Carbon isotope offsets between benthic foraminifer species of the genus Cibicides (Cibicidoides) in the glacial sub-Antarctic Atlantic

©2016. American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved. Epibenthic foraminifer δ 13 C measurements are valuable for reconstructing past bottom water dissolved inorganic carbon δ 13 C (δ 13 C DIC ), which are used to infer global ocean circulation patterns. Epibenthic δ 13 C, however, may also reflect the influence of 13 C-depleted phytodetritus, microhabitat changes, and/or variations in carbonate ion concentrations. Here we compare the δ 13 C of two benthic foraminifer species, Cibicides kullenbergi and Cibicides wuellerstorfi, and their morphotypes, in three sub-Antarctic Atlantic sediment cores over several glacial-interglacial transitions. These species are commonly assumed to be epibenthic, living above or directly below the sediment-water interface. While this might be consistent with the small δ 13 C offset that we observe between these species during late Pleistocene interglacial periods (Δδ 13 C = −0.19 ± 0.31‰, N = 63), it is more difficult to reconcile with the significant δ 13 C offset that is found between these species during glacial periods (Δδ 13 C = −0.76 ± 0.44‰, N = 44). We test possible scenarios by analyzing Uvigerina spp. δ 13 C and benthic foraminifer abundances: (1) C. kullenbergi δ 13 C is biased to light values either due to microhabitat shifts or phytodetritus effects and (2) C. wuellerstorfi δ 13 C is biased to heavy values, relative to long-term average conditions, for instance by recording the sporadic occurrence of less depleted deepwater δ 13 C DIC . Neither of these scenarios can be ruled out unequivocally. However, our findings emphasize that supposedly epibenthic foraminifer δ 13 C in the sub-Antarctic Atlantic may reflect several factors rather than being solely a function of bottom water δ 13 C DIC . This could have a direct bearing on the interpretation of extremely light South Atlantic δ 13 C values at the Last Glacial Maximum

Paleoclimatic Variability At Frequencies Ranging From 1 Cycle Per 10000 Years To 1 Cycle Per 1000 Years - Evidence for Nonlinear Behavior of the Climate System

The paleoclimatic variability at frequencies ranging from 10/sup -4/ cycle per year (cpy) to 10/sup -3/ cpy is investigated using a set of three deep-sea cores from the Indian Ocean. Three frequency bands of high paleoclimatic variability are first defined using upper and lower limits of the significant spectral power concentrations: the bands are centered around the spectral maxima located at 10.3, 4.7, and 2.5 kyr. The localization of spectral lines is then refined by high-resolution spectral analysis. Some of the resulting lines have frequencies which are close to those previously detected in other paleoclimatic records, including the precessional peak at 19 kyr. Additional lines are also in good correspondence with the response of a nonlinear climatic oscillator forced by insolation variations, including peaks at 13 kyr, 10.4 kyr and 9.4 kyr. This correspondence suggests orbital forcing. Moreover, for the Indian Ocean which is influenced by the monsoon circulation, it is plausible that the precessional contribution of the forcing interacts strongly with the precipitation-temperature feedback used in the model, thus emphasizing the nonlinearity of the response.Anglai

Late quaternary climatic changes in western tropical africa deduced from deep-sea sedimentation off the Niger delta

The oxygen isotopes ratios of benthic foraminifera and detailed radiocarbon ages of the organic matter of an over 15 m long sediment core from the outer Niger delta allow us to date the oxygen isotope stage boundaries 1,2 to 11500 (+ 650) years BP. 2/3 to approximately 23000 (+ 2000) years BP. The composition of the predominantly terrigenous clays and accessory pelagic fossils reflects the evolution of the climate over the southwestern Sahel zone and the response of the Eastern Tropical Atlantic to these climatic fluctuations during the Late Quaternary. [NOT CONTROLLED OCR]Nous avons suivi sur 30 000 ans environ l'alternance phase sèche-phase humide caractéristique du Pléistocène des basses latitudes, ainsi que son empreinte dans l'histoire sédimentaire, à travers l'étude d'une carotte prélevée dans la partie externe du delta du Niger. La courbe des variations des teneurs en isotopes de l'oxygène des tests de foraminifères benthiques a été calibrée par datations au (14)O : les zones de transition entre les stades isotopiques 1.2 et 2.3 ont pu être datées respectivement de 11 500 (+ 650) ans BP et de 23000 (+2000) ans BP environ. [OCR NON CONTRÔLE

High latitude deep water sources during the last glacial maximum and the intensity of the global oceanic circulation

n/

Sensitivity of the European LGM climate to North Atlantic sea-surface temperature

Recent reconstructions of Sea-Surface Temperatures (SSTs) for the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, 21 kyr BP) based on foraminifera and dinoflagellate proxies suggest that the north Atlantic may have been warmer than estimated by CLIMAP [1981]. To better understand the impact of such a warm north Atlantic on the global LGM climate, we used two different AGCMs to perform sensitivity studies. With the new, warmer SSTs, both models simulate a hydrological cycle and temperatures very different from those obtained with the CLIMAP boundary conditions. The most noticeable differences occur in winter over North America and Siberia whereas southern Europe is only weakly affected at all seasons. Whichever the conditions prescribed over the north Atlantic, both models underestimate the large cooling recorded by continental proxy data over the Mediterranean Basin

A Model Study of the Atlantic Thermohaline Circulation During the Last Glacial Maximum

STABLE isotope measurements in deep-sea sediment cores have indicated that the Atlantic thermohaline circulation experienced significant changes during the last glacial maximum: the North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) was shallower than today and the Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) penetrated much farther north(1-6). Numerical ocean models have, so far, been unable to simulate these circulation changes realistically(7). Here we show that a zonally averaged, three-basin ocean model, driven by glacial boundary conditions(8-10), reproduces the main trends of the geochemically constrained glacial Atlantic circulation. In addition, we provide quantitative estimates of the meridional water transport during glacial times. Our results suggest that the glacial production of AABW was slightly higher than at present, whereas that of NADW was reduced by similar to 40%, resulting in an intermediate circulation cell which closed within the Atlantic basin. We also show that the strength of the Atlantic conveyor belt strongly depends on the surface density contrast between the high latitudes of the Northern and Southern hemispheres

Changes in surface salinity of the North Atlantic Ocean during the last deglaciation

International audienc

Stable isotope constraints on Holocene carbon cycle changes from an Antarctic ice core

Reconstructions of atmospheric CO2 concentrations based on Antarctic ice cores1,2 reveal significant changes during the Holocene epoch, but the processes responsible for these changes in CO2 concentrations have not been unambiguously identified. Distinct characteristics in the carbon isotope signatures of the major carbon reservoirs (ocean, biosphere, sediments and atmosphere) constrain variations in the CO2 fluxes between those reservoirs. Here we present a highly resolved atmospheric δ13C record for the past 11,000 years from measurements on atmospheric CO2 trapped in an Antarctic ice core. From mass-balance inverse model calculations3,4 performed with a simplified carbon cycle model, we show that the decrease in atmospheric CO2 of about 5 parts per million by volume (p.p.m.v.). The increase in δ13C of about 0.25‰ during the early Holocene is most probably the result of a combination of carbon uptake of about 290 gigatonnes of carbon by the land biosphere and carbon release from the ocean in response to carbonate compensation of the terrestrial uptake during the termination of the last ice age. The 20 p.p.m.v. increase of atmospheric CO2 and the small decrease in δ13C of about 0.05‰ during the later Holocene can mostly be explained by contributions from carbonate compensation of earlier land-biosphere uptake and coral reef formation, with only a minor contribution from a small decrease of the land-biosphere carbon inventory