Abstract
The West Pacific Warm Pool (WPWP) is a critical region of the global climate system that is closely linked with the El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). We have generated two monthly resolved coral δ18O (δ18OCRL) records from a key region of the WPWP, the Republic of Palau (7′N, 135′E). The isotopic time series span the years 1793–2008 and 1899–2008. During the period of overlap, the two records are well correlated at interannual and annual periods. Multiple lines of evidence demonstrate a strong ENSO signal in Palau δ18OCRL. Our records are consistent with previous investigations of twentieth-century tropical Pacific climate variability. We identify a regionally coherent bi-decadal cycle in the WPWP following the termination of the Little Ice Age. The Palau δ18OCRL records show long-term trends towards warming/freshening, suggesting a century scale increase in the strength of the hydrologic cycle associated with the WPWP. Our study represents an important addition to the network of tropical paleo-archives.
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