Sedimentary responses to the sea level and Indian summer monsoon changes in the central Bay of Bengal since 40 ka

Abstract

We present a sedimentary multi-index comprehensive study on sediment core BoB-56 collected from the central Bay of Bengal (BoB) with an attempt to understand the sedimentary processes and their responses to sea level change and the Indian summer monsoon (ISM) since the last glacial period. We revealed the temporal evolution of terrigenous input and provided a brief discussion of the implications of our sedimentary indexes for ocean productivity. Then, we proposed a simple depositional model in the central BoB since the last glacial period. As indicated by the geochemistry, mineralogy and physical indexes, including linear sedimentary rate (LSR), Ti/Ca, Rb/Sr and quartz/calcite ratios, the terrigenous input was higher during the last glacial period than during the Holocene period, and the sea level is suggested to be responsible for this significant distinction through the depositional center transition in the BoB at the glacial-interglacial scale. Similar terrigenous input patterns with solar radiation and precipitation before 18 ka indicated that the monsoon controlled these situations at precession-related scales. Synchronous changes with records in the north Atlantic Ocean during the last deglaciation and early Holocene suggested terrigenous input responses to the climate changes that also recorded by high latitude sedimentary system at millennial scales. Indicated by the element (CaCO3, Ba and Sr) authigenic accumulation rates, the paleoproductivity in the central BoB was at a roughly equivalent level during the last glacial period and the Holocene period. Different terrestrial nutrient inputs and ISM-related ocean surface stratifications were suggested to be responsible for the level of paleoproductivity. This study provides a brief understanding of the sedimentary response to the climate and emphasizes the different roles of the sea level and ISM in the central BoB.