Abrupt climate changes during the last deglaciation have been well preserved in proxy records across the globe. However, one long-standing puzzle is the apparent absence of the onset of the Heinrich Stadial 1 (HS1) cold event around 18 ka in Greenland ice core oxygen isotope δ 18 O records, inconsistent with other proxies. Here, combining proxy records with an isotope-enabled transient deglacial simulation, we propose that a substantial HS1 cooling onset did indeed occur over the Arctic in winter. However, this cooling signal in the depleted oxygen isotopic composition is completely compensated by the enrichment because of the loss of winter precipitation in response to sea ice expansion associated with AMOC slowdown during extreme glacial climate. In contrast, the Arctic summer warmed during HS1 and YD because of increased insolation and greenhouse gases, consistent with snowline reconstructions. Our work suggests that Greenland δ 18 O may substantially underestimate temperature variability during cold glacial conditions.
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Oldest Dryas hydroclimate reorganization in the eastern Iberian Peninsula after the iceberg discharges of Heinrich Event 1
Abstract This study examines the first precisely dated and temporally highly resolved speleothem record from Iberia that reconstructs the Oldest Dryas (OD). The onset of cold conditions in the study area, contemporary with the beginning of Heinrich Stadial 1, is recorded at 18.13 ± 0.08 ka, with a pronounced drop of 6.1‰ in δ 13 C in 250 years. Henceforth, stadial conditions depict a period of instability in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, peaking in freshwater input from iceberg melting during Heinrich Event 1. Anomalies in the δ 18 O of the stalagmite attributed to such a freshwater event are found from 16.17 to 15.89 ka. Such absolute dates given to the onset of the OD in Iberia and to the main iceberg discharges are reliable anchor points for non-absolute chronologies. Two periods are identified in the OD: OD-a (18.13–16.17 ka) is characterized by wet conditions and a faster growth rate, and OD-b (15.89–14.81 ka) exhibits relative dryness and a slower growth rate. The sudden release of fresh water is considered to be the reason for the disruption of rainfall patterns in eastern Iberia. The present study also highlights the existence of heterogeneous and complex hydrological conditions during the OD in Iberia when both Atlantic and Mediterranean realms are considered.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1702816
- PAR ID:
- 10292201
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Quaternary Research
- Volume:
- 101
- ISSN:
- 0033-5894
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 67 to 83
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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