The response of SST to insolation and ice sheet variability from MIS 3 to MIS 11 in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea (Gulf of Lions)

Here we present a sea surface temperature (SST) record based on the Uk′ 37 index from the PRGL1 borehole (Promess1) drilled on the upper slope of the Gulf of Lions (GL). This is the first continuous and high-resolution record in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea from marine oxygen isotope stage 3 (MIS) 3 to MIS 11. Due the location of the GL, the SST proxy can be considered to be a reliable tool to study the climate link between high latitude and midlatitude. During glacial inceptions, the northern ice sheet signal via cold northwesterly winds was first recorded in our study area in comparison with southern locations, highlighting the strong sensitivity of this location to high-latitude dynamics. Moreover, the amplitude of the millennial-scale variability in the western Mediterranean basin seems to be the result of both ice sheet and insolation variability. © 2015. American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved.Two anonymous reviewers are greatly acknowledged for their comments that improved the final version of this manuscript. This work was funded by GRACCIE project (CONSOLIDERINGENIO CSD 2007–00067) and by the Formación de Personal Investigador (FPI) grant BES-2007-17602. Supporting data available at http://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.854682Peer reviewe

Climate-driven changes in sedimentation rate influence phosphorus burial along continental margins of the northwestern Mediterranean

The burial of phosphorus (P) in continental margin sediments is a critical component of the marine reactive P budget, and thus an important factor in marine biological productivity. We determined downcore records of P from a site drilled on the upper slope of the Gulf of Lions (PRGL 1), northwestern Mediterranean Sea. Changes in total P content were monitored from Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 6 to MIS 11. In addition, in two selected intervals (248–277 ka and 306–342 ka) the total P record was expanded by adding detailed geochemical analyses of the various P fractions, including oxyhydroxide-associated P, authigenic P, detrital P and organic P. Increased sedimentation rates during glacials owing to seaward migration of the Rhone's mouth, enhanced the burial of reactive P (oxyhydroxide-associated + authigenic + organic) phases by decreasing its time at the reactive sediment/water interface, in turn resulting in increasing proportion of authigenic to detrital phosphorus. The inverse was found for interglacial stages. The effects of glacial/interglacial variation in sedimentation rate over P geochemistry resulted in changes in sediment-water interface oxygenation, as well as in the efficiency of P burial, as shown by (C:P)org and Corg:Preact proxies respectively. Two events of high P deposition associated with authigenic P formation, at 335 ka (Paut1) and 275 ka (Paut2), were associated with periods of rapid disintegration of North Atlantic ice sheets leading to Ice Rafted Debris (IRD) deposition. These high P deposition events appear to be linked to short warm periods that followed cold episodes. Enhanced continental runoff owing to more humid conditions during short warm episodes could play a critical role for enhanced biogenic productivity and posterior authigenic P accumulation

Impacto de los cambios climáticos y del nivel del mar en el margen continental del Golfo de León (Mediterráneo Occidental) desde 133 ka a 400 ka

[ES] Se analizaron las asociaciones de foraminíferos bentónicos y planctónicos, así como indicadores geoquímicos de un testigo (PRGL 1) extraído en la parte alta del talud continental del Golfo de León (Mediterráneo Occidental), durante la campaña PROMESS I, con el objetivo de reconocer el impacto de los cambios climáticos y del nivel del mar desde 133 ka a 400 ka. Las asociaciones de foraminíferos bentónicos respondieron a cambios en el nivel del mar que a su vez controlaban la distancia de la desembocadura del río Ródano. Asimismo, se reconocieron episodios de ventilación en el fondo mediante especies adaptadas a condiciones óxicas. Por su parte las asociaciones de foraminíferos planctónicos respondieron a cambios en la temperatura de la columna de agua desarrollándose las especies más cálidas, asociadas a masas de agua estratificadas, durante los interglaciares y las más frías, asociadas a una mayor mezcla vertical, en los glaciales. Además, se constataron diferencias en la productividad primaria durante los periodos glaciales. Paralelamente, se estudió la relación C/N en materia orgánica y el contenido de CaCO3, Sr, Fe, Al, K, Ti y P en sedimento. Durante los mínimos de precesión la estratificación termal de la columna de agua provocó que las condiciones en el fondo dependieran de la proximidad del río Ródano. En los periodos con bajo nivel del mar las condiciones eutróficas prevalecieron y el sedimento presentó altas proporciones de CaCO3 de origen detrítico procedente de los Alpes, sin embargo durante los niveles del mar alto, debido al alejamiento de la desembocadura del Ródano las condiciones del fondo cambiaron a mesotróficas y el sedimento estuvo principalmente compuesto de CaCO3 de origen biogénico. Durante los máximos de precesión, las entradas recurrentes de aire polar, incrementaron la densidad del agua provocando fenómenos recurrentes de hundimiento y ventilación del fondo[EN] In the present study we analyzed benthic and planktic foraminifer assemblages, as well as geochemical indicators of the core PRGL 1 retrieved at the upper slope of the Gulf of Lions (Western Mediterranean), during PROMESS I campaign, in which the goal was to monitor the impact of climatic changes and sea level between 133 kyr and 400 kyr.The benthic foraminifera responded to changes in sea level, which in turn controlled the distance from the mouth of the Rhone River. Also recognized episodes vent at the bottom by species adapted to oxic conditions. Meanwhile the planktonic foraminifera responded to changes in the temperature of the water column species develop warmer associated with stratified water bodies during the interglacial and colder associated with increased vertical mixing in the glacial . Also showed differences in primary productivity during glacial periods. In parallel, we studied the C / N in organic matter and CaCO3 content, Sr, Fe, Al, K, Ti and P in sediment. During the precession minimum thermal stratification of the water column led bottom conditions to depend on the proximity of Rhone mouth. During lowstands eutrophic conditions prevailed and sediment CaCO3 showed high proportions of detrital origin from the Alps, however during high sea levels, due to the remoteness of the mouth of the Rhone bottom conditions changed to mesotrophic and the sediment was mainly composed of biogenic CaCO3. During the peak of precession, air tickets polar recurring increased the density of water causing recurring phenomena of collapse and ventilation fond

Latitudinal and temporal distributions of diatom populations in the pelagic waters of the Subantarctic and Polar Frontal Zones of the Southern Ocean and their role in the biological pump

The Subantarctic and Polar Frontal zones (SAZ and PFZ) represent a large portion of the total area of the Southern Ocean and serve as a strong sink for atmospheric CO. These regions are central to hypotheses linking particle fluxes and climate change, yet multi-year records of modern flux and the organisms that control it are, for obvious reasons, rare. In this study, we examine two sediment trap records of the flux of diatoms and bulk components collected by two bottom-tethered sediment traps deployed at mesopelagic depths (∼ 1 km) in the SAZ (two-year record) and in the PFZ (six-year record) along the 140° E meridian. These traps provide a direct measure of transfer below winter mixed layer depths, i.e. at depths where effective sequestration from the atmosphere occurs, in contrast to study of processes in the surface ocean. Total mass fluxes were about two-fold higher in the PFZ (24 ± 13 gm yr) than in the SAZ (14 ± 2 gm yr). Bulk chemical composition of the particle fluxes mirrored the composition of the distinct plankton communities of the surface layer, being dominated by carbonate in the SAZ and by biogenic silica in the PFZ. POC export was similar for the annual average at both sites (1.0 ± 0.1 and 0.8 ± 0.4 gm yr, for the PFZ and SAZ, respectively), indicating that the particles in the SAZ were relatively POC rich. Seasonality in the particle export was more pronounced in the PFZ. Peak fluxes occurred during summer in the PFZ and during spring in the SAZ. The strong summer pulses in the PFZ are responsible for a large fraction of the variability in carbon sequestration from the atmosphere in this region. The latitudinal variation of the total diatom flux was found to be in line with the biogenic silica export with an annual flux of 31 ± 5.5 × 10 valves m yr at the PFZ compared to 0.5 ± 0.4 × 10 m yr of the SAZ. Fragilariopsis kerguelensis dominated the annual diatom export at both sites (43 at the SAZ and 59% in the PFZ). POC fluxes displayed a strong positive correlation with the relative contribution of a group of weakly-silicified and bloom-forming species in the PFZ. Several lines of evidence suggest that the development of these species during the growth season facilitates the formation of aggregates and carbon export. Our results confirm previous work suggesting that F. kerguelensis is a major aspect of the decoupling of the carbon and silicon cycles in the high-nutrient low-chlorophyll waters of the Southern Ocean

Coccolithophore taxa and PCA factor analysis of ODP Site 1233

We provide high-resolution sea surface temperature (SST) and paleoproductivity data focusing on Termination 1. We describe a new method for estimating SSTs based on multivariate statistical analyses performed on modern coccolithophore census data, and we present the first downcore reconstructions derived from coccolithophore assemblages at Ocean Drilling Project (ODP) Site 1233 located offshore Chile. We compare our coccolithophore SST record to alkenone-based SSTs as well as SST reconstructions based on dinoflagellates and radiolaria. All reconstructions generally show a remarkable concordance. As in the alkenone SST record, the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, 19-23 kyr B.P.) is not clearly defined in our SST reconstruction. After the onset of deglaciation, three major warming steps are recorded: from 18.6 to 18 kyr B.P. (~2.6°C), from 15.7 to 15.3 kyr B.P. (~2.5°C), and from 13 to 11.4 kyr B.P. (~3.4°C). Consistent with the other records from Site 1233 and Antarctic ice core records, we observed a clear Holocene Climatic Optimum (HCO) from ~8-12 kyr B.P. Combining the SST reconstruction with coccolith absolute abundances and accumulation rates, we show that colder temperatures during the LGM are linked to higher coccolithophore productivity offshore Chile and warmer SSTs during the HCO to lower coccolithophore productivity, with indications of weak coastal upwelling. We interpret our data in terms of latitudinal displacements of the Southern Westerlies and the northern margin of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current system over the deglaciation and the Holocene