The last interglacial sea-level record of New Zealand (Aotearoa)

Abstract. This paper presents the current state-of-knowledge of the New Zealand (Aotearoa) last interglacial (MIS 5 sensu lato) sea-level record compiled within the framework of the World Atlas of Last Interglacial Shorelines (WALIS) database. Seventy-seven total relative sea-level (RSL) indicators (direct, marine-, and terrestrial-limiting points), commonly in association with marine terraces, were identified from over 120 studies reviewed. Extensive coastal deformation around New Zealand has resulted in a significant range of elevation measurements on both the North Island (276.8 to −94.2 msl) and South Island (173.1 to −70.0 msl) and prompted the use of RSL indicators to estimate rates of vertical land movement; however, indicators lack adequate description and age constraint. Identified RSL indicators are correlated with MIS 5, MIS 5e, MIS 5c, and MIS 5a and indicate the potential for the New Zealand sea-level record to inform sea-level fluctuation and climatic change within MIS 5 (sensu lato). The Northland (North Island) and Otago (South Island) regions, historically considered stable, have the potential to provide a regional sea-level curve in a remote location of the South Pacific across broad degrees of latitude. Future work requires modern analogue information, heights above a defined sea-level datum, better stratigraphic descriptions, and use of improved geochronological methods. The database presented in this study is available open-access at this link: http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4056376 (Ryan et al., 2020a).

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The last interglacial sea-level record of Aotearoa New Zealand

Earth System Science Data ◽

10.5194/essd-13-3399-2021 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (7) ◽

pp. 3399-3437

Author(s):

Deirdre D. Ryan ◽

Alastair J. H. Clement ◽

Nathan R. Jankowski ◽

Paolo Stocchi

Keyword(s):

New Zealand ◽

Sea Level ◽

Active Tectonics ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

Isostatic Adjustment ◽

The North ◽

Aotearoa New Zealand ◽

Modern Analogue ◽

Marine Isotope Stage 5 ◽

Mis 5

Abstract. This paper presents the current state of knowledge of the Aotearoa New Zealand last interglacial (marine isotope stage 5, MIS 5, sensu lato) sea-level record compiled within the framework of the World Atlas of Last Interglacial Shorelines (WALIS) database. A total of 77 relative sea-level (RSL) indicators (direct, marine-limiting, and terrestrial-limiting points), commonly in association with marine terraces, were identified from over 120 studies reviewed. Extensive coastal deformation around New Zealand has prompted research focused on active tectonics, the scale of which overprints the sea-level record in most regions. The ranges of last interglacial palaeo-shoreline elevations are significant on both the North Island (276.8 ± 10.0 to −94.2 ± 10.6 ma.m.s.l., above mean sea level) and South Island (165.8 ± 2.0 to −70.0 ± 10.3 ma.m.s.l.) and have been used to estimate rates of vertical land movement; however, in many instances there is a lack of adequate description and age constraint for high-quality RSL indicators. Identified RSL indicators are correlated with MIS 5, MIS 5e, MIS 5c, and MIS 5a and indicate the potential for the New Zealand sea-level record to inform sea-level fluctuation and climatic change within MIS 5. The Northland Region of the North Island and southeastern South Island, historically considered stable, have the potential to provide a regional sea-level curve, minimally impacted by glacio- and hydro-isostatic adjustment (GIA) and reflecting near-eustatic fluctuations in a remote location of the South Pacific, across broad degrees of latitude; however, additional records from these regions are needed. Future work requires modern analogue information, heights above a defined sea-level datum, better stratigraphic descriptions, and use of improved geochronological methods. The database presented in this study is available open access at this link: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4590188 (Ryan et al., 2020a).

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Last interglacial sea-level proxies in East Africa and the Western Indian Ocean

Earth System Science Data ◽

10.5194/essd-13-1633-2021 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (4) ◽

pp. 1633-1651

Author(s):

Patrick Boyden ◽

Jennifer Weil-Accardo ◽

Pierre Deschamps ◽

Davide Oppo ◽

Alessio Rovere

Keyword(s):

Indian Ocean ◽

East Africa ◽

Sea Level ◽

Western Indian Ocean ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

The North ◽

Marine Terraces ◽

Open Access Database ◽

Eolian Deposits ◽

Mis 5

Abstract. In this paper, we describe a sea-level database compiled using published last interglacial, Marine Isotopic Stage 5 (MIS 5), geological sea-level proxies within East Africa and the Western Indian Ocean (EAWIO). Encompassing vast tropical coastlines and coralline islands, this region has many occurrences of well-preserved last interglacial stratigraphies. Most notably, islands almost entirely composed of Pleistocene reefs (such as Aldabra, the Seychelles) have provided reliable paleo relative sea-level indicators and well-preserved samples for U-series chronology. Other sea-level proxies include uplifted marine terraces in the north of Somalia and Pleistocene eolian deposits notched by the MIS 5 sea level in Mozambique to tidal notches in luminescence-limited eolian deposits in Mozambique. Our database has been compiled using the World Atlas of Last Interglacial Shorelines (WALIS) interface and contains 58 sea-level indicators and 2 terrestrial-limiting data points. The open-access database is available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4302244 (Version 1.03; Boyden et al., 2020).

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Sensitivity of Red Sea circulation to sea level and insolation forcing during the last interglacial

Climate of the Past Discussions ◽

10.5194/cpd-7-1195-2011 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 7 (2) ◽

pp. 1195-1233 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

G. Trommer ◽

M. Siccha ◽

E. J. Rohling ◽

K. Grant ◽

M. T. J. van der Meer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

Red Sea ◽

Planktonic Foraminifera ◽

Gulf Of Aden ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

The Holocene ◽

Circulation Mode ◽

Monsoon Strength ◽

Mis 5E ◽

Mis 5

Abstract. This study investigates the response of Red Sea circulation to sea level and insolation changes during termination II and across the last interglacial, in comparison with termination I and the Holocene. Sediment cores from the central and northern part of the Red Sea were investigated by micropaleontological and geochemical proxies. The recovery of the planktonic foraminiferal fauna following high salinities during MIS 6 took place at similar sea-level stand (~50 m below present day), and with a similar species succession, as during termination I. This indicates a consistent sensitivity of the basin oceanography and the plankton ecology to sea-level forcing. Based on planktonic foraminifera, we find that increased water exchange with the Gulf of Aden especially occurred during the sea-level highstand of interglacial MIS 5e. From MIS 6 to the peak of MIS 5e, northern Red Sea SST increased from 21 °C to 25 °C, with about 3 °C of this increase taking place during termination II. Changes in planktonic foraminiferal assemblages indicate that the development of the Red Sea oceanography during MIS 5 was strongly determined by insolation and monsoon strength. The SW Monsoon summer circulation mode was enhanced during the termination, causing low productivity in northern central Red Sea core KL9, marked by high abundance of G. sacculifer, which – as in the Holocene – followed summer insolation. Core KL11 records the northern tip of the intruding intermediate water layer from the Gulf of Aden and its planktonic foraminifera fauna shows evidence for elevated productivity during the sea-level highstand in the southern central Red Sea. By the time of MIS 5 sea-level regression, elevated organic biomarker BIT values suggest denudation of soil organic matter into the Red Sea and high abundances of G. glutinata, and high reconstructed chlorophyll-a values, indicate an intensified NE Monsoon winter circulation mode. Our results imply that the amplitude of insolation fluctuations, and the resulting monsoon strength, strongly influence the Red Sea oceanography during sea-level highstands by regulating the intensity of water exchange with the Gulf of Aden. These processes are responsible for the observation that MIS 5e/d is characterized by higher primary productivity than the Holocene.

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A review of MIS 5e sea-level proxies around Japan

Earth System Science Data ◽

10.5194/essd-13-1477-2021 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (4) ◽

pp. 1477-1497

Author(s):

Evan Tam ◽

Yusuke Yokoyama

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

Age Dating ◽

Stratigraphic Correlation ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

14C Dating ◽

Carbon 14 ◽

Marine Terraces ◽

Uplift Rates ◽

Tephra Layers ◽

Mis 5E

Abstract. Sea-level proxies for Marine Isotopic Stage 5e (MIS 5e, ca. 124 ka) are abundant along the Japanese shoreline and have been documented for over at least the past 60 years. The bulk of these sea-level proxies are identified in Japan as marine terraces, often correlated by stratigraphic relationships to identified tephra layers, or other chronologically interpreted strata. Use of stratigraphic correlation in conjunction with other techniques such as paleontological analysis, tectonic uplift rates, tephra (volcanic ash), uranium–thorium (U–Th), and carbon-14 (14C) dating have connected Japan's landforms to global patterns of sea-level change. This paper reviews over 60 years of publications containing sea-level proxies correlated with MIS 5e in Japan. Data collected for this review have been added to the World Atlas of Last Interglacial Shorelines (WALIS), following their standardizations on the elements necessary to analyze paleosea-levels. This paper reviewed over 70 studies, assembling data points for over 300 locations and examining related papers denoting sea-level indicators for MIS 5e. The database compiled for this review (Tam and Yokoyama, 2020) is available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4294326. Sea-level proxy studies in Japan rely heavily on chronostratigraphic techniques and are recognized as reliable, though opportunities exist for further constraining through the further use of numerical age dating techniques.

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Giant boulders and Last Interglacial storm intensity in the North Atlantic

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ◽

10.1073/pnas.1712433114 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 114 (46) ◽

pp. 12144-12149 ◽

Cited By ~ 26

Author(s):

Alessio Rovere ◽

Elisa Casella ◽

Daniel L. Harris ◽

Thomas Lorscheid ◽

Napayalage A. K. Nandasena ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

North Atlantic ◽

Global Climate ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

The Bahamas ◽

Sea Levels ◽

Storm Intensity ◽

The North ◽

Rising Sea Levels ◽

Mis 5E

As global climate warms and sea level rises, coastal areas will be subject to more frequent extreme flooding and hurricanes. Geologic evidence for extreme coastal storms during past warm periods has the potential to provide fundamental insights into their future intensity. Recent studies argue that during the Last Interglacial (MIS 5e, ∼128–116 ka) tropical and extratropical North Atlantic cyclones may have been more intense than at present, and may have produced waves larger than those observed historically. Such strong swells are inferred to have created a number of geologic features that can be observed today along the coastlines of Bermuda and the Bahamas. In this paper, we investigate the most iconic among these features: massive boulders atop a cliff in North Eleuthera, Bahamas. We combine geologic field surveys, wave models, and boulder transport equations to test the hypothesis that such boulders must have been emplaced by storms of greater-than-historical intensity. By contrast, our results suggest that with the higher relative sea level (RSL) estimated for the Bahamas during MIS 5e, boulders of this size could have been transported by waves generated by storms of historical intensity. Thus, while the megaboulders of Eleuthera cannot be used as geologic proof for past “superstorms,” they do show that with rising sea levels, cliffs and coastal barriers will be subject to significantly greater erosional energy, even without changes in storm intensity.

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Pleistocene sea-level record in low latitude settings: the Cape Verde Islands.

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-18523 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Teresa Bardají ◽

José Luis Goy ◽

Caridad Zazo ◽

Claude Hillaire-Marcel ◽

Cristino J. Dabrio ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

Vertical Motion ◽

Cape Verde ◽

Middle Pleistocene ◽

Maximum Height ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

Low Latitude ◽

Sedimentary Sequences ◽

Marine Terraces ◽

Mis 5E

The volcanic Cape Verde archipelago constitutes one of the few sites in low latitude eastern Atlantic Ocean, where a long record of Pleistocene sea-level indicators develops, particularly beach deposits and marine terraces. The extreme aridity of the easternmost islands (Sal, Boa Vista and Maio) allows the exposure of long sedimentary sequences, the altitudinal and spatial distribution of which must be related both to sea level behaviour in low latitude settings and also to the volcanic nature of the archipelago.The particular case of Maio Island reveals the occurrence of a flight of at least 18 marine terraces, between +85 and 0m. The chronology has been approached by a paleomagnetic sequence (Early - Middle Pleistocene transition), U-series measurements (Last Interglacial deposits) and 14C (Holocene units). The results have revealed a differential behaviour in the vertical motion of the island along the Pleistocene, with unequal uplift rates during Early and Middle Pleistocene. An anomalously low-lying MIS5 unit in this island fits well with the predictions done by GIA models of Crevelling et al., (2017) although the proper evolution of volcanic islands cannot be discarded.A comparison with Sal (Zazo et al., 2007, 2010) and Boa Vista islands is done, especially in what the MIS5 sea level record is concerned. MIS 5e deposits are scarce along the coasts of Maio and Boa Vista, and always at very low heights above mean sea level (0-0,5 m). On the island of Sal the deposits corresponding to the MIS 5e are located at a maximum height of +2.5m asml, in its most southern sector, being also very frequent to find them at 0m (Zazo et al., 2010). The geomorphological distribution of the Pleistocene sedimentary sequences along these three islands reveals a complex history of uplift and subsidence that must be conciliated with the far-field sea level behavior, especially for the MIS5 units.Creveling et al., 2017. QSR 163.Zazo et al., 2007. QSR 26.Zazo et al., 2010. GPCh 72.Acknowledgements: This work has been supported by FEDER-MINECO Spanish project CGL15-69919-R.

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A Review of MIS 5e Sea-level Proxies around Japan

10.5194/essd-2020-365 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Evan Tam ◽

Yusuke Yokoyama

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

Stratigraphic Correlation ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

Sea Levels ◽

Carbon 14 ◽

Marine Terraces ◽

Uplift Rates ◽

Data Points ◽

Tephra Layers ◽

Mis 5E

Abstract. Sea-level proxies for Marine Isotopic Stage 5e (MIS 5e, ca. 124 ka) are abundant along the Japanese shoreline, and have been documented for over at least the last 60 years. The bulk of these sea-level proxies are identified in Japan as marine terraces, often correlated by stratigraphic relationships to identified tephra layers, or other chronologically interpreted strata. Use of stratigraphic correlation in conjunction with other techniques such as paleontological analysis, tectonic uplift rates, tephra (volcanic ash), Uranium-Thorium (U/Th), Carbon-14 (14C), and Optically Stimulated Luminesce (OSL) dating techniques have connected Japan’s landforms to global patterns of sea-level change. This paper reviews over 60 years of publications containing sea-level proxies correlated to forming during MIS 5e in Japan. Data collected for this review have been added to the World Atlas of Last Interglacial Shorelines (WALIS), following their standardizations on the elements necessary to analyze paleo sea-levels. This paper reviewed over 70 studies, assembling data points for 300+ locations and examining related papers denoting sea-level indicators for MIS 5e. The database compiled for this review review (Tam and Yokoyama, 2020) is available at: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4294326 .

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Last interglacial (MIS 5e) sea-level proxies in southeastern South America

10.5194/essd-2020-247 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Evan J. Gowan ◽

Alessio Rovere ◽

Deirdre D. Ryan ◽

Sebastian Richiano ◽

Alejandro Montes ◽

...

Keyword(s):

South America ◽

Sea Level ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

Amino Acid Racemization ◽

Exceptional Preservation ◽

Spin Resonance ◽

Coastal Deposits ◽

Mis 5E ◽

Terrace Level ◽

Mis 5

Abstract. Coastal southeast South America is one of the classic locations where there are robust, spatially extensive records of past high sea level. Sea-level proxies interpreted as being Last Interglacial (Marine Isotope Stage – MIS 5e) exist along the length of the Uruguayan and Argentinian coast, with exceptional preservation especially in Patagonia. Many coastal deposits are correlated to MIS 5e solely because they form the next highest terrace level above the Holocene highstand; however, dating control exists for some landforms from amino acid racemization, U/Th (on molluscs), electron spin resonance (ESR), and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating. As part of the World Atlas of Last Interglacial Shorelines (WALIS) database, we have documented a total of 60 MIS 5 proxies attributed with various degrees of precision to MIS 5e. Among these, 48 are sea-level indicators, and 11 are marine limiting indicators (sea level above the elevation of the indicator), and 1 is terrestrial limiting (sea level below the elevation of the indicator). Limitations on the precision and accuracy of chronological controls and elevation measurements means that most of these indicators are considered to be low quality. The database is available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3991597 (Gowan et al., 2020).

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The Last Interglacial Sea Level database for the Western Mediterranean

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-13192 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ciro Cerrone ◽

Matteo Vacchi ◽

Alessandro Fontana ◽

Alessio Rovere

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

Western Mediterranean ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

Amino Acid Racemization ◽

Marine Deposits ◽

Marine Terraces ◽

Wide Range ◽

Scientific Papers ◽

Open Access Database ◽

Mis 5E

An open access database containing raw data of Last Interglacial sea-level proxies for the Western Mediterranean has been compiled by reviewing hundreds of original published papers in accordance with the WALIS template (https://warmcoasts.eu/world-atlas.html). WALIS allows collecting both the relative sea-level (RSL) indicators and ages data in a standardized format. Ca. 360 sea-level index points for the coasts of Spain, France, Italy, Albania, Algeria and Morocco have been included in the database. The sea-level index points of the database are related to ca. 350 samples dated by a wide range of dating techniques, e.g., U-series, Amino Acid Racemization, Luminescence (Tl/OSL) and Electron Spin Resonance methods or chronostratigraphically correlated to marine deposits bearing P. latus and &#8220;Senegalese fauna&#8221;. In fact, for some areas of the Mediterranean Sea, the &#8220;Senegalese fauna&#8221; is indicative of the MIS 5e.Among the eleven types of sea-level indicators of our database, the majority of them are represented by marine terraces, beach deposits (or beachrocks), and tidal notches. Whenever the relationship between the RSL indicators and the former sea-level could not be quantified, such indicators have been considered as marine or terrestrial limiting points. An indirect age of the tidal notches has been provided by correlation with the nearby dated deposit. In the case no precise elevation information has been reported by the Authors, the elevation error of RSL datapoints has been reassessed in the 20 % of the elevation value, more a 5% if the sea-level datum was lacking in the scientific papers we have reviewed.&#160; Overall, the quality of each RSL datapoints and the associated age have been ranked in a 0 to 5 scale score according to Rovere et al., (2020).&#160;ReferencesRovere, A., Ryan, D., Murray-Wallace, C., Simms, A., Vacchi, M., Dutton, A., Gowan, E., 2020. Descriptions of database fields for the World Atlas of Last Interglacial Shorelines (WALIS) (Version 1,0). Zenodo. https://doi.org/http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3961544

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A global database of marine isotope substage 5a and 5c marine terraces and paleoshoreline indicators

Earth System Science Data ◽

10.5194/essd-13-3467-2021 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (7) ◽

pp. 3467-3490

Author(s):

Schmitty B. Thompson ◽

Jessica R. Creveling

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

North American ◽

Atlantic Coast ◽

Tectonic Deformation ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

Global Database ◽

Isostatic Adjustment ◽

The North ◽

Marine Terraces ◽

Open Access Database

Abstract. In this review we compile and document the elevation, indicative meaning, and chronology of marine isotope substage 5a and 5c sea level indicators for 39 sites within three geographic regions: the North American Pacific coast, the North American Atlantic coast and the Caribbean, and the remaining globe. These relative sea level indicators, comprised of geomorphic indicators such as marine and coral reef terraces, eolianites, and sedimentary marine- and terrestrial-limiting facies, facilitate future investigation into marine isotope substage 5a and 5c interstadial paleo-sea level reconstruction, glacial isostatic adjustment, and Quaternary tectonic deformation. The open-access database, presented in the format of the World Atlas of Last Interglacial Shorelines (WALIS) database, can be found at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5021306 (Thompson and Creveling, 2021).

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