Response to Comment on “A 12-million-year temperature history of the tropical Pacific Ocean”

Science ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 346 (6216) ◽  
pp. 1467.2-1467 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Ge Zhang ◽  
Mark Pagani ◽  
Zhonghui Liu
Keyword(s):  
Warm Pool ◽  
Temperature Data ◽  
Temperature Gradients ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Temperature History ◽  
Tropical Pacific Ocean ◽  
The Past ◽  
Pacific Warm Pool ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Tropical Pacific

Contrary to our conclusions, Ravelo et al. argue that our TEX86-based sea surface temperature (SST) records do not conflict with the supposition of “permanent El Niño–like” conditions during the early Pliocene. We show that the way Ravelo et al. treat the existing temperature data perpetuates an inaccurate impression of cooler Pacific warm-pool SSTs and low equatorial temperature gradients in the past.

A 12-Million-Year Temperature History of the Tropical Pacific Ocean

Science ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 344 (6179) ◽  
pp. 84-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Ge Zhang ◽  
Mark Pagani ◽  
Zhonghui Liu
Keyword(s):  
El Niño ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Warm Pool ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Temperature History ◽  
Seawater Chemistry ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Pacific Warm Pool ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Tropical Pacific

The appearance of permanent El Niño–like conditions prior to 3 million years ago is founded on sea-surface temperature (SST) reconstructions that show invariant Pacific warm pool temperatures and negligible equatorial zonal temperature gradients. However, only a few SST records are available, and these are potentially compromised by changes in seawater chemistry, diagenesis, and calibration limitations. For this study, we establish new biomarker-SST records and show that the Pacific warm pool was ~4°C warmer 12 million years ago. Both the warm pool and cold tongue slowly cooled toward modern conditions while maintaining a zonal temperature gradient of ~3°C in the late Miocene, which increased during the Plio-Pleistocene. Our results contrast with previous temperature reconstructions that support the supposition of a permanent El Niño–like state.

Comment on “A 12-million-year temperature history of the tropical Pacific Ocean”

Science ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 346 (6216) ◽  
pp. 1467.1-1467 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Christina Ravelo ◽  
Kira Trillium Lawrence ◽  
Alexey Fedorov ◽  
Heather Louise Ford
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Warm Pool ◽  
Tropical Pacific ◽  
Temperature History ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Tropical Pacific Ocean ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Tropical Pacific ◽  
New View

Zhang et al. (Reports, 4 April 2014, p. 84) interpret TEX86 and U37K' paleotemperature data as providing a fundamentally new view of tropical Pacific climate during the warm Pliocene period. We argue that, within error, their Pliocene data actually support previously published data indicating average western warm-pool temperature similar to today and a reduced zonal gradient, referred to as a permanent El Niño–like state.

scholarly journals Modulation of the Meridional Structures of the Indo-Pacific Warm Pool on the Response of the Hadley Circulation to Tropical SST

2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (21) ◽  
pp. 8971-8984 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Feng ◽  
Jianping Li ◽  
Fred Kucharski ◽  
Yaqi Wang ◽  
Cheng Sun ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Sea Surface Temperature ◽  
Hadley Circulation ◽  
Warm Pool ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Response Ratio ◽  
The Past ◽  
Pacific Warm Pool ◽  
Mean Sea Surface ◽  
Sst Anomalies

By decomposing the variations of the Hadley circulation (HC) and tropical zonal-mean sea surface temperature (SST) into the equatorially asymmetric (HEA for HC, SEA for SST) and symmetric (HES for HC, SES for SST) components, the varying response of the HC to different SST meridional structures under warm and cold conditions of the Indo-Pacific warm pool (IPWP) is investigated over the period 1979–2016. The response of the HC to SST evidences an asymmetric variation between warm and cold IPWP conditions; that is, the response ratio of HEA to SEA relative to that of HES to SES is ~5 under warm conditions and ~2 under cold conditions. This asymmetry is primarily due to a decrease in the HEA-to-SEA ratio under cold IPWP conditions, and is driven by changes in the meridional distribution of SST anomalies. Equatorial asymmetric (symmetric) SST anomalies are dominated by warm (cold) IPWP conditions. Thus, variations of SEA are suppressed under cold IPWP conditions, contributing to the observed weakening of the HEA-to-SEA ratio. The results presented here indicate that the HC is more sensitive to the underlying SST when the IPWP is warmer, during which the variation of SEA is enhanced, suggesting a recent strengthening of the response of the HC to SST, as the IPWP has warmed over the past several decades, and highlighting the importance of the IPWP meridional structures rather than the overall warming of the HC.

Stable sea surface temperatures in the western Pacific warm pool over the past 1.75 million years

Nature ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 433 (7023) ◽  
pp. 294-298 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thibault de Garidel-Thoron ◽  
Yair Rosenthal ◽  
Franck Bassinot ◽  
Luc Beaufort
Keyword(s):  
Warm Pool ◽  
Western Pacific ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Western Pacific Warm Pool ◽  
Sea Surface Temperatures ◽  
The Past ◽  
Surface Temperatures ◽  
Pacific Warm Pool ◽  
The Western Pacific

Isolation of sea surface salinity maps on various timescales in the tropical Pacific Ocean

2012 ◽  
Vol 68 (5) ◽  
pp. 687-701 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jian Chen ◽  
Ren Zhang ◽  
Huizan Wang ◽  
Yuzhu An ◽  
Peng Peng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
Tropical Pacific ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Sea Surface Salinity ◽  
Tropical Pacific Ocean ◽  
Surface Salinity ◽  
The Tropical Pacific

scholarly journals La Niña-driven flooding in the Indo-Pacific warm pool during the past millennium

2019 ◽  
Vol 225 ◽  
pp. 106020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica R. Rodysill ◽  
James M. Russell ◽  
Mathias Vuille ◽  
Sylvia Dee ◽  
Brent Lunghino ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Warm Pool ◽  
La Niña ◽  
The Past ◽  
La Nina ◽  
Pacific Warm Pool ◽  
Past Millennium

scholarly journals Hydroclimate of the western Indo-Pacific Warm Pool during the past 24,000 years

2014 ◽  
Vol 111 (26) ◽  
pp. 9402-9406 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eva M. Niedermeyer ◽  
Alex L. Sessions ◽  
Sarah J. Feakins ◽  
Mahyar Mohtadi
Keyword(s):  
Warm Pool ◽  
The Past ◽  
Pacific Warm Pool
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