Constraining the magnitude of the carbon isotope excursion during the Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum using larger benthic foraminifera

Abstract

The Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum (PETM) was an extraordinary pulse of global warming that left an indelible mark on the Earth approximately 56 Ma ago. This warming event is associated with an addition of large amounts of 13C-depleted carbon into the atmosphere-ocean system, but the magnitude of the negative carbon isotope excursion (CIE) signaling the PETM onset and often used to estimate mass of the released carbon is still debated. Here we gauge the CIE magnitude through the use of secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) to perform in situ δ13C measurements within individual larger benthic foraminifera preserved in a tropical shallow-marine limestone section at Tingri, south Tibet. This SIMS-based δ13C record yields a CIE (Δ~7‰) comparable in magnitude to that registered by some terrestrial PETM records but larger than the ~4‰ CIE returned by surface-dwelling planktonic foraminifera in deep-sea records. We posit that the CIE magnitude in the surface ocean and atmosphere was ~7‰, and that previous ~4‰ estimates are attenuated by incomplete preservation and/or diagenetic overprinting. Mass balance calculations indicate that the released carbon mass during the CIE would not exceed 28,000 petagrams, given that the carbon was sourced from organic matter, permafrost, thermogenic methane, methane hydrate, or any of their combinations. Our study demonstrates that δ13C records from some shallow-marine carbonate sections can avoid strong diagenetic alteration, preserving primary signals of deep-time carbon perturbations.