scholarly journals The role of Northeast Pacific meltwater events in deglacial climate change

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (9) ◽  
pp. eaay2915 ◽  
Author(s):  
Summer K. Praetorius ◽  
Alan Condron ◽  
Alan C. Mix ◽  
Maureen H. Walczak ◽  
Jennifer L. McKay ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ocean Circulation ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Sediment Cores ◽  
Younger Dryas ◽  
Columbia River ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Subsurface Water ◽  
Last Deglaciation ◽  
Northeast Pacific ◽  
The North

Columbia River megafloods occurred repeatedly during the last deglaciation, but the impacts of this fresh water on Pacific hydrography are largely unknown. To reconstruct changes in ocean circulation during this period, we used a numerical model to simulate the flow trajectory of Columbia River megafloods and compiled records of sea surface temperature, paleo-salinity, and deep-water radiocarbon from marine sediment cores in the Northeast Pacific. The North Pacific sea surface cooled and freshened during the early deglacial (19.0-16.5 ka) and Younger Dryas (12.9-11.7 ka) intervals, coincident with the appearance of subsurface water masses depleted in radiocarbon relative to the sea surface. We infer that Pacific meltwater fluxes contributed to net Northern Hemisphere cooling prior to North Atlantic Heinrich Events, and again during the Younger Dryas stadial. Abrupt warming in the Northeast Pacific similarly contributed to hemispheric warming during the Bølling and Holocene transitions. These findings underscore the importance of changes in North Pacific freshwater fluxes and circulation in deglacial climate events.

Dating rapid climate change in the North Atlantic during Heinrich Stadial 1

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Burke ◽  
Rosanna Greenop ◽  
James Rae ◽  
Rhian Rees-Owen ◽  
Paula Reimer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Ocean Circulation ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Sediment Cores ◽  
Last Deglaciation ◽  
Large Reservoir ◽  
The North ◽  
The Last Deglaciation ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
Reservoir Age

<p>Paleoclimate records from the North Atlantic show some of the most iconic signals of abrupt climate change during the ice ages. Here we use radiocarbon as a tracer of ocean circulation and air-sea gas exchange to investigate potential mechanisms for the abrupt climate changes seen in the North Atlantic over the last deglaciation. We have created a stack of North Atlantic surface radiocarbon reservoir ages over the past 20,000 years, using new synchronized age models from thirteen sediment cores refined with thorium normalization between tie-points. This stack shows consistent and large reservoir age increases of more than 1000 years from the LGM into HS1, dropping abruptly back to approximately modern reservoir ages before the onset of the Bolling-Allerod. We use the intermediate complexity earth system model cGENIE to investigate the potential drivers of these reservoir age changes. We find that sea ice, circulation and CO<sub>2</sub> all play important roles in setting the reservoir age. We use these coherently dated records to revisit the sequence and timing of climatic events during HS1 and the last deglaciation, and show that Laurentide Heinrich Events are a response to stadial conditions, rather than their root cause.</p>

Forcing of Low-Frequency Ocean Variability in the Northeast Pacific*

2009 ◽  
Vol 22 (5) ◽  
pp. 1255-1276 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kettyah C. Chhak ◽  
Emanuele Di Lorenzo ◽  
Niklas Schneider ◽  
Patrick F. Cummins
Keyword(s):  
North Pacific ◽  
Ocean Dynamics ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Altimeter Data ◽  
Atmospheric Forcing ◽  
Ocean Variability ◽  
Northeast Pacific ◽  
The North ◽  
The Mean ◽  
The North Pacific

Abstract An ocean model is used to examine and compare the forcing mechanisms and underlying ocean dynamics of two dominant modes of ocean variability in the northeast Pacific (NEP). The first mode is identified with the Pacific decadal oscillation (PDO) and accounts for the most variance in model sea surface temperatures (SSTs) and sea surface heights (SSHs). It is characterized by a monopole structure with a strong coherent signature along the coast. The second mode of variability is termed the North Pacific Gyre Oscillation (NPGO). This mode accounts for the most variance in sea surface salinities (SSSs) in the model and in long-term observations. While the NPGO is related to the second EOF of the North Pacific SST anomalies (the Victoria mode), it is defined here in terms of SSH anomalies. The NPGO is characterized by a pronounced dipole structure corresponding to variations in the strengths of the eastern and central branches of the subpolar and subtropical gyres in the North Pacific. It is found that the PDO and NPGO modes are each tied to a specific atmospheric forcing pattern. The PDO is related to the overlying Aleutian low, while the NPGO is forced by the North Pacific Oscillation. The above-mentioned climate modes captured in the model hindcast are reflected in satellite altimeter data. A budget reconstruction is used to study how the atmospheric forcing drives the SST and SSH anomalies. Results show that the basinwide SST and SSS anomaly patterns associated with each mode are shaped primarily by anomalous horizontal advection of mean surface temperature and salinity gradients (∇ Tand ∇ S) via anomalous surface Ekman currents. This suggests a direct link of these modes with atmospheric forcing and the mean ocean circulation. Smaller-scale patterns in various locations along the coast and in the Gulf of Alaska are, however, not resolved with the budget reconstructions. Vertical profiles of the PDO and NPGO indicate that the modes are strongest mainly in the upper ocean down to 250 m. The shallowness of the modes, the depth of the mean mixed layer, and wintertime temperature profile inversions contribute to the sensitivity of the budget analysis in the regions of reduced reconstruction skill.

Palynological evidence of Holocene climate change in the eastern Arctic: a possible shift in the Arctic oscillation at the millennial time scaleThis article is one of a series of papers published in this Special Issue on the theme Polar Climate Stability Network.

2008 ◽  
Vol 45 (11) ◽  
pp. 1363-1375 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Ledu ◽  
André Rochon ◽  
Anne de Vernal ◽  
Guillaume St-Onge
Keyword(s):  
Arctic Ocean ◽  
Arctic Oscillation ◽  
North Atlantic Ocean ◽  
Sediment Cores ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Last Deglaciation ◽  
Holocene Climate ◽  
The North ◽  
The Arctic Oscillation

Dinocyst assemblages and the physical properties of two sediment cores collected in the easternmost part of the main axis of the Northwest Passage, Canadian Arctic Ocean (cores 2004-804-009 BC and 2004-804-009 PC, 74°11.2′N, 81°11.7′W) were used to reconstruct changes in sea-surface conditions and to characterize changes in the depositional environment. Core 2004-804-009 PC spans the last 12 180 calibrated (cal) years BP, with sedimentation rates ranging from 45 to 122 cm/ka. Quantitative estimates of sea-surface parameters reveal relatively large hydrographic variability at millennial time scale. Before 11 000 cal years BP, our records suggest terrigenous inputs related to the last deglaciation. Between 11 000 and 9600 cal years BP, harsh conditions prevailed with August sea-surface temperatures <2 °C and the dominance of heterotrophic taxa. This episode was followed by a gradual increase in the relative abundance of phototrophic taxa and the establishment of milder condition with sea-surface temperature (SST) reaching ∼2 °C ∼8300 cal years BP, possibly related to increased exchange between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean. From 6000 cal years BP to the late Holocene, climate variability could be the results of changes in the synoptic-scale atmospheric pattern such as the Arctic oscillation.

scholarly journals Foraminiferal Evidence of Younger Dryas Age Cooling on the British Columbia Shelf

2007 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 409-427 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Timothy Patterson ◽  
Jean-Pierre Guilbault ◽  
Richard E. Thomson ◽  
John L. Luternauer
Keyword(s):  
Ocean Circulation ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Younger Dryas ◽  
Ekman Transport ◽  
Aleutian Low ◽  
Weather Patterns ◽  
Low Salinity ◽  
The North ◽  
Summer Temperatures ◽  
The North Pacific

ABSTRACT Cluster analysis of foraminifera from a ~12,000-9000 radiocarbon year old piston core from Goose Island Trough, Queen Charlotte Sound, indicates that a cold interval correlative with the Younger Dryas stadial occurred during a shallow water phase. The reduction in depth was caused by the passage across the area, between 11,500 and 10,000 years BP, of a glacial forebulge associated with the retreat of the Late Wisconsinian ice sheets. Published sedimentological evidence indicate that water depths decreased to ~75-90 m, placing the site above the permanent North Pacific pycnocline (100 m). Low salinity-near glacial conditions, at these depths, between -11,100 and 10,000 years BP were recognized by abundant populations of Cassidulina reniforme and lslandiella helenae. This cold interval has also been recognized in cores from elsewhere in Queen Charlotte Sound. The depressed salinity and temperature may have resulted from a modification of regional weather patterns. Decreased mean continental summer temperatures could have reduced the seasonal influence of the North Pacific High and lengthened that of the Aleutian Low. This would have resulted in a near continuous onshore surface Ekman transport and enhanced coastal runoff, effectively blocking the movement onto the shelf of deep, saline, warm water of the California Undercurrent. The resultant isolated inshore basin comprised of present-day Hecate Strait and Queen Charlotte Sound is tentatively named the "Hecate Sea". By ~10,000 years BP, weather and ocean circulation had returned to near modern patterns as indicated by the disappearance of lslandiella helenae and by the development of an Epistominella vitrea - dominated biofacies.

Reorganization of the upper ocean circulation in the mid-Holocene in the northeastern AtlanticThis article is one of a series of papers published in this Special Issue on the theme Polar Climate Stability Network.GEOTOP Publication 2009-0002.

2008 ◽  
Vol 45 (11) ◽  
pp. 1417-1433 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandrine Solignac ◽  
Michael Grelaud ◽  
Anne de Vernal ◽  
Jacques Giraudeau ◽  
Matthias Moros ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ocean Circulation ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Sediment Cores ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
North Atlantic Current ◽  
The North ◽  
Relative Contribution ◽  
Climate Stability ◽  
Surface Circulation ◽  
Circulation Patterns

A micropaleontological investigation was conducted on two sediment cores from the Reykjanes Ridge (RR; core LO09-14; 59°12.30′N, 31°05.94′W) and the Faroe–Shetland Channel (FSC; core HM03-133-25; 60°06.55′N, 06°04.18′W) to document hydrographical changes of the North Atlantic Current (NAC) during the Holocene. Dinocyst and coccolith assemblages were analyzed, and quantitative reconstructions of sea surface temperatures (SSTs) and sea surface salinities (SSSs) were conducted based on dinocyst assemblages. Both proxies suggest a major reorganization of surface circulation patterns in the northeastern North Atlantic between 7 and 5.4 ka BP. At both sites, SSSs before 6.5–7 ka BP were lower than during the mid-late Holocene, suggesting dispersal of meltwater through the NAC. Long term trends of SSTs, however, show higher than present summer SSTs on the RR from 9.3 to ∼6 ka BP, and lower than present SSTs in the FSC until ca. 5.4 ka BP. The contrasted SST trends at the two sites suggest that decreasing summer insolation was not the only forcing behind hydrographical changes in the region. Decoupling of the NAC and the Slope Current (SC), which both influence the FSC, is proposed as a possible mechanism. We hypothesize that a strong NAC during the early to middle Holocene resulted in a SST increase on the RR and decrease in the FSC. Inversely, a weaker NAC after 5–6 ka BP, leading to decreased SSTs on the RR, would have enhanced the relative contribution of the warmer, saltier SC in the FSC, thus resulting in a regional SST and SSS increase.

scholarly journals Neural Network Approach to Retrieving Ocean Subsurface Temperatures from Surface Parameters Observed by Satellites

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 388
Author(s):  
Hao Cheng ◽  
Liang Sun ◽  
Jiagen Li
Keyword(s):  
Neural Network ◽  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
North Pacific Ocean ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Satellite Measurements ◽  
Surface Parameters ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Pacific ◽  
Bpnn Model

The extraction of physical information about the subsurface ocean from surface information obtained from satellite measurements is both important and challenging. We introduce a back-propagation neural network (BPNN) method to determine the subsurface temperature of the North Pacific Ocean by selecting the optimum input combination of sea surface parameters obtained from satellite measurements. In addition to sea surface height (SSH), sea surface temperature (SST), sea surface salinity (SSS) and sea surface wind (SSW), we also included the sea surface velocity (SSV) as a new component in our study. This allowed us to partially resolve the non-linear subsurface dynamics associated with advection, which improved the estimated results, especially in regions with strong currents. The accuracy of the estimated results was verified with reprocessed observational datasets. Our results show that the BPNN model can accurately estimate the subsurface (upper 1000 m) temperature of the North Pacific Ocean. The corresponding mean square errors were 0.868 and 0.802 using four (SSH, SST, SSS and SSW) and five (SSH, SST, SSS, SSW and SSV) input parameters and the average coefficients of determination were 0.952 and 0.967, respectively. The input of the SSV in addition to the SSH, SST, SSS and SSW therefore has a positive impact on the BPNN model and helps to improve the accuracy of the estimation. This study provides important technical support for retrieving thermal information about the ocean interior from surface satellite remote sensing observations, which will help to expand the scope of satellite measurements of the ocean.

The Role of Oscillating Southern Hemisphere Westerly Winds: Global Ocean Circulation

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 2111-2130
Author(s):  
Woo Geun Cheon ◽  
Jong-Seong Kug
Keyword(s):  
Ocean Circulation ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Global Ocean ◽  
The North ◽  
Westerly Winds ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
Global Ocean Circulation ◽  
The Antarctic ◽  
The North Pacific

AbstractIn the framework of a sea ice–ocean general circulation model coupled to an energy balance atmospheric model, an intensity oscillation of Southern Hemisphere (SH) westerly winds affects the global ocean circulation via not only the buoyancy-driven teleconnection (BDT) mode but also the Ekman-driven teleconnection (EDT) mode. The BDT mode is activated by the SH air–sea ice–ocean interactions such as polynyas and oceanic convection. The ensuing variation in the Antarctic meridional overturning circulation (MOC) that is indicative of the Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) formation exerts a significant influence on the abyssal circulation of the globe, particularly the Pacific. This controls the bipolar seesaw balance between deep and bottom waters at the equator. The EDT mode controlled by northward Ekman transport under the oscillating SH westerly winds generates a signal that propagates northward along the upper ocean and passes through the equator. The variation in the western boundary current (WBC) is much stronger in the North Atlantic than in the North Pacific, which appears to be associated with the relatively strong and persistent Mindanao Current (i.e., the southward flowing WBC of the North Pacific tropical gyre). The North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) formation is controlled by salt advected northward by the North Atlantic WBC.

The North Atlantic atmosphere-sea surface 14C gradient during the Younger Dryas climatic event

1994 ◽  
Vol 126 (4) ◽  
pp. 275-287 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edouard Bard ◽  
Maurice Arnold ◽  
Jan Mangerud ◽  
Martine Paterne ◽  
Laurent Labeyrie ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
North Atlantic ◽  
Younger Dryas ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
The North ◽  
Climatic Event ◽  
The North Atlantic

scholarly journals Relative timing of precipitation and ocean circulation changes in the western equatorial Atlantic over the last 45 kyr

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (9) ◽  
pp. 1315-1330 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire Waelbroeck ◽  
Sylvain Pichat ◽  
Evelyn Böhm ◽  
Bryan C. Lougheed ◽  
Davide Faranda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Transport ◽  
Ocean Circulation ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Wavelet Transforms ◽  
Water Mass ◽  
Sediment Cores ◽  
Equatorial Atlantic ◽  
The North ◽  
Atmospheric Changes ◽  
Circulation Changes

Abstract. Thanks to its optimal location on the northern Brazilian margin, core MD09-3257 records both ocean circulation and atmospheric changes. The latter occur locally in the form of increased rainfall on the adjacent continent during the cold intervals recorded in Greenland ice and northern North Atlantic sediment cores (i.e., Greenland stadials). These rainfall events are recorded in MD09-3257 as peaks in ln(Ti ∕ Ca). New sedimentary Pa ∕ Th data indicate that mid-depth western equatorial water mass transport decreased during all of the Greenland stadials of the last 40 kyr. Using cross-wavelet transforms and spectrogram analysis, we assess the relative phase between the MD09-3257 sedimentary Pa ∕ Th and ln(Ti ∕ Ca) signals. We show that decreased water mass transport between a depth of ∼1300 and 2300 m in the western equatorial Atlantic preceded increased rainfall over the adjacent continent by 120 to 400 yr at Dansgaard–Oeschger (D–O) frequencies, and by 280 to 980 yr at Heinrich-like frequencies. We suggest that the large lead of ocean circulation changes with respect to changes in tropical South American precipitation at Heinrich-like frequencies is related to the effect of a positive feedback involving iceberg discharges in the North Atlantic. In contrast, the absence of widespread ice rafted detrital layers in North Atlantic cores during D–O stadials supports the hypothesis that a feedback such as this was not triggered in the case of D–O stadials, with circulation slowdowns and subsequent changes remaining more limited during D–O stadials than Heinrich stadials.

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