debris flows contain a colder signal than estimated for LGM sediments in the northern North Atlantic. This is also clear in the deep‐sea core studied where the warmest intervals do not correspond to the intervals with large inputs of reworked coccoliths or IRD. We conclude that any possible bias to U^K₃₇′ estimates associated with reworked alkenones is not necessarily towards higher values, and that the high SST anomalies for the LGM are unlikely to be the result of a bias caused by IRD inputs. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Late Pleistocene ice export events into the Arctic Ocean from the M'Clure Strait Ice Stream, Canadian Arctic Archipelago

Rapidly-flowing sectors of an ice sheet (ice streams) can play an important role in abrupt climate change through the delivery of icebergs and meltwater and the subsequent disruption of ocean thermohaline circulation (e.g., the North Atlantic's Heinrich events). Recently, several cores have been raised from the Arctic Ocean which document the existence of massive ice export events during the Late Pleistocene and whose provenance has been linked to source regions in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. In this paper, satellite imagery is used to map glacial geomorphology in the vicinity of Victoria Island, Banks Island and Prince of Wales Island (Canadian Arctic) in order to reconstruct ice flow patterns in the highly complex glacial landscape. A total of 88 discrete flow-sets are mapped and of these, 13 exhibit the characteristic geomorphology of palaeo-ice streams (i.e., parallel patterns of large, highly elongated mega-scale glacial lineations forming a convergent flow pattern with abrupt lateral margins). Previous studies by other workers and cross-cutting relationships indicate that the majority of these ice streams are relatively young and operated during or immediately prior to deglaciation. Our new mapping, however, documents a large (> 700 km long; 110 km wide) and relatively old ice stream imprint centred in M'Clintock Channel and converging into Viscount Melville Sound. A trough mouth fan located on the continental shelf suggests that it extended along M'Clure Strait and was grounded at the shelf edge. The location of the M'Clure Strait Ice Stream exactly matches the source area of 4 (possibly 5) major ice export events recorded in core PS1230 raised from Fram Strait, the major ice exit for the Arctic Ocean. These ice export events occur at 12.9, 15.6, 22 and 29.8 ka (¹⁴C yr BP) and we argue that they record vigorous episodes of activity of the M'Clure Strait Ice Stream. The timing of these events is remarkably similar to the North Atlantic's Heinrich events and we take this as evidence that the M'Clure Strait Ice Stream was also activated around the same time. This may hold important implications for the cause of the North Atlantic's Heinrich events and hints at the possibility of a pan-ice sheet response.     

3万年以来挪威海南部冰岛-苏格兰溢流变化及其对海冰活动的响应

北欧海南部沉积物所记录的末次冰盛期以来千年尺度快速气候事件下的溢流水变化特征,对研究历史上热盐环流与气候的相互作用机制有着重要意义.本文基于冰岛东北部陆架IS-1B岩芯(65°36.357′N, 8°59.045′W)上部130 cm的沉积物粒度组成、颜色反射率和高分辨率XRF元素地球化学扫描测试数据,结合有孔虫AMS 14C测年数据和邻近海区站位沉积资料,利用因子分析等方法,重建了研究区3万年(HS 3期)以来的沉积记录,并重点研究了冰岛-苏格兰溢流水(ISOW)的历史变化特征及其对海冰活动的响应.研究结果显示, ISOW在末次冰盛期初期、 HS1末期到 B/A 暖期和全新世时期强度较高,在HS 3期末期、末次冰盛期中后期到HS 1初期和YD时期强度较弱,其中粒度和地球化学证据都指示ISOW在末次冰盛期和YD时期受北冰洋底层水入侵和海平面下降的影响可能发生了多次停滞.总体来说,挪威海南部ISOW强度的变化与表层海水温度有较强的相关性,表现为冰期减弱,间冰期增强的变化趋势.挪威海北部海冰的覆盖范围自HS 3末期至末次冰盛期开始逐渐南移,并在HS 2初期越过冰岛-苏格兰海脊,在冰岛海盆北部形成常年的冰覆盖. HS 1期中后期到B/A暖期,海冰影响范围开始逐渐下降,但在 B/A 暖期末期到YD时期海冰活动便快速恢复,直至进入全新世后,挪威海南部海冰活动强度才逐渐下降,一直保持相对稳定的季节性海冰活动状态.     

Automated counting of sand‐sized particles in marine records

Content and fluxes of ice‐transported sand‐sized and gravel‐sized, lithic particles in marine sediment cores are a common tool used to reconstruct glacial variability. Ice‐rafted debris data sets are currently acquired in several different and often time‐consuming ways, and within various grain‐size fractions. This article proposes a novel workflow using an automated method to count ice‐rafted debris to reduce analysis time and subjectivity. The described method is based on the instrument ‘Morphologi G3’ from Malvern Instruments Limited and includes all pre‐processing and post‐processing steps. This particle characterization tool is an automated microscope combined with a proprietary software package. In this study, the analysis was performed on the 150 to 1000 μ m fraction. If desired, grain counts can be carried out on the entire sand and silt fractions. However, this would result in a considerably greater turnover time. A total of 350 sediment samples from core MD99‐2283, taken on the upper continental slope at the southern part of the north‐east Atlantic margin, were counted with this automated method. In addition, a total of 161 samples were counted manually as a control on the reliability of the scanning. The comparison of automated versus manually counted biogenic and lithic material shows a convincing correlation between the two methods. The turnover time per automatically counted sample is around 20 min, the method requiring less experience and skills than manual counting. The results yield a promising, time‐saving new technique to achieve high‐resolution ice‐rafted debris counting records with acceptable error margins.     

西北冰洋阿尔法脊晚第四纪的陆源沉积物记录及其古环境意义

通过西北冰洋阿尔法脊B84A孔中—晚第四纪以来的沉积物颜色旋回,Mn、Ca元素相对含量、颜色反射率、有孔虫丰度、冰筏碎屑(IRD)含量、粒度组分及其敏感性分析的综合研究,建立了B84A孔的地层年代框架,其沉积物被划分为MIS 12～MIS 1的沉积序列。阿尔法脊B84A孔可以识别出12个IRD事件,它们大多出现在冰消期,并认为其源区为加拿大北极群岛地区。这些IRD事件反映了加拿大北极冰盖的崩塌和气候变化。阿尔法脊B84A孔沉积物的环境敏感组分分别为细组分(4～9μm)和粗组分(19～53μm),两者的变化趋势相反,主要由海冰和洋流进行搬运,指示了洋流的强度变化。B84A孔的平均沉积速率约为0.4 cm/ka,与阿尔法脊周围地区沉积速率相近。相比于近岸的高沉积速率,其限制因素主要为大面积海冰覆盖造成的较低的生产力和由于长距离搬运造成的较低的陆源输入量。