scholarly journals High-resolution interpolar difference of atmospheric methane around the Last Glacial Maximum

2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 5471-5508 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Baumgartner ◽  
A. Schilt ◽  
O. Eicher ◽  
J. Schmitt ◽  
J. Schwander ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Resolution ◽  
Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
Methane Concentration ◽  
Ice Cores ◽  
Glacial Maximum ◽  
Atmospheric Methane ◽  
Before Present ◽  
Last Glacial ◽  
The Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
The Last Glacial

Abstract. Reconstructions of past atmospheric methane concentrations are available from ice cores from both, Greenland and Antarctica. The difference observed between the two polar methane concentration levels is a valuable additional parameter which allows to constrain the geographical location of the responsible methane sources. Here we present new high-resolution methane records from the North Greenland Ice Core Project (NGRIP) and the European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica (EPICA) Dronning Maud Land (EDML) ice cores covering Termination 1, the Last Glacial Maximum, and parts of the last glacial back to 32 000 years before present. Due to the high-resolution records the synchronisation between the ice cores from NGRIP and EDML is considerably improved and the interpolar concentration difference of methane is determined with unprecedented precision and temporal resolution. Relative to the mean methane concentration, we find a rather stable positive interpolar difference throughout the record with its minimum value of 3.7 ± 0.7 % between 21 900–21 200 years before present, which is higher than previously estimated in this interval close to the Last Glacial Maximum. This implies that Northern Hemisphere boreal wetland sources were never completely shut off during the peak glacial. Starting at 21 000 years before present, i.e. severval millenia prior to the transition into the Holocene, the relative interpolar difference becomes even more positive and stays at a fairly stable level of 6.5 ± 0.8 % during Termination 1. We hypothesise that the anti-correlation observed in the monsoon records from the Northern and Southern Hemispheres induces a methane source redistribution within lower latitudes, which could explain parts of the variations in the interpolar difference.

scholarly journals High-resolution interpolar difference of atmospheric methane around the Last Glacial Maximum

2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 3961-3977 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Baumgartner ◽  
A. Schilt ◽  
O. Eicher ◽  
J. Schmitt ◽  
J. Schwander ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Resolution ◽  
Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
Methane Concentration ◽  
Ice Cores ◽  
Glacial Maximum ◽  
Before Present ◽  
Concentration Difference ◽  
Last Glacial ◽  
The Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
The Last Glacial

Abstract. Reconstructions of past atmospheric methane concentrations are available from ice cores from both Greenland and Antarctica. The difference observed between the two polar methane concentration levels represents a valuable constraint on the geographical location of the methane sources. Here we present new high-resolution methane records from the North Greenland Ice Core Project (NGRIP) and the European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica (EPICA) Dronning Maud Land (EDML) ice cores covering Termination 1, the Last Glacial Maximum, and parts of the last glacial back to 32 000 years before present. Due to the high resolution of the records, the synchronisation between the ice cores from NGRIP and EDML is considerably improved, and the interpolar concentration difference of methane is determined with unprecedented precision and temporal resolution. Relative to the mean methane concentration, we find a rather stable positive relative interpolar difference throughout the record with its minimum value of 3.7 ± 0.7 % between 21 900–21 200 years before present, which is higher than previously estimated in this interval close to the Last Glacial Maximum. This implies that Northern Hemisphere boreal wetland sources were never completely shut off during the peak glacial, as suggested from previous bipolar methane concentration records. Starting at 21 000 years before present, i.e. several millennia prior to the transition into the Holocene, the relative interpolar difference becomes even more positive and stays at a fairly stable level of 6.5 ± 0.8 % during Termination 1. We thus find that the boreal and tropical methane sources increased by approximately the same factor during Termination 1. We hypothesise that latitudinal shifts in the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and the monsoon system contribute, either by dislocation of the methane source regions or, in case of the ITCZ, also by changing the relative atmospheric volumes of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, to the subtle variations in the relative interpolar concentration difference on glacial/interglacial as well as on millennial time scales.

scholarly journals N2O Measurements on Air Extracted from Antarctic Ice Cores (Abstract)

1988 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 222-222
Author(s):  
D. Zardini ◽  
D. Raynaud ◽  
D. Scharffe ◽  
W. Seiler
Keyword(s):  
Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
Ice Cores ◽  
Experimental Tests ◽  
Glacial Maximum ◽  
Recent Period ◽  
Air Samples ◽  
Last Glacial ◽  
Original Procedure ◽  
The Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
The Last Glacial

A method has been developed for measuring N2O concentrations in the air extracted from the bubbles contained in ice cores. The air extraction is performed by cutting the ice into very small pieces with a rotating knife, in a controlled atmosphere. The N2O concentrations are measured by gas chromatography. The complete original procedure will be discussed, and the results of the different experimental tests given, with a discussion of the uncertainties.This method has been used to perform about 40 measurements on Antarctic ice samples. Ten air samples from the D57 core date approximately from the beginning of the seventeenth and twentieth centuries. The others were taken from the Dome C core and date from the Holocene and the period around the Last Glacial Maximum. The D57 results are in agreement with those of Pearman and others (1986), leading to a similar pre-industrial N2O level (270-290 ppb volume). Furthermore, our Dome C results suggest that during the Last Glacial Maximum atmospheric N2O content was not drastically different from the recent period.

PMIP-carbon: towards a multi-models comparison of climate-carbon interactions at the Last Glacial Maximum

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathaelle Bouttes ◽  
Ruza Ivanovic ◽  
Ayako Abe-Ouchi ◽  
Hidetaka Kobayashi ◽  
Laurie Menviel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Cycle ◽  
Carbon Isotopes ◽  
Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
Ocean Circulation ◽  
Ice Cores ◽  
Glacial Maximum ◽  
Last Glacial ◽  
Intercomparison Project ◽  
The Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
The Last Glacial

<p>More and more climate models now include the carbon cycle, but multi-models studies of climate-carbon simulations within the Climate Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP) are limited to present and future time periods. In addition, the carbon cycle is not considered in the simulations of past periods analysed within the Paleoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project (PMIP). Yet, climate-carbon interactions are crucial to anticipate future atmospheric CO<sub>2</sub> concentrations and their impact on climate. Such interactions can change depending on the background climate, it is thus necessary to compare model results among themselves and to data for past periods with different climates such as the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM).</p><p>The Last Glacial Maximum, around 21,000 years ago, was about 4°C colder than the pre-industrial, and associated with large ice sheets on the American and Eurasian continents. It is one of the best documented periods thanks to numerous paleoclimate archives such as marine sediment cores and ice cores. Despite this period having been studied for years, no consensus on the causes of the lower atmospheric CO<sub>2</sub> concentration at the time (around 180 ppm) has been reached and models still struggle to simulate these low CO<sub>2</sub> values. The ocean, which contains around 40 times more carbon than the atmosphere, likely plays a key role, but models tend to simulate ocean circulation changes in disagreement with proxy data, such as carbon isotopes.</p><p>This new project aims at comparing, for the first time, the carbon cycle representation at the Last Glacial Maximum from general circulation models and intermediate complexity models. We will explain the protocol and present first results in terms of carbon storage in the main reservoirs (atmosphere, land and ocean) and their link to key climate variables such as temperature, sea ice and ocean circulation. The use of coupled climate-carbon models will not only allow to compare changes in the carbon cycle in models and analyse their causes, but it will also enable us to better compare to indirect data related to the carbon cycle such as carbon isotopes.</p>

High-resolution climate simulation of the last glacial maximum

2007 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seong-Joong Kim ◽  
Thomas J. Crowley ◽  
David J. Erickson ◽  
Bala Govindasamy ◽  
Phillip B. Duffy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Resolution ◽  
Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
Glacial Maximum ◽  
Climate Simulation ◽  
Last Glacial ◽  
The Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
The Last Glacial

scholarly journals Analysis of the global atmospheric methane budget using ECHAM-MOZ simulations for present-day, pre-industrial time and the Last Glacial Maximum

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 3193-3230 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Basu ◽  
M. G. Schultz ◽  
S. Schröder ◽  
L. Francois ◽  
X. Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
Glacial Maximum ◽  
Anthropogenic Sources ◽  
Atmospheric Methane ◽  
Climate Conditions ◽  
Last Glacial ◽  
Methane Budget ◽  
The Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
Methane Concentrations ◽  
The Last Glacial

Abstract. Atmospheric methane concentrations increased considerably from pre-industrial (PI) to present times largely due to anthropogenic emissions. However, firn and ice core records also document a notable rise of methane levels between the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and the pre-industrial era, the exact cause of which is not entirely clear. This study investigates these changes by analyzing the methane sources and sinks at each of these climatic periods. Wetlands are the largest natural source of methane and play a key role in determining methane budget changes in particular in the absence of anthropogenic sources. Here, a simple wetland parameterization suitable for coarse-scale climate simulations over long periods is introduced, which is derived from a high-resolution map of surface slopes together with various soil hydrology parameters from the CARAIB vegetation model. This parameterization was implemented in the chemistry general circulation model ECHAM5-MOZ and multi-year time slices were run for LGM, PI and present-day (PD) climate conditions. Global wetland emissions from our parameterization are 72 Tg yr−1 (LGM), 115 Tg yr−1 (PI), and 132 Tg yr−1 (PD). These estimates are lower than most previous studies, and we find a stronger increase of methane emissions between LGM and PI. Taking into account recent findings that suggest more stable OH concentrations than assumed in previous studies, the observed methane distributions are nevertheless well reproduced under the different climates. Hence, this is one of the first studies where a consistent model approach has been successfully applied for simulating methane concentrations over a wide range of climate conditions.

scholarly journals Terrestrial methane emissions from the Last Glacial Maximum to the preindustrial period

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 575-595 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Kleinen ◽  
Uwe Mikolajewicz ◽  
Victor Brovkin
Keyword(s):  
Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
Methane Emissions ◽  
Glacial Maximum ◽  
Minor Importance ◽  
Atmospheric Methane ◽  
Max Planck ◽  
Natural Sources ◽  
Last Glacial ◽  
The Last Glacial Maximum ◽  
The Last Glacial

Abstract. We investigate the changes in terrestrial natural methane emissions between the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and preindustrial (PI) periods by performing time-slice experiments with a methane-enabled version of MPI-ESM, the Max Planck Institute Earth System Model. We consider all natural sources of methane except for emissions from wild animals and geological sources, i.e. emissions from wetlands, fires, and termites. Changes are dominated by changes in tropical wetland emissions, with mid-to-high-latitude wetlands playing a secondary role, and all other natural sources being of minor importance. The emissions are determined by the interplay of vegetation productivity, a function of CO2 and temperature; source area size, affected by sea level and ice sheet extent; and the state of the West African monsoon, with increased emissions from northern Africa during strong monsoon phases. We show that it is possible to explain the difference in atmospheric methane between LGM and PI purely by changes in emissions. As emissions more than double between LGM and PI, changes in the atmospheric lifetime of CH4, as proposed in other studies, are not required.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document