How does the Southern Ocean palaeoenvironment during Marine Isotope Stage 5e compare to the modern?
How does the Southern Ocean palaeoenvironment during Marine Isotope Stage 5e compare to the modern?
Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5e (130–116 ka) represents an important ‘process analogue’ for understanding the climatic feedbacks and responses likely active under future anthropogenic warming. Reconstructing the Southern Ocean (SO) palaeoenvironment during MIS 5e and comparing it to the present day provides insights into the different responses of the SO sectors to a warmer climate. This study presents new records from seven marine sediment cores for MIS 5e together with their surface sediment records; all cores are located south of 55
oS. We investigate changes in diatom species assemblage and the accompanying variations in sea surface temperatures, winter sea-ice extent (WSIE) and glacial meltwater flux. All records show warmer conditions and a reduced WSIE during MIS 5e relative to the surface sediments. While the Pacific and Indian Sector records present very stable conditions throughout MIS 5e, the Atlantic Sector records display much more changeable conditions, particularly with respect to the WSIE. These variable conditions are attributed to higher iceberg and glacial meltwater flux in the Weddell Sea. This evidence for increased iceberg and glacial meltwater flux in the Weddell Sea during MIS 5e may have significant implications for understanding the stability of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, both during MIS 5e and under future warming.
Diatom, MIS 5e, Marine Sediment Core, Palaeoenvironment, Southern Ocean
Chadwick, M.
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Allen, C.s.
473d2ef9-c051-4141-8c81-a593d9f84a1e
Sime, L.c.
27e4dd9a-2b54-4f4c-b345-31fff4a2f2b6
Crosta, X.
3ee8d28c-87aa-42e9-9f5e-218e81fa53f3
Hillenbrand, C.-d.
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January 2022
Chadwick, M.
aaf95186-1d37-4866-8899-13abb9b7257a
Allen, C.s.
473d2ef9-c051-4141-8c81-a593d9f84a1e
Sime, L.c.
27e4dd9a-2b54-4f4c-b345-31fff4a2f2b6
Crosta, X.
3ee8d28c-87aa-42e9-9f5e-218e81fa53f3
Hillenbrand, C.-d.
0d081424-9401-4395-9776-efa93f806bba
Chadwick, M., Allen, C.s., Sime, L.c., Crosta, X. and Hillenbrand, C.-d.
(2022)
How does the Southern Ocean palaeoenvironment during Marine Isotope Stage 5e compare to the modern?
Marine Micropaleontology, 170, [102066].
(doi:10.1016/j.marmicro.2021.102066).
Abstract
Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5e (130–116 ka) represents an important ‘process analogue’ for understanding the climatic feedbacks and responses likely active under future anthropogenic warming. Reconstructing the Southern Ocean (SO) palaeoenvironment during MIS 5e and comparing it to the present day provides insights into the different responses of the SO sectors to a warmer climate. This study presents new records from seven marine sediment cores for MIS 5e together with their surface sediment records; all cores are located south of 55
oS. We investigate changes in diatom species assemblage and the accompanying variations in sea surface temperatures, winter sea-ice extent (WSIE) and glacial meltwater flux. All records show warmer conditions and a reduced WSIE during MIS 5e relative to the surface sediments. While the Pacific and Indian Sector records present very stable conditions throughout MIS 5e, the Atlantic Sector records display much more changeable conditions, particularly with respect to the WSIE. These variable conditions are attributed to higher iceberg and glacial meltwater flux in the Weddell Sea. This evidence for increased iceberg and glacial meltwater flux in the Weddell Sea during MIS 5e may have significant implications for understanding the stability of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, both during MIS 5e and under future warming.
Text
How does the Southern Ocean palaeoenvironment during Marine Isotope
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 2 November 2021
e-pub ahead of print date: 5 November 2021
Published date: January 2022
Additional Information:
This work was supported by the Natural Environmental Research Council [grant number NE/L002531/1] and contributes to British Antarctic Survey's ‘Polar Science for Planet Earth’ program.
Keywords:
Diatom, MIS 5e, Marine Sediment Core, Palaeoenvironment, Southern Ocean
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 453162
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/453162
ISSN: 0377-8398
PURE UUID: 554948ae-1745-4409-a541-42cf4e006841
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Date deposited: 10 Jan 2022 17:49
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 06:59
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Contributors
Author:
M. Chadwick
Author:
C.s. Allen
Author:
L.c. Sime
Author:
X. Crosta
Author:
C.-d. Hillenbrand
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