Northern Hemisphere Glaciation Research Articles

Complex patterns of glacier advances during the late glacial in the Chagan Uzun Valley, Russian Altai

Abstract The Southern part of the Russian Altai Mountains is recognized for its evidence of catastrophic glacial lake outbursts. However, little is known about the late Pleistocene paleoglacial history, despite the interest in such reconstructions for constraining paleoclimate. In this study, we present a detailed paleoglaciological reconstruction of the Chagan Uzun Valley, in the Russian Altai Mountains, combining for the first time detailed geomorphological mapping, sedimentological logging, and in situ cosmogenic 10Be and 26Al surface exposure dating of glacially-transported boulders. The Chagan Uzun Valley exhibits the most impressive glacial landforms of this sector of the Altai, with extensive lobate moraine belts deposited in the intramontane Chuja Basin, reflecting a series of pronounced former glacial advances. Observations of “hillside-scale” folding and extensive faulting of pre-existing soft sediments within the outer moraine belts, together with the geomorphology, strongly indicate that these moraine belts were formed during surge-like events. Identification of surge-related features is essential for paleoclimate inference because these features correspond to a glacier system that is not in equilibrium with the contemporary climate, but instead largely influenced by various internal and external factors. Therefore, no strict relationship can be established between climatic variables and the pronounced distal glacial extent observed in the Chagan Uzun Valley/Chuja basin. In contrast, the inner (up-valley) glacial landforms of the Chagan Uzun valley were likely deposited during retreat of temperate valley glaciers, close to equilibrium with climate, and so most probably triggered by a general warming. Cosmogenic ages associated with the outermost, innermost, and intermediate moraines all indicate deposition times clustered around 19 ka. However, the actual deposition time of the outermost moraine may slightly predate the 10Be ages due to shielding caused by subsequent lake water coverage. This chronology indicates a Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 2 last maximum extent of the Chagan Uzun Glacier, and an onset of the deglaciation around 19 ka. This is consistent with other regional paleoclimate proxy records and with the Northern Hemisphere glaciation chronology. Finally, this study also highlights the highly dynamic environment in this area, with complex interactions between glacial events and the formation and drainage of lakes.

Changes and influencing factors in biogenic opal export productivity in the Bering Sea over the last 4.3 Ma: Evidence from the records at IODP Site U1340

AbstractWe reconstructed changes in biogenic opal export productivity (BOEP) in the southern Bering Sea (BS) over the last ∼4.3 Ma, based on mass accumulation rate (MAR) of biogenic opal from Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Site U1340. The results show that the BOEP in the BS was high and variable between ∼4.3 and ∼1.9 Ma, extremely low and relatively stable from ∼1.9 to ∼1.1 Ma, and then fluctuated frequently (generally high during interglacials and low during glacials) during the last ∼1.1 Ma. One interval of enhanced BOEP from ∼4.3 to ∼3.2 Ma is a response to the Late Miocene‐Early Pliocene “Biogenic Bloom Event.” Another interval from ∼2.8 to ∼1.9 Ma correlates with global opal burial shifting from high‐latitude oceans to upwelling‐influenced regions following the intensification of the Northern Hemisphere Glaciation (NHG). Whereas, the increase in BS opal export productivity during the last ∼1.1 Ma tends to be a “local” phenomenon. Overall, the BOEP shows a similar trend and good correspondence to the input of the Alaskan Stream (AS), which can be traced using the Na2O/K2O ratio. We thus conclude that the AS may be the direct, and primary factor on BOEP variability in the BS during the last ∼4.3 Ma. In addition, although the poor correlation between opal MAR and volcanic glass suggests that BOEP variability was not controlled by long‐term variations in the volcanism or ash abundance, increased ash abundance indicated by high contents of volcanic glasses was also a possible reason for enhanced BOEP during the period from ∼4.3 to ∼3.2 Ma and the last ∼0.5 Ma.

Neogene Climate, Terrestrial Mammals and Flora of the Indian Subcontinent

Being part of the Oriental Biogeographic Province the fauna and flora of India have evolved under an essentially monsoonal climatic condition during much of the Neogene. The Neogene climate was influenced by several factors that include suturing of the Indian and Asian plates, uplift of the Himalayas, change in the ocean current directions and northern hemisphere glaciations. Overall, the Early Neogene witnessed a warm and humid condition followed by a rather cooler and drier regime during the later stages.

Millennial-Scale Interaction between Ice Sheets and Ocean Circulation during Marine Isotope Stage 100

Waxing/waning of the ice sheets and the associated change in thermohaline circulation have played an important role in global climate change since major continental ice sheets appeared in the northern hemisphere about 2.75 million years ago. In the earliest glacial stages, however, establishment of the linkage between ice sheet development and ocean circulation remain largely unclear. Here we show new high-resolution records of marine isotope stage 100 recovered from deep-sea sediments on the Gardar Drift, in the subpolar North Atlantic. Results of a wide range of analyses clearly reveal the influence of millennial-scale variability in iceberg discharge on ocean surface condition and bottom current variability in the subpolar North Atlantic during marine isotope stage 100. We identified eight events of ice-rafted debris, which occurred mostly with decreases in sea surface temperature and in current components indicating North Atlantic Deep Water. These decreases are interpreted by weakened deep water formation linked to iceberg discharge, similarly to observations from the last glacial period. Dolomite fraction of the ice-rafted events in early MIS 100 like the last glacial Heinrich events suggests massive collapse of the Laurentide ice sheet in North America. At the same time, our early glacial data suggest differences from the last glacial period: absence of 1470-year periodicity in the interactions between ice sheets and ocean, and northerly shift of the ice-rafted debris belt. Our high-resolution data largely improve the picture of ice-sheet/ocean interactions on millennial time scales in the early glacial period after major Northern Hemisphere glaciation.

Transitional changes in microfossil assemblages in the Japan Sea from the Late Pliocene to Early Pleistocene related to global climatic and local tectonic events

Many micropaleontological studies based on data from on-land sections, oil wells, and deep-sea drilling cores have provided important information about environmental changes in the Japan Sea that are related to the global climate and the local tectonics of the Japanese Islands. Here, major changes in the microfossil assemblages during the Late Pliocene to Early Pleistocene are reviewed. Late Pliocene (3.5–2.7 Ma) surface-water assemblages were characterized mainly by cold–temperate planktonic flora and fauna (nannofossils, diatoms, radiolarians, and planktonic foraminifera), suggesting that nutrient-rich North Pacific surface waters entered the Japan Sea via northern straits. The common occurrence of Pacific-type deep-water radiolarians during this period also suggests that deep water from the North Pacific entered the Japan Sea via the northern straits, indicating a sill depth >500 m. A weak warm-water influence is recognized along the Japanese coast, suggesting a small inflow of warm water via a southern strait. Nannofossil and sublittoral ostracod assemblages record an abrupt cooling event at 2.75 Ma that correlates with the onset of the Northern Hemisphere glaciation. Subsequently, cold intermediate- and deep-water assemblages of ostracods and radiolarians increased in abundance, suggesting active ventilation and the formation of the Japan Sea Proper Water, associated with a strengthened winter monsoon. Pacific-type deep-water radiolarians also disappeared around 2.75 Ma, which is attributed to the intermittent occurrence of deep anoxic environments and limited migration from the North Pacific, resulting from the near-closure or shallowing of the northern strait by a eustatic fall in sea level and tectonic uplift of northeastern Japan. A notable reduction in primary productivity from 2.3 to 1.3 Ma also suggests that the nutrient supply from the North Pacific was restricted by the near-closure of the northern strait. An increase in the abundance of subtropical surface fauna suggests that the inflow of the Tsushima Warm Current into the Japan Sea via a southern strait began at 1.7 Ma. The opening of the southern strait may have occurred after the subsidence of southwestern Japan.

Plio-Pleistocene evolution of water mass exchange and erosional input at the Atlantic-Arctic gateway

Water mass exchange between the Arctic Ocean and the Norwegian-Greenland Seas has played an important role for the Atlantic thermohaline circulation and Northern Hemisphere climate. We reconstruct past water mass mixing and erosional inputs from the radiogenic isotope compositions of neodymium (Nd), lead (Pb), and strontium (Sr) at Ocean Drilling Program site 911 (leg 151) from 906 m water depth on Yermak Plateau in the Fram Strait over the past 5.2 Myr. The isotopic compositions of past bottom waters were extracted from authigenic oxyhydroxide coatings of the bulk sediments. Neodymium isotope signatures obtained from surface sediments agree well with present-day deepwater eNd signature of −11.0 ± 0.2. Prior to 2.7 Ma the Nd and Pb isotope compositions of the bottom waters only show small variations indicative of a consistent influence of Atlantic waters. Since the major intensification of the Northern Hemisphere Glaciation at 2.7 Ma the seawater Nd isotope composition has varied more pronouncedly due to changes in weathering inputs related to the waxing and waning of the ice sheets on Svalbard, the Barents Sea, and the Eurasian shelf, due to changes in water mass exchange and due to the increasing supply of ice-rafted debris (IRD) originating from the Arctic Ocean. The seawater Pb isotope record also exhibits a higher short-term variability after 2.7 Ma, but there is also a trend toward more radiogenic values, which reflects a combination of changes in input sources and enhanced incongruent weathering inputs of Pb released from freshly eroded old continental rocks.

Late Cenozoic submarine slope failures in the southern North Sea – Evolution and controlling factors

During the Late Miocene to early Pleistocene sedimentation in the southern North Sea Basin was dominated by a westward prograding depositional system. Progradation is evidenced by a series of large-scale, westward dipping clinoforms with amplitudes of up to 400 m. The clinoforms are related to a shelf-slope-basin physiography during deposition and their development and growth reflects the basinward migration of the Late Cenozoic shelf margin through time. Numerous submarine slope failures occurred on the shelf margin during this time, recognized as kilometer-scale mass-transport deposits (MTDs). Comparatively little is known about the earliest slope failures on this prograding shelf margin, yet their role is important in developing a coherent understanding of the origins of the instability of the margin as a whole. In this study we present detailed analyses of the first MTDs occurring on this Late Cenozoic shelf margin. Based on interpretation of 2D seismic reflection profiles, borehole data and integration of new chronostratigraphic datings the development and causes of slope instabilities are reconstructed. Three MTDs are distinguished within the German part of the southern North Sea, one (MTD1) that has been displaced in the Late Tortonian and two (MTD 2/3) in the Piacenzian. MTD 1 was triggered by salt-induced seismicity, as evident from salt-related faulting of the Late Cenozoic succession in its headwall domain. Pore pressure build up due to fluid migration from deeper levels in combination with loading imposed to the basin by the prograding shelf prism are the main factors controlling the initiation of MTDs 2 and 3.Subsequent slope failures occurring during shelf progradation within the Dutch North Sea are much more frequent compared to the earliest slope failures. The development from a relatively stable shelf margin towards a margin affected by repeated slope failures coincides approximately with the intensification of Northern Hemisphere Glaciations during Pleistocene times. The development and deposition of the MTDs in the Dutch North Sea is clearly linked to climate-driven environmental changes, whereas prior to the Pleistocene failure mechanisms are preferably limited to those independent of glaciations and associated sea level changes and therefore fewer failures have occurred.

Incursions of southern-sourced water into the deep North Atlantic during late Pliocene glacial intensification

Northern Hemisphere ice sheets expanded 2.7 million years ago. Sediment geochemistry suggests that at this time, the North Atlantic began to experience incursions of southern-sourced water during glacials, similar to the last glacial period. The circulation and internal structure of the oceans exert a strong influence on Earth’s climate because they control latitudinal heat transport and the segregation of carbon between the atmosphere and the abyss1. Circulation change, particularly in the Atlantic Ocean, is widely suggested2,3,4,5 to have been instrumental in the intensification of Northern Hemisphere glaciation when large ice sheets first developed on North America and Eurasia during the late Pliocene, approximately 2.7 million years ago6. Yet the mechanistic link and cause/effect relationship between ocean circulation and glaciation are debated. Here we present new records of North Atlantic Ocean structure using the carbon and neodymium isotopic composition of marine sediments recording deep water for both the Last Glacial to Holocene (35–5 thousand years ago) and the late Pliocene to earliest Pleistocene (3.3–2.4 million years ago). Our data show no secular change. Instead we document major southern-sourced water incursions into the deep North Atlantic during prominent glacials from 2.7 million years ago. Our results suggest that Atlantic circulation acts as a positive feedback rather than as an underlying cause of late Pliocene Northern Hemisphere glaciation. We propose that, once surface Southern Ocean stratification7 and/or extensive sea-ice cover5 was established, cold-stage expansions of southern-sourced water such as those documented here enhanced carbon dioxide storage in the deep ocean, helping to increase the amplitude of glacial cycles.

Quaternary glaciation and the Great American Biotic Interchange

Recent geological studies demonstrate that the Isthmus of Panama emerged some 10 m.y. earlier than previously assumed. Although absent today in Panama, Central American savanna environments likely developed in connection with the onset of Northern Hemisphere glaciations. As is widely recognized, most of the mammals crossing the isthmus since 2.5 Ma lived in savannas. Could climate-induced vegetational changes across Panama explain the delayed migration of mammals, rather than terrestrial connectivity? We investigate the congruence between cross-continental mammal migration and climate change through analysis of fossil data and molecular phylogenies. Evidence from fossil findings shows that the vast majority of mammals crossed between South and North America after ca. 3 Ma. By contrast, dated mammal phylogenies suggest that migration events started somewhat earlier, ca. 4–3 Ma, but allowing for biases toward greater ages of molecular than geologic dating and uncertainties in the former, we consider this age range not to be significantly earlier than 3 Ma. We conclude that savanna-like environments developed in response to the vast Laurentide ice sheet at the first Quaternary glaciation triggered the initiation of the Great American Biotic Interchange in mammals.

Changing exhumation patterns during Cenozoic growth and glaciation of the Alaska Range: Insights from detrital thermochronology and geochronology

Cenozoic growth of the Alaska Range created the highest topography in North America, but the space-time pattern and drivers of exhumation are poorly constrained. We analyzed U/Pb and fission-track double dates of detrital zircon and apatite grains from 12 catchments that span a 450 km length of the Alaska Range to illuminate the timing and extent of exhumation during different periods. U/Pb ages indicate a dominant Late Cretaceous to Oligocene plutonic provenance for the detrital grains, with only a small percentage of grains recycled from the Mesozoic and Paleozoic sedimentary cover. Fission-track ages record exhumation during Alaska Range growth and incision and reveal three distinctive patterns. First, initial Oligocene exhumation was focused in the central Alaska Range at ~30 Ma and expanded outward along the entire length of the range until 18 Ma. Oligocene exhumation, coeval with initial Yakutat microplate collision >600 km to the southeast, suggests a far-field response to collision that was localized by the Denali Fault within a weak Mesozoic suture zone. Second, the variable timing of middle to late Miocene exhumation suggests independently evolving histories influenced by local structures. Time-transgressive cooling ages suggest successive rock uplift and erosion of Mounts Foraker (12 Ma) through Denali (6 Ma) as crust was advected through a restraining bend in the Denali Fault and indicate a long-term slip rate ~4 mm/yr. Third, Pliocene exhumation is synchronous (3.7–2.7 Ma) along the length of the Alaska Range but only occurs in high-relief, glacier-covered catchments. Pliocene exhumation may record an acceleration in glacial incision that was coincident with the onset of Northern Hemisphere glaciation.

What causes the ice ages in the late Pliocene and Pleistocene?

For more than a century, two families of ice age theories have been proposed: insolation based theories proposed by Adhemar, and atmospheric CO2 ones proposed by Tyndall. The major technique advance of deep-sea sediment drilling, as well as new interpretations of stable oxygen isotopic composition of the deep-sea fossil foraminifera, which is regarded as a proxy index of continental ice volume and sea water temperature, established the now well recognized glacial-interglacial variations in climate over the late Pliocene and Pleistocene, e.g. ~3 Ma. A landmark progress came from Hays et al. (1976) who unambiguously demonstrated that the change in insolation induced by the Earth’s axial tilt (obliquity), the wobble of this tilt (precession), and the degree of circularity of the Earth’s orbit around the sun (eccentricity) brings on ice ages (glaciations) every hundred thousand years or so during the Pleistocene. Many subsequent observations, from the deep-sea to continental records, confirmed the co-variation between insolation and the alternation of glacial ice age phases, and warmer interglacial phases, at least in terms of frequency domains. However, these findings cannot explain the so called ~100 ka conundrum, where the size of 100 ka insolation forcing is relatively small yet the apparent ice sheet response is large, as well as the bi-polar symmetry in climate changes at precessional frequency of ~23 ka, despite the fact that the precession cycle drives insolation changes in antiphase between the two hemispheres. As such, other factors may be considered in the driving of Northern Hemisphere Glaciation (NHG) global glacial-interglacial variations. Several hypotheses have been put forward, such as: (1) the gradual decreasing CO2 drove global cooling through to a threshold value where insolation changes may force the ice age cycles; (2) the effect of local insolation that modulated the East Antarctica Ice Sheet after the gradual CO2 decline that drove its growth to maximal extent; (3) the Southern Ocean “marine biological pump” changes forced by the ocean water stratification and current changes that modulated the atmospheric CO2 thus triggered ice ages; (4) the clearing of regolith under the North American ice sheets which modulate ice sheet thickness and extent changes which allow the ice sheets to grow further south and be influenced more by precessional cycles, as well as strengthened the fresh bedrock weathering and drawdown more atmospheric CO2; and (5) because ice mass balance depends on whether the temperature is above or below the freezing point, a physically more relevant parameter to measure insolation forcing should be the insolation integrated over a given threshold that allows for ice melting, and thus triggering the glaciations. Unfortunately, we cannot determine which one is right or several of them acting together so far. The most distinct features of the ice age climate are both the onset of the NHG at ~2.7 Ma and the transition of ~41 ka based glacial-interglacial cycles to cycles of a ~100 ka dominated frequency at ~1.0 Ma, namely the Early Middle Pleistocene Transition. We suggest that, both insolation and CO2 changes together forced the climate of the ice ages: the stepwise cooling that occurred at ~2.7 Ma and ~1.0 Ma may be linked with gradual atmospheric CO2 reduction, during which the atmospheric CO2 levels fell to a threshold value that triggered high-latitude (both poles) ice expansion. Under a new cooling state since ~2.7 Ma, the dominant climatic cycle at ~41 ka was forced by obliquity (orbital tilt), while the ~23 ka precession cycle was cancelled by opposing effects at both poles. On the other hand, we propose that the ~100 ka cycles that became dominant following approximately 1 Ma were forced by a CO2 based “marine biological pump” change in the Southern Ocean, or is related to stochastic behavior of the ice sheets. The ~400 ka eccentricity cycle, which is a stronger absolute influence on insolation is an outstanding rhythm in the late Cenozoic, yet is not as strong in climate records as the precessional and obliquity cycles during the late Pliocene and Pleistocene, and thus needs further examination. In summary, we suggest ice ages are caused by the integrated forcing of insolation, atmospheric CO2, ocean conveyer and ice sheet feedback etc., in which the insolation forcing is primary, a threshold value of the other facts was attained, the ice age happened. However, our hypothesis is very tentative, more investigation is still needed on what causes the ice ages.

Plio‐Pleistocene glacial‐interglacial productivity changes in the eastern equatorial Pacific upwelling system

AbstractThe eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean (EEP) upwelling system supports >10% of the present‐day global ocean primary production, making it an important component in Earth's atmospheric and marine carbon budget. Traditionally, it has been argued that since intensification of Northern Hemisphere glaciation (iNHG, ~2.7 Ma), changes in EEP productivity have predominantly depended on trade wind strength‐controlled upwelling intensity. An alternative hypothesis suggests that EEP productivity is primarily controlled by nutrient supply from the high southern latitudes via mode waters. Here we present new high‐resolution data for the latest Pliocene/early Pleistocene from Ocean Drilling Program Site 849, located within the equatorial divergence system in the heart of the EEP upwelling regime. We use carbon isotopes in benthic and planktic foraminiferal calcite and sand accumulation rates to investigate glacial‐interglacial (G‐IG) productivity fluctuations between 2.65 and 2.4 Ma (marine isotope stages (MIS) G1 to 94). This interval includes MIS 100, 98, and 96, three large‐amplitude glacials (~1‰ in benthic δ18O) representing the culmination of iNHG. Our results suggest that latest Pliocene/early Pleistocene G‐IG productivity changes in the EEP were strongly controlled by nutrient supply from Southern Ocean‐sourced mode waters. Our records show a clear G‐IG cyclicity from MIS 100 onward with productivity levels increasing from full glacial conditions and peaking at glacial terminations. We conclude that enhanced nutrient delivery from high southern latitudes during full glacial conditions together with superimposed intensified regional upwelling toward glacial terminations strongly regulated primary productivity rates in the EEP from MIS 100 onward.

Rapid Last Glacial Maximum deglaciation in the Indian Himalaya coeval with midlatitude glaciers: New insights from 10Be‐dating of ice‐polished bedrock surfaces in the Chandra Valley, NW Himalaya

AbstractDespite a large number of dated glacial landforms in the Himalaya, the ice extent during the global Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) from 19 to 23 ka is only known to first order. New cosmogenic 10Be exposure ages from well‐preserved glacially polished surfaces, combined with published data, and an improved production rate scaling model allow reconstruction of the LGM ice extent and subsequent deglaciation in the Chandra Valley of NW India. We show that a >1000 m thick valley glacier retreated >150 km within a few thousand years after the onset of LGM deglaciation. By comparing the recession of the Chandra Valley Glacier and other Himalayan glaciers with those of Northern and Southern Hemisphere glaciers, we demonstrate that post‐LGM deglaciation was similar and nearly finished prior to the Bølling/Allerød interstadial. Our study supports the view that many Himalayan glaciers advanced during the LGM, likely in response to global variations in temperature.

Seasonality fluctuations recorded in fossil bivalves during the early Pleistocene: Implications for climate change

Understanding the transformations of the climate system may help to predict and reduce the effects of global climate change. The geological record provides a unique archive that documents the long-term fluctuations of environmental variables, such as seasonal change. Here, we investigate how seasonal variation in seawater temperatures varied in the Mediterranean Sea during the early Pleistocene, approaching the Early-Middle Pleistocene Transition (EMPT) and the beginning of precession-driven Quaternary-style glacial–interglacial cycles. We performed whole-shell and sclerochemical stable isotope analyses (δ18O, δ13C) on bivalves, collected from the lower Pleistocene Arda River marine succession (northern Italy), after checking shell preservation. Our results indicate that seawater temperature seasonality was the main variable of climate change in the Mediterranean area during the early Pleistocene, with the Northern Hemisphere Glaciation (NHG) exerting a control on the Mediterranean climate. We show that strong seasonality (14.4–16.0°C range) and low winter paleotemperatures (0.8–1.6°C) were likely the triggers leading to the establishment of widespread populations of so called “northern guests” (i.e., cold water taxa) in the Mediterranean Sea around 1.80Ma. The shells postdating the arrival of the “northern guests” record a return to lower seasonal variations and higher seawater paleotemperatures, with seasonality increasing again approaching the EMPT; the latter, however, is not associated with a corresponding cooling of mean seawater paleotemperatures, showing that the observed seasonality variation represents a clear signal of progressive climate change in the Mediterranean Sea.

Seismic geomorphological reconstructions of Plio-Pleistocene bottom current variability at Goban Spur

High-resolution single channel sparker reflection seismic data revealed the presence of large-scale sediment waves nearby DSDP Site 548, located on Goban Spur. They developed in a gentle terraced environment which contrasts with the canyon-incised Celtic margin, and the relatively smooth Porcupine Seabight to the north. Based upon the morphological characteristics of the observed seabed and buried sediment waves, energetic alongslope bottom currents are thought to be the driving mechanism for the sediment wave development. These currents are driven on their turn by an enhanced internal tide regime that could be attributed to the introduction of the Mediterranean Outflow Water. The DSDP Site 548 downhole geophysical data and the seismic stratigraphic analysis allowed the differentiation of three sequences that relate to evolutionary stages since the lower Pliocene. The sequences are bounded by local erosional events, associated with mass wasting events, which seem to occur roughly synchronously to major northern hemisphere glaciations, respectively during the Lower Pleistocene (~2.5 to 2.15Ma), and the Middle Pleistocene (~0.45Ma). The lower sequence (from ~4.5 to ~2.15Ma) shows no morphological evidence of bottom-current driven sedimentation. It is however settled over a smooth erosional surface which could indicate the introduction of the Mediterranean Outflow Water. The intermediate sequence is characterised by large-scale sediment waves that have gradually developed in close association with palaeo-seafloor irregularities. It is inferred that the sedimentation resumed with a relative bottom current energy increase. The youngest sequence recorded active sediment wave formation, similar to the previous sequence. Although the Goban Spur sediment waves cannot be regarded as contourite drifts as such, their stratigraphic evolution corresponds to other well-documented contourite depositional systems, influenced by the Mediterranean Outflow Water.

Reconstruction of MIS 5 climate in the central Levant using a stalagmite from Kanaan Cave, Lebanon

Abstract. Lying at the transition between the temperate Mediterranean domain and subtropical deserts, the Levant is a key area to study the palaeoclimatic response over glacial–interglacial cycles. This paper presents a precisely dated last interglacial (MIS 5) stalagmite (129–84 ka) from the Kanaan Cave, Lebanon. Variations in growth rate and isotopic records indicate a warm humid phase at the onset of the last interglacial at ~ 129 ka that lasted until ~ 125 ka. A gradual shift in speleothem isotopic composition (125–122 ka) is driven mainly by the δ18O source effect of the eastern Mediterranean surface waters during sapropel 5 (S5). The onset of glacial inception began after ~ 122 ka, interrupted by a short wet pulse during the sapropel 4 (S4) event. Low growth rates and enriched oxygen and carbon values until ~ 84 ka indicate a transition to drier conditions during Northern Hemisphere glaciation.

Plio‐Pleistocene increase of erosion rates in mountain belts in response to climate change

AbstractHere, we review an ensemble of observations that point towards a global increase of erosion rates in regions of elevated mountain belts, or otherwise high relief, since the onset of Northern Hemisphere Glaciation about 2–3 Ma. During that period of Earth's history, atmospheric CO2 concentrations may have dropped, and global climate cooled and evolved towards high‐amplitude oscillating conditions that are associated with the waxing and waning of continental ice sheets in the Northern Hemisphere. We argue for a correlation between climate change and increased erosion rates and relief production, which we attribute to some combination of the observed cooling, onset of glaciation, and climatic oscillation at orbital timescales. In our view, glacial erosion played a major role and is driven by the global cooling. Furthermore, analyses of the sedimentary fluxes of many mountain belts show peaks of erosion during the transitions between glacial and inter‐glacial periods, suggesting that the variable climatic conditions have also played a role.

RAD-seq data point to a northern origin of the arctic–alpine genus Cassiope (Ericaceae)

Many arctic–alpine plants display a highly disjunct distribution between the Arctic/Boreal regions and the southern Asian mountains. Two main hypotheses have been proposed to explain the origin of this biogeographic pattern: (1) south-to-north migration in the late Pliocene/early Pleistocene, and (2) north-to-south migration during the Miocene. The genus Cassiope is disjunctly distributed between the Arctic/Boreal regions and the Himalayan–Hengduan Mountains (HHM) and was selected to test these hypotheses. We constructed a fossil-calibrated phylogeny of Ericaceae using two plastid regions to estimate the crown group age of Cassiope, and used sequence data from thousands of loci produced by restriction site associated DNA sequencing (RAD-seq) to reconstruct the phylogeny of Cassiope. We also performed Bayesian divergence time analysis and biogeographic analysis. The Cassiope crown group was estimated to have originated in the Miocene, which predates the onset of Northern hemisphere glaciation. All HHM species formed a clade together with one eastern Siberian species, and this clade was sister to all other Arctic/Boreal species. This topology implies a northern origin of Cassiope, which is confirmed by our biogeographic analysis. Our results thus suggest that the ancient north-to-south migration hypothesis is most consistent with the origin of Cassiope.

Increased seasonality during the intensification of Northern Hemisphere glaciation at the Pliocene–Pleistocene boundary ∼2.6 Ma

Near the Pliocene–Pleistocene (Neogene–Quaternary) boundary during Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 104 at around 2.6 Ma, the intensification of Northern Hemisphere glaciation (iNHG) was marked by a southward shift of the North Atlantic Current and Arctic Front and a concurrent drop in sea surface temperature (SST) in the mid-latitudes of the North Atlantic. Here we evaluate two Mg/Ca-based sea-surface temperature reconstructions for the 2.78–2.52 Ma interval using the planktonic foraminifera Globigerina bulloides and Globigerinoides ruber (white) sensu stricto as the biotic carriers (SSTbul and SSTrub), and a reconstruction based on the alkenone saturation index (SSTalk). The Mg/Ca-based SST estimates begin to diverge from one another significantly during MIS G3 (∼2.66 Ma), culminating during MIS 104 (∼2.60 Ma), and remaining distinctly different for the remaining 80 kyr of the studied interval. The magnitude of this divergence (ΔSSTrub-bul) is caused mainly by a decrease in SSTbul, with SSTrub remaining relatively constant. We attribute this difference to a drop in SST during the early-spring blooming season of G. bulloides that was less pronounced during the late-summer blooming season of G. ruber. Using ΔSSTrub-bul as a seasonality indicator, we show that seasonality increased significantly owing to a drop in early spring temperatures from MIS 104 onwards, and peaked during glacial episodes. Maximum seasonality occurred during MIS 104 in coincidence with a major expansion of the circum-Atlantic ice sheets, particularly the North American ice sheet. This expansion appears to have had a critical influence on global climate and especially seasonality.

Radiometric dating re-evaluating the paleoenvironment and paleoclimate around the Plio–Pleistocene boundary in NE China (Changbai Mountains)

Today, NE China is highly affected by cold and dry winter monsoon winds, causing long and severe winters with monthly mean temperatures below −10°C. Yet, the Neogene paleoclimatic history of this region is not well understood due to the lack of precisely dated paleontological localities. Herein, we present several Ar–Ar basalt ages round a plant-bearing diatomite sequence of Badaogou, Changbai Mountains (Jilin Province; NE China — border to N-Korea), which allow us to revise its age from Miocene to ~2.5Ma. A paleoenvironmental reconstruction based on fossil leaves, pollen and diatoms suggests deciduous forests rich in Acer, Quercus, Tilia, Ulmus and Zelkova mixed with conifers such as Tsuga, Picea and Abies within an already established mountain region close by. These forests were growing around a nutrient rich freshwater system with a pH >7 in a presumably deep basin indicated by the strong dominance of planktonic diatoms Stephanodiscus minutulus and Pliocaenicus changbaiensis. The presence of tree taxa known from southern China today, such as Sassafras, Nyssa, Liquidambar, Podocarpus and Cedrus, leads to significantly warmer temperature estimates by the Coexistence Approach (mean annual temperature 11.5–15.7°C, coldest month mean temperature −0.3–9.6°C, warmest month mean temperature 23.0–27.8°C). Rainfall values aren't as precise, but suggest a mean annual precipitation of 843–1577mm with monthly extremes of 109–220mm (wettest), 17–41mm (driest) and 73–175mm (warmest). Although records in Eastern and Northern Asia as well as Central China report a cooling and drying after the onset of the Northern Hemisphere glaciation, the paleovegetation in NE China was not yet or hardly affected by the intensification of the winter monsoon. This emphasizes the importance of accurately dated records to improve large-scale paleoclimatic reconstruction as well as our understanding of the complexity of climate change.