Growth Of Antarctic Ice Sheet Research Articles

Mid-Pleistocene climate transition triggered by Antarctic Ice Sheet growth.

Despite extensive investigation, the nature and causes of the Mid-Pleistocene Transition remain enigmatic. In this work, we assess its linkage to asynchronous development of bipolar ice sheets by synthesizing Pleistocene mid- to high-latitude proxy records linked to hemispheric ice sheet evolution. Our results indicate substantial growth of the Antarctic Ice Sheets (AISs) at 2.0 to 1.25 million years ago, preceding the rapid expansion of Northern Hemisphere Ice Sheets after ~1.25 million years ago. Proxy-model comparisons suggest that AIS and associated Southern Ocean sea ice expansion can induce northern high-latitude cooling and enhanced moisture transport to the Northern Hemisphere, thus triggering the Mid-Pleistocene Transition. The dynamic processes involved are crucial for assessing modern global warming that is already inducing asynchronous bipolar melting of ice sheets.

Very high Middle Miocene surface productivity on the U.S. mid-Atlantic shelf amid glacioeustatic sea level variability

The Miocene Climatic Optimum (MCO) provides important insights into how the climate system operates under elevated temperatures and atmospheric CO2 levels. Few western North Atlantic paleotemperature or paleoecological records exist from the MCO, despite their importance for understanding both regional and global climate dynamics. Here we present quantitative MCO paleoecological data from the western North Atlantic, specifically from the Baltimore Gas & Electric (BG&E) marine sediment core from southern Maryland, USA. We examine alkenones and planktic foraminifera and document the first sea surface temperature (SST) and productivity estimates for the MCO and the Middle Miocene Climate Transition (MMCT) from the continental shelf. Increased levels of planktic foraminifer species diversity and surface productivity accompany high sea level intervals of the MCO, indicating coastal upwelling. Cooling episodes correlate to unconformities in the BG&E core that reflect sea level lowstands; these and sedimentary cycles tie the record to eccentricity-paced Antarctic ice sheet growth and decay. This dynamic record not only captures the variability in SST, sea level and coastal productivity during the warm MCO and the transition to cooler global temperatures during the MMCT, but it also demonstrates the variability in local conditions within and between intervals of high sea level.

Climate-driven dinoflagellate cyst stratigraphy of the Oligocene-lower Miocene turbidite succession of the Lower Congo Basin (offshore NW Angola)

Biostratigraphic studies of cuttings from wells located in the Lower Congo Basin, offshore northwestern Angola, document with unprecedented wealth of data the organic-walled dinoflagellate cyst (dinocyst) assemblages of the Malembo Formation. The identification of a series of dinocyst events (highest and lowest occurrences, influxes and acmes) recurring in the same stratigraphic position in different wells and cross-calibrated by calcareous nannofossil data, provides a tool for age control and correlation of the Oligocene and lower Miocene in the equatorial and South Atlantic region.Proceeding downwards in the stratigraphy of the examined succession, the lowest occurrence of Pyxidinopsis pastilliformis, detected within the CN3 nannofossil Zone, approximates the Langhian-Burdigalian boundary, whereas the lowest occurrences of Sumatradinuim druggii and Sumatradinium hispidum occur at the base of the CN2 nannofossil Zone in the Burdigalian. The lowest occurrences of Sumatradinium soucouyantiae and Barssidinium taxandrianum fall within the Zone of acme of Hystrichokolpoma rigaudiae at the Burdigalian-Aquitanian transition, and immediately above the acmes of Cribroperidinium tenuitabulatum and Systematophora-Cleistosphaeridium group that are supposed to reflect climate cooling pulse Mi-1a. The presence of Chiropteridium spp. and Membranophoridium aspinatum is limited to the upper part of the Chattian. An influx of Tuberculodinium vancampoae, possibly related to a warmer interlude during a period of overall climate cooling, occurs in proximity of the Chattian-Rupelian boundary. The nearly synchronous highest occurrences of Gerdiocysta conopeum, Eocladopyxis peniculata and Heterosphaeridium sp. provide a robust infra-Rupelian biohorizon. Further down in the Rupelian, the influxes of Pentadinium laticinctutm and Distatodinium paradoxum are interpreted as responses to cooling pulses. The lowest occurrence of G. conopeum, detected in the basal part of the NP23 nannofossil Zone, corresponds to the global first appearance of this excellent Rupelian marker. Genera Deflandrea and Wetzeliella are noticeably missing in the studied material just as they lack in some coeval dinocyst assemblages reported in the literature from low paleolatitude Atlantic sections.The recorded alternation of influxes and acmes of Gonyaulacoid dinocyst taxa indicative of cooler and warmer water conditions was probably climate-driven, i.e. paced by cooling pulses and relatively warmer interludes characterizing the climate evolution during the Oligocene and early Miocene. Indeed, the lack of acmes of Peridinioid cysts suggests that climate, rather than constantly elevated nutrient levels ensured by the Congo River discharge, was the discriminant factor triggering the observed blooms of Gonyaulacoid cyst-forming taxa.The delivery of large volumes of sands into deepwater settings via gravity-driven fluxes was favored by sea-level drops and is ultimately associated with pulses of climate cooling and Antarctic ice-sheet growth, finally reflected by the composition of the dinocyst assemblages. In addition to paleoecological factors, hydraulic fractionation resulting from sedimentary processes that transported palynomorphs down the slope as part of turbidite fluxes, contributed to shape the palynological assemblages observed in this study.

Low‐Latitude Calcareous Nannofossil Response in the Indo‐Pacific Warm Pool Across the Eocene‐Oligocene Transition of Java, Indonesia

AbstractWe reconstruct the calcareous nannofossil response to the Eocene‐Oligocene Transition (EOT)—the most significant climate transition of the Cenozoic—in the Indo‐Pacific Warm Pool. Data from south central Java consist of species relative abundance counts of well‐preserved nannofossil assemblages. From the late middle Eocene to early Oligocene species biodiversity declined, with the most rapid species loss occurring across the latest Eocene rosette‐shaped discoaster extinction event (DEE; ~34.44–34.77 Ma). A decline in abundance of oligotrophic indicator taxa across the DEE indicates increased nutrient supply to the tropical surface ocean in the early stages of the EOT. The mean lith size of reticulofenestrids also increases across the DEE driven by a marked reduction in the abundance of small Reticulofenestra morphotypes (<3.5 μm). There is no preferential loss of larger Reticulofenestra cell sizes (coccoliths > 8 μm) across the EOT, indicating that coccolith size was apparently not limited by atmospheric CO2 concentrations at this time. Overall, the main phase of tropical phytoplankton ecosystem change preceded the interval of rapid Antarctic ice sheet growth and is closely associated with the biotic perturbations that define the start of the EOT. This suggests that enhancement of Southern Ocean controls on tropical ocean biogeochemistry and nutrient pathways may have played a role in triggering the transition to an icehouse climate state.

Antarctic ice-sheet sensitivity to obliquity forcing enhanced through ocean connections

Deep sea geological records indicate that Antarctic ice-sheet growth and decay is strongly influenced by the Earth’s astronomical variations (known as Milankovitch cycles), and that the frequency of the glacial–interglacial cycles changes through time. Here we examine the emergence of a strong obliquity (axial tilt) control on Antarctic ice-sheet evolution during the Miocene by correlating the Antarctic margin geological records from 34 to 5 million years ago with a measure of obliquity sensitivity that compares the variance in deep sea sediment core oxygen-isotope data at obliquity timescales with variance of the calculated obliquity forcing. Our analysis reveals distinct phases of ice-sheet evolution and suggests the sensitivity to obliquity forcing increases when ice-sheet margins extend into marine environments. We propose that this occurs because obliquity-driven changes in the meridional temperature gradient affect the position and strength of the circum-Antarctic easterly flow and enhance (or reduce) ocean heat transport across the Antarctic continental margin. The influence of obliquity-driven changes in ocean dynamics is amplified when marine ice sheets are extensive, and sea ice is limited. Our reconstruction of the Antarctic ice-sheet history suggests that if sea-ice cover decreases in the coming decades, ocean-driven melting at the ice-sheet margin will be amplified. The sensitivity of the Antarctic ice sheet to obliquity increases when ice-sheet margins are exposed to the ocean, suggests an analysis of sediment core oxygen isotope records.

The rise and fall of the Cretaceous Hot Greenhouse climate

Abstract A compilation of foraminiferal stable isotope measurements from southern high latitude (SHL) deep-sea sites provides a novel perspective important for understanding Earth's paleotemperature and paleoceanographic changes across the rise and fall of the Cretaceous Hot Greenhouse climate and the subsequent Paleogene climatic optimum. Both new and previously published results are placed within an improved chronostratigraphic framework for southern South Atlantic and southern Indian Ocean sites. Sites studied were located between 58° and 65°S paleolatitude and were deposited at middle to upper bathyal paleodepths. Oxygen isotope records suggest similar trends in both bottom and surface water temperatures in the southern sectors of the South Atlantic and in the Indian Ocean basins. Warm conditions were present throughout the Albian, extreme warmth existed during the Cretaceous Thermal Maximum (early-mid-Turonian) through late Santonian, and long-term cooling began in the Campanian and culminated in Cretaceous temperature minima during the Maastrichtian. Gradients between surface and seafloor δ18O and δ13C values were unusually high throughout the 11.5 m.y. of extreme warmth during the Turonian-early Campanian, but these vertical gradients nearly disappeared by the early Maastrichtian. In absolute terms, paleotemperature estimates that use standard assumptions for pre-glacial seawater suggest sub-Antarctic bottom waters were ≥21 °C and sub-Antarctic surface waters were ≥27 °C during the Turonian, values warmer than published climate models support. Alternatively, estimated temperatures can be reduced to the upper limits of model results through freshening of high latitude waters but only if there were enhanced precipitation of water with quite low δ18O values. Regardless, Turonian planktonic δ18O values are ~1.5‰ lower than minimum values reported for the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) from the same region, a difference which corresponds to Turonian surface temperatures ~6 °C warmer than peak PETM temperatures if Turonian and Paleocene temperatures are estimated using the same assumptions. It is likely that warm oceans surrounding and penetrating interior Antarctica (given higher relative sea level) prevented growth of Antarctic ice sheets at all but the highest elevations from the late Aptian through late Campanian; however, Maastrichtian temperatures may have been cool enough to allow growth of small, ephemeral ice sheets. The standard explanation for the sustained warmth during Cretaceous Hot Greenhouse climate invokes higher atmospheric CO2 levels from volcanic outgassing, but correlation among temperature estimates, proxy estimates of pCO2, and intervals of high fluxes of both mafic and silicic volcanism are mostly poor. This comparison demonstrates that the relative timing between events and their putative consequences need to be better constrained to test and more fully understand relationships among volcanism, pCO2, temperature ocean circulation, Earth's biota and the carbon cycle.

Export of nutrient rich Northern Component Water preceded early Oligocene Antarctic glaciation

The onset of the North Atlantic Deep Water formation is thought to have coincided with Antarctic ice-sheet growth about 34 million years ago (Ma). However, this timing is debated, in part due to questions over the geochemical signature of the ancient Northern Component Water (NCW) formed in the deep North Atlantic. Here we present detailed geochemical records from North Atlantic sediment cores located close to sites of deep-water formation. We find that prior to 36 Ma, the northwestern Atlantic was stratified, with nutrient-rich, low-salinity bottom waters. This restricted basin transitioned into a conduit for NCW that began flowing southwards approximately one million years before the initial Antarctic glaciation. The probable trigger was tectonic adjustments in subarctic seas that enabled an increased exchange across the Greenland–Scotland Ridge. The increasing surface salinity and density strengthened the production of NCW. The late Eocene deep-water mass differed in its carbon isotopic signature from modern values as a result of the leakage of fossil carbon from the Arctic Ocean. Export of this nutrient-laden water provided a transient pulse of CO2 to the Earth system, which perhaps caused short-term warming, whereas the long-term effect of enhanced NCW formation was a greater northward heat transport that cooled Antarctica.

Silicate Weathering and Carbon Cycle Controls on the Oligocene‐Miocene Transition Glaciation

AbstractChanges in both silicate weathering rates and organic carbon burial have been proposed as drivers of the transient “Mi‐1” glaciation event at the Oligocene‐Miocene transition (OMT; ~23 Ma). However, detailed geochemical proxy data are required to test these hypotheses. Here we present records of Li/Ca, Mg/Ca, Cd/Ca, U/Ca, δ18O, δ13C, and shell weight in planktonic foraminifera from marine sediments spanning the OMT in the equatorial Atlantic Ocean. Li/Ca values increase by 1 μmol/mol across this interval. We interpret this to indicate an ~20% increase in silicate weathering rates, which would have lowered atmospheric CO2, potentially forcing the Antarctic glaciation ~ 23 Ma. δ13C of thermocline dwelling planktonic foraminifera track the global increase in seawater δ13C across the OMT and during the Mi‐1 event, hence supporting a hypothesized global increase in organic carbon burial rates. High δ13C previously measured in epipelagic planktonic foraminifera and high Cd/Ca ratios during Mi‐1 are interpreted to represent locally enhanced primary productivity, stimulated by increased nutrients supply to surface waters. The fingerprint of high export production and associated organic carbon burial at this site is found in reduced bottom water oxygenation (inferred from high foraminiferal U/Ca) and enhanced respiratory dissolution of carbonates, characterized by reduced foraminiferal shell weight. Replication of our results elsewhere would strengthen the case that weathering‐induced CO2 sequestration preconditioned climate for Antarctic ice sheet growth across the OMT, and increased burial of organic carbon acted as a feedback that intensified cooling at this time.

Enhanced weathering and CO2 drawdown caused by latest Eocene strengthening of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation

On timescales significantly greater than 105 years, atmospheric pCO2 is controlled by the rate of mantle outgassing relative to the set-point of the silicate weathering feedback. The weathering set-point has been shown to depend on the distribution and characteristics of rocks exposed at the Earth’s surface, vegetation types and topography. Here we argue that large-scale climate impacts caused by changes in ocean circulation can also modify the weathering set-point and show evidence suggesting that this played a role in the establishment of the Antarctic ice sheet at the Eocene–Oligocene boundary. In our simulations, tectonic deepening of the Drake Passage causes freshening and stratification of the Southern Ocean, strengthening the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation and consequently raising temperatures and intensifying rainfall over land. These simulated changes are consistent with late Eocene tectonic reconstructions that show Drake Passage deepening, and with sediment records that reveal Southern Ocean stratification, the emergence of North Atlantic Deep Water, and a hemispherically asymmetric temperature change. These factors would have driven intensified silicate weathering and can thereby explain the drawdown of carbon dioxide that has been linked with Antarctic ice sheet growth. We suggest that this mechanism illustrates another way in which ocean–atmosphere climate dynamics can introduce nonlinear threshold behaviour through interaction with the geologic carbon cycle. During the latest Eocene, declining atmospheric CO2 levels led to the inception of the Antarctic ice sheet. Simulations suggest that the deepening of the Drake Passage caused climate changes that enhanced continental weathering and CO2 drawdown.

Equatorial heat accumulation as a long-term trigger of permanent Antarctic ice sheets during the Cenozoic

Growth of the first permanent Antarctic ice sheets at the Eocene-Oligocene Transition (EOT), ∼33.7 million years ago, indicates a major climate shift within long-term Cenozoic cooling. The driving mechanisms that set the stage for this glaciation event are not well constrained, however, owing to large uncertainties in temperature reconstructions during the Eocene, especially at lower latitudes. To address this deficiency, we used recent developments in coccolith biogeochemistry to reconstruct equatorial Atlantic sea surface temperature (SST) and atmospheric pCO2 values from pelagic sequences preceding and spanning the EOT. We found significantly more variability in equatorial SSTs than previously reported, with pronounced cooling from the Early to Middle Eocene and subsequent warming during the Late Eocene. Thus, we show that the Antarctic glaciation at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary was preceded by a period of heat accumulation in the low latitudes, likely focused in a progressively contracting South Atlantic gyre, which contributed to cooling high-latitude austral regions. This prominent redistribution of heat corresponds to the emplacement of a strong meridional temperature gradient that typifies icehouse climate conditions. Our equatorial coccolith-derived geochemical record thus highlights an important period of global climatic and oceanic upheaval, which began 4 million years before the EOT and, superimposed on a long-term pCO2 decline, drove the Earth system toward a glacial tipping point in the Cenozoic.

The Eocene-Oligocene climate transition in the Central Paratethys

We studied two boreholes (Cserépváralja-1 and Kiscell-1) with continuous sedimentary records across the Eocene-Oligocene climate transition from the Central Paratethyan area. Assemblages of benthic foraminifera display a shift in dominance by epifaunal taxa in the late Eocene to shallow and deep infaunal taxa in the early Oligocene. Using the benthic foraminiferal oxygen index (BFOI), a decreasing trend of bottom-water oxygen levels is established across the Eocene-Oligocene transition (EOT), leading to the development of dysoxic conditions later in the early Oligocene.Trends in δ18O and δ13C values measured on tests of selected benthic and planktic foraminifera roughly parallel those of the global record of stepped EOT δ18O increase and deviate only later in the early Oligocene, related to the isolation of the Paratethys. The overall similarity of the isotope curves and the presence of a planktic-benthic ecological offset suggest that the original isotope trends are preserved, despite the systematically more negative δ18O values. Of different scenarios, a quasi-uniform diagenetic overprint by fluids with low δ18O values, during burial or uplift, appears best supported. We conclude that the globally established isotopic expression of Antarctic ice sheet growth across the EOT may be recognizable in the Paratethys. Deviations from the global trends after the EOT were caused by regional paleoceanographic changes induced by the progressing Alpine orogeny and sea-level change, which led to a restricted connection with the open ocean, freshwater influx from increased precipitation, and gradual development of bottom-water oxygen depletion.

Southern Ocean phytoplankton turnover in response to stepwise Antarctic cooling over the past 15 million years

It is not clear how Southern Ocean phytoplankton communities, which form the base of the marine food web and are a crucial element of the carbon cycle, respond to major environmental disturbance. Here, we use a new model ensemble reconstruction of diatom speciation and extinction rates to examine phytoplankton response to climate change in the southern high latitudes over the past 15 My. We identify five major episodes of species turnover (origination rate plus extinction rate) that were coincident with times of cooling in southern high-latitude climate, Antarctic ice sheet growth across the continental shelves, and associated seasonal sea-ice expansion across the Southern Ocean. We infer that past plankton turnover occurred when a warmer-than-present climate was terminated by a major period of glaciation that resulted in loss of open-ocean habitat south of the polar front, driving non-ice adapted diatoms to regional or global extinction. These findings suggest, therefore, that Southern Ocean phytoplankton communities tolerate "baseline" variability on glacial-interglacial timescales but are sensitive to large-scale changes in mean climate state driven by a combination of long-period variations in orbital forcing and atmospheric carbon dioxide perturbations.

Late Miocene–Pliocene Asian monsoon intensification linked to Antarctic ice-sheet growth

Environmental conditions in one of Earth's most densely populated regions, East Asia, are dominated by the monsoon. While Quaternary monsoon variability is reasonably well understood, pre-Quaternary monsoon variability and dynamics remain enigmatic. In particular, little is known about potential relationships between northern hemispheric monsoon response and major Cenozoic changes in Antarctic ice cover. Here we document long-term East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) intensification through the Late Miocene–Pliocene (∼8.2 to 2.6 Ma), and attribute this to progressive Antarctic glaciation. Our new high-resolution magnetic records of long-term EASM intensification come from the Late Miocene–Pliocene Red Clay sequence on the Chinese Loess Plateau; we identify underlying mechanisms using a numerical climate-model simulation of EASM response to an idealized stepwise increase in Antarctic ice volume. We infer that progressive Antarctic glaciation caused intensification of the cross-equatorial pressure gradient between an atmospheric high-pressure cell over Australia and a low-pressure cell over mid-latitude East Asia, as well as intensification of the cross-equatorial sea-surface temperature (SST) gradient. These combined atmospheric and oceanic adjustments led to EASM intensification. Our findings offer a new and more global perspective on the controls behind long-term Asian monsoon evolution.

The Cenozoic Cooling – continental signals from the Atlantic and Pacific side of Eurasia

The evolution of Cenozoic continental climate signals from the Atlantic and Pacific side of Eurasia can be assessed for the first time by comparing climate records obtained for two mid-latitudinal regions. For the West, a detailed climate record over the past 45 Ma, based on palaeofloras from two Northern German Cenozoic basins (Mosbrugger et al., 2005) revealed major trends and shorter-term events throughout the Cenozoic Cooling, thus testifying the close correlation of continental and marine temperature evolution as derived from oxygen isotopes (Zachos et al., 2008). Using the same methodology, we analyze a total of 14 floral horizons originating from continental strata of Southern Primory'e (Russia) in order to study the evolution at the eastern side of the continent. The Primory'e record spans the middle Eocene to early Pleistocene. As the coeval record for the Atlantic side, it reflects major global signals of Cenozoic climate change such as the temperature decline throughout the late Eocene, coinciding with the growth of Antarctic Ice-sheets, warming during the Mid-Miocene Climatic Optimum, and step-wise cooling throughout the later Neogene. The comparison of both records reveals differing regional patterns. The considerable longitudinal temperature gradient, currently existing between both study areas, already began to evolve during the Aquitanian, and was very significant during the Mid-Miocene Climatic Optimum. The temperature offset between East and West is likely attributable to an effective North Atlantic Current, already operational from the late early Miocene onwards bringing about mild winters and low seasonality in Western Europe, while in Primory'e, seasonality steadily increased from the late Oligocene on. The strong late Pliocene decline of cold month mean temperatures recorded in Primory'e is supposed to coincide with the establishment of the Siberian High as semi-permanent structure of the Northern Hemisphere circulation pattern. When comparing the precipitation records obtained for both study areas, an unexpected co-variability at the longer-term (in the order of 5–20 Ma) is noted, pointing to continent-wide hydrological changes. The steady decline of mean annual precipitation in the Primory'e record, beginning in the Bartonian and culminating in the Aquitanian, coincides with an aridity increase reported from coeval Chinese inland localities of the mid-latitudes. The seasonality patterns of rainfall point to progressive intensification of the East Asian Summer Monsoon in Primory'e since the later Tortonian while the post-Zanclean decline of the precipitation of the dry season can be related to an increasing impact of the winter monsoon.

Antarctic glaciation caused ocean circulation changes at the Eocene-Oligocene transition.

Two main hypotheses compete to explain global cooling and the abrupt growth of the Antarctic ice sheet across the Eocene-Oligocene transition about 34 million years ago: thermal isolation of Antarctica due to southern ocean gateway opening, and declining atmospheric CO2 (refs 5, 6). Increases in ocean thermal stratification and circulation in proxies across the Eocene-Oligocene transition have been interpreted as a unique signature of gateway opening, but at present both mechanisms remain possible. Here, using a coupled ocean-atmosphere model, we show that the rise of Antarctic glaciation, rather than altered palaeogeography, is best able to explain the observed oceanographic changes. We find that growth of the Antarctic ice sheet caused enhanced northward transport of Antarctic intermediate water and invigorated the formation of Antarctic bottom water, fundamentally reorganizing ocean circulation. Conversely, gateway openings had much less impact on ocean thermal stratification and circulation. Our results support available evidence that CO2 drawdown--not gateway opening--caused Antarctic ice sheet growth, and further show that these feedbacks in turn altered ocean circulation. The precise timing and rate of glaciation, and thus its impacts on ocean circulation, reflect the balance between potentially positive feedbacks (increases in sea ice extent and enhanced primary productivity) and negative feedbacks (stronger southward heat transport and localized high-latitude warming). The Antarctic ice sheet had a complex, dynamic role in ocean circulation and heat fluxes during its initiation, and these processes are likely to operate in the future.

Characterising the middle Miocene Mi-events in the Eastern North Atlantic realm: A first high-resolution marine palynological record from the Porcupine Basin

The warm climate of the Miocene peaked during the middle Miocene Climatic Optimum (MMCO; 17–14.5Ma). After the MMCO, global climate went through several short-lived cooling events: the Mi-events (Miocene isotope events). One of the more severe Mi-events is Mi-3, associated with East Antarctic Ice Sheet growth, species turnover in terrestrial and marine realms, Northern Hemisphere and mid-latitude aridification and Antarctic sea-surface temperature cooling. CO2 reconstructions, as well as the aforementioned observations, suggest that a drawdown of CO2 and/or changes in ocean circulation led to the changes surrounding Mi-3. A combination of eccentricity and obliquity amplitude modulation minima, favourable conditions for ice growth, has also been suggested as a possible triggering mechanism. However, an exact cause cannot be pinpointed yet. High-resolution records necessary to investigate the exact order of events surrounding Mi-3 and the possible role of orbital forcing, a very likely trigger, are sparse.Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Leg 307 recovered such a high resolution record from the middle Miocene at the Porcupine Basin (offshore south-western Ireland). Well-preserved palynomorphs, mainly organic-walled dinoflagellate cysts, acritarchs and some pollen were extracted from Site U1318, and relative and absolute abundance changes were determined. Using dinocysts and calcareous nannoplankton the age model for the record was improved. Based on the palynology, the Mi-3a, Mi-3b and Mi-4 events were successfully identified and concomitant palaeoenvironmental change was observed. These events, although different in magnitude, can be associated with a decrease in sea-surface temperature, as well as with a likely fall in sea-level. Furthermore, possible palaeoenvironmental preferences of 5 dinocyst taxa were determined, based on observations from the record and multivariate statistics.

Early East Antarctic Ice Sheet growth recorded in the landscape of the Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains

The Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains are regarded as a key nucleation site for the Antarctic Ice Sheet and they retain a unique long-term record of pre-glacial and early glacial landscape evolution. Here, we use a range of morphometric analyses to constrain the nature of early glaciation and subsequent ice sheet evolution in the interior of East Antarctica, using a new digital elevation model of the Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains, derived from an extensive airborne radar survey. We find that an inherited fluvial landscape confirms the existence of the Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains prior to the onset of glaciation at the Eocene–Oligocene climate boundary (ca. 34Ma). Features characteristic of glaciation, at a range of scales, are evident across the mountains. High elevation alpine valley heads, akin to cirques, identified throughout the mountains, are interpreted as evidence for early phases of glaciation in East Antarctica. The equilibrium line altitudes associated with these features, combined with information from fossil plant assemblages, suggest that they formed at, or prior to, 34Ma. It cannot be ruled out that they may have been eroded by ephemeral ice between the Late Cretaceous and the Eocene (100–34Ma). Hanging valleys, overdeepenings, truncated spurs and steep-sided, linear valley networks are indicative of a more widespread alpine glaciation in this region. These features represent ice growth at, or before, 33.7Ma and provide a minimum estimate for the scale of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet between ca. 34 and 14Ma, when dynamic fluctuations in ice extent are recorded at the coast of Antarctica. The implications are that the early East Antarctic Ice Sheet grew rapidly and developed a cold-based core that preserved the alpine landscape. The patterns of landscape evolution identified provide the earliest evidence for the development of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet and can be used to test coupled ice–climate evolution models.

Modulation of Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic climate by variable drawdown of atmospheric <i>p</i>CO<sub>2</sub> from weathering of basaltic provinces on continents drifting through the equatorial humid belt

Abstract. The small reservoir of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere (pCO2) that modulates climate through the greenhouse effect reflects a delicate balance between large fluxes of sources and sinks. The major long-term source of CO2 is global outgassing from sea-floor spreading, subduction, hotspot activity, and metamorphism; the ultimate sink is through weathering of continental silicates and deposition of carbonates. Most carbon cycle models are driven by changes in the source flux scaled to variable rates of ocean floor production, but ocean floor production may not be distinguishable from being steady since 180 Ma. We evaluate potential changes in sources and sinks of CO2 for the past 120 Ma in a paleogeographic context. Our new calculations show that decarbonation of pelagic sediments by Tethyan subduction contributed only modestly to generally high pCO2 levels from the Late Cretaceous until the early Eocene, and thus shutdown of this CO2 source with the collision of India and Asia at the early Eocene climate optimum at around 50 Ma was inadequate to account for the large and prolonged decrease in pCO2 that eventually allowed the growth of significant Antarctic ice sheets by around 34 Ma. Instead, variation in area of continental basalt terranes in the equatorial humid belt (5° S–5° N) seems to be a dominant factor controlling how much CO2 is retained in the atmosphere via the silicate weathering feedback. The arrival of the highly weatherable Deccan Traps in the equatorial humid belt at around 50 Ma was decisive in initiating the long-term slide to lower atmospheric pCO2, which was pushed further down by the emplacement of the 30 Ma Ethiopian Traps near the equator and the southerly tectonic extrusion of SE Asia, an arc terrane that presently is estimated to account for 1/4 of CO2 consumption from all basaltic provinces that account for ~1/3 of the total CO2 consumption by continental silicate weathering (Dessert et al., 2003). A negative climate-feedback mechanism that (usually) inhibits the complete collapse of atmospheric pCO2 is the accelerating formation of thick cation-deficient soils that retard chemical weathering of the underlying bedrock. Nevertheless, equatorial climate seems to be relatively insensitive to pCO2 greenhouse forcing and thus with availability of some rejuvenating relief as in arc terranes or thick basaltic provinces, silicate weathering in this venue is not subject to a strong negative feedback, providing an avenue for ice ages. The safety valve that prevents excessive atmospheric pCO2 levels is the triggering of silicate weathering of continental areas and basaltic provinces in the temperate humid belt. Excess organic carbon burial seems to have played a negligible role in atmospheric pCO2 over the Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic.

Deciphering the role of southern gateways and carbon dioxide on the onset of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current

Growth of Antarctic ice sheet during the Cenozoic 34 million years ago appears as a potential tipping point in the long term cooling trend that began 50 Ma ago. For decades, the onset of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) following the opening of the Drake Passage and of the Tasman Seaway has been suggested as the main driver of the continental‐scale Antarctic glaciation. However, recent modeling works emphasized that the Eocene/Oligocene atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) lowering could be the primary forcing of the Antarctic glaciation, questioning the ACC theory. Here, we investigate the response of the ACC to changes in CO2concentrations occurring from the late Eocene to the late Oligocene. We used a fully coupled atmosphere‐ocean model (FOAM) with a mid‐Oligocene geography. We find that the opening of southern oceanic gateways does not trigger the onset of the ACC for CO2typical of the late Eocene (>840 ppm). A cooler background climatic state such as the one prevalent at the end of the Oligocene is required to simulate a well‐developed ACC. In this cold configuration, the intensified sea‐ice development around Antarctica and the resulting brine formation lead to a strong latitudinal density gradient in the Southern Ocean favoring the compensation of the Ekman transport, and consequently the ACC. Our results imply that the ACC has acted as a feedback rather than as a driver of the global cooling.

Early Oligocene Continental Climate of the Palaeogene Basin (Hungary and Slovenia) and the Surrounding Area

This paper concentrates on the Early Oligocene palaeoclimate of the southern part of Eastern and Central Europe and gives a detailed climatological analysis, combined with leaf-morphological studies and modelling of the palaeoatmospheric CO_2 level using stomatal and \delta^1^3C data. Climate data are calculated using the Coexistence Approach for Kiscellian floras of the Palaeogene Basin (Hungary and Slovenia) and coeval assemblages from Central and Southeastern Europe. Potential microclimatic or habitat variations are considered using morphometric analysis of fossil leaves from Hungarian, Slovenian and Italian floras. Reconstruction of CO_2 is performed by applying a recently introduced mechanistic model. Results of climate analysis indicate distinct latitudinal and longitudinal climate patterns for various variables which agree well with reconstructed palaeogeography and vegetation. Calculated climate variables in general suggest a warm and frost-free climate with low seasonal variation of temperature. A difference in temperature parameters is recorded between localities from Central and Southeastern Europe, manifested mainly in the mean temperature of the coldest month. Results of morphometric analysis suggest microclimatic or habitat difference among studied floras. Extending the scarce information available on atmospheric CO_2 levels during the Oligocene, we provide data for a well-defined time-interval. Reconstructed atmospheric CO_2 levels agree well with threshold values for Antarctic ice sheet growth suggested by recent modelling studies. The successful application of the mechanistic model for the reconstruction of atmospheric CO_2 levels raises new possibitities for future climate inference from macro-flora studies.