5 research outputs found
Recent advances in paleoclimatological studies of Arctic wedgeâ and poreâice stableâwater isotope records
Late Pleistocene and Holocene ground ice are common throughout the Arctic. Some forms of relict ground ice preserve local meteoric water, and their stable oxygenâ and hydrogenâisotope ratios can be used to reconstruct past air temperatures. In this paper, we review the formation and sampling of two forms of relict ground iceâwedge ice and pore iceâand recent (2010â2019) advances in paleoclimatological studies of groundâice stable isotope records in the Arctic. Recent advances are attributed to better chronological constraints and refined understandings of the systematics and seasonality of relict wedge ice and pore ice. A rich network of iceâwedge records has emerged, primarily from the Siberian Arctic, whereas poreâice records are less common. The iceâwedge network depicts a robust pattern of late Pleistocene cooling, and remarkably similar temperature depressions during Marine Isotope Stages 3 and 2. Very highâresolution wedgeâ and poreâice stable isotope chronologies have been established recently and used to reconstruct winter and summer climate histories and to assess seasonal dependencies in insolationâforced climate. Reports of ancient (>125 ka BP) ground ice demonstrate its longâterm persistence, and its potential to expand our knowledge of Quaternary climate dynamics in the terrestrial Arctic