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1. Reconstructing the Oxygen Depth Profile in the Arabian Sea During the Last Glacial Period

   https://doi.org/10.1029/2023PA004632  

   Lu, Wanyi; Costa, Kassandra_M; Oppo, Delia_W (June 2023, Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology)

   Abstract Reconstructing the strength and depth boundary of oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) in the glacial ocean advances our understanding of how OMZs respond to climate changes. While many efforts have inferred better oxygenation of the glacial Arabian Sea OMZ from qualitative indices, oxygenation and vertical extent of the glacial OMZ is not well quantified. Here we present glacial‐Holocene oxygen reconstructions in a depth transect of Arabian Sea cores ranging from 600 to 3,650 m water depths. We estimate glacial oxygen concentrations using benthic foraminiferal surface porosity and benthic carbon isotope gradient reconstructions. Compared to the modern Arabian Sea, glacial oxygen concentrations were approximately 10–15 μmol/kg higher in the shallow OMZ (<1,000 m), and 5–80 μmol/kg lower at greater depths (1,500–3,650 m). Our results suggest that the OMZ in the glacial Arabian Sea was slightly better oxygenated but remained in the upper 1,000 m. We propose that the small increase in oxygenation of the Arabian Sea OMZ during the last glacial period was due to weaker upper ocean stratification induced by stronger winter monsoon winds coupled with an increase in oxygen solubility due to lower temperatures, counteracting the effects of more oxygen consumption resulting from higher primary productivity. Large‐scale changes in ocean circulation may have also contributed to better ventilation of the glacial Arabian Sea OMZ. 

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2. Glacial‐interglacial changes in central tropical Pacific surface seawater property gradients

   https://doi.org/10.1002/2014PA002746  

   Lynch‐Stieglitz, Jean; Polissar, Pratigya J; Jacobel, Allison W; Hovan, Steven A; Pockalny, Robert A; Lyle, Mitchell; Murray, Richard W; Ravelo, A Christina; Bova, Samantha C; Dunlea, Ann G; et al (May 2015, Paleoceanography)

   Abstract Much uncertainty exists about the state of the oceanic and atmospheric circulation in the tropical Pacific over the last glacial cycle. Studies have been hampered by the fact that sediment cores suitable for study were concentrated in the western and eastern parts of the tropical Pacific, with little information from the central tropical Pacific. Here we present information from a suite of sediment cores collected from the Line Islands Ridge in the central tropical Pacific, which show sedimentation rates and stratigraphies suitable for paleoceanographic investigations. Based on the radiocarbon and oxygen isotope measurements on the planktonic foraminiferaGlobigerinoides ruber, we construct preliminary age models for selected cores and show that the gradient in the oxygen isotope ratio ofG. ruberbetween the equator and 8°N is enhanced during glacial stages relative to interglacial stages. This stronger gradient could reflect enhanced equatorial cooling (perhaps reflecting a stronger Walker circulation) or an enhanced salinity gradient (perhaps reflecting increased rainfall in the central tropical Pacific). 

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3. Spatiotemporal variability of benthic and planktonic foraminifera off the coast of San Diego

   Renssen, B.; Gray, S.C. (November 2021, CERF 26th Biennial Conference)

   no editor (Ed.)

   Foraminifera (single celled protists with tests primarily of Calcium Carbonate) are directly influenced by ocean warming and hydrographic changes such as expansion of the low oxygen areas associated with anthropogenic climate change. Benthic and planktonic foraminifera communities are good indicators of hydrographic conditions at the sea-floor and sea surface, respectively. Though previous studies have demonstrated that there has been overall ocean surface warming in Southern California and that the oxygen minimum zone has expanded, the relationship between water temperature, dissolved oxygen and foraminifera abundance in the area offshore San Diego has not been extensively examined. Cored sediment samples along with hydrographic data collected during annual research cruises (2001-2012, 2018) on the RV Sproul at three stations (water depth 100 m, 200m 300 m) due west from San Diego, CA provide an opportunity to evaluate how benthic and planktonic foraminiferal communities have changed over the past 19 years. The objective of this research was to identify the foraminifera in these sediments and compare patterns between years to temperature and dissolved oxygen (DO). Sediment samples from the upper 1 cm of the seafloor using a multicore were sieved and the foraminifera were picked and examined under a Leica S9i microscope for identification to genus. Sea surface and bottom water temperature and DO concentrations were measured using a CTD. Analyses of the variation between sites and over time will indicate whether benthic and planktonic community changes track environmental changes in temperature and dissolved oxygen, providing valuable data to assess whether climate change is impacting marine communities. 

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4. Investigating Past Thermocline Conditions in the Eastern Equatorial Pacific Since the Last Glacial Interval Using Oxygen Isotope Gradients from Shallow- and Deep-dwelling Planktonic Foraminifera

   Smith, S; McManus, J; Pallone, C (December 2023, Proceedings American Geophysical Union)

   McManus, J (Ed.)

   The El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is a climate variation that occurs in the Eastern Equatorial Pacific (EEP) ocean, which influences the position of the thermocline today. The ENSO cycle is split into three states: a normal state, an El Niño state, and a La Niña state. Each one is marked by different sea surface temperatures (SST). Under normal conditions, the trade winds push warm water westward, away from the coast of South America. This allows cool water to upwell the east and creates a zonal SST gradient. Every few years, the trade winds slow, preventing the flow of warm water. This increases the SST in the EEP and produces an El Niño. The winds can also strengthen and move more warm water westward. The heightened zonal SST gradient forms a La Niña. This project investigates past conditions in the EEP by reconstructing the mean position of the thermocline: a layer in the ocean where temperature rapidly changes with depth. In the modern ocean, the thermocline is shallower in the east, where SSTs are cool, and deeper in the west, where SSTs are warm. The more uniform SST gradient during an El Niño event flattens the zonal slope thermocline; the stronger gradient during a La Niña steepens it. The temperature proxy used to determine past thermocline positions is the isotopic composition of oxygen in foraminifera (δ18O). Foraminiferal δ18O increases with depth in the water column, as temperature decreases and density increases. Two species with contrasting depth-habitats were analyzed; Globigerinoides ruber, which lives near the surface above the thermocline, and Neogloboquadrina dutertrei, which lives in the lower thermocline. When the thermocline shifts, it changes their difference in δ18O. A smaller difference indicates a deeper thermocline and an El Niño-like state; a greater difference indicates a shallower thermocline and a La Niña-like state. The forams were collected from two deep-sea sediment cores. The first was Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Leg 202 Site 1239 (0.67˚S, 82.08˚W, 1414 m) drilled in the east near the coast of Ecuador. The second was ODP Leg 138 Site 849 (0.10˚S, 110.31˚W, 3858 m) toward the west. Rather than identifying specific ENSO events, this method provides insight into the position of the thermocline and therefore the mean state of the EEP during the Holocene and last glacial period. 

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5. Changes in benthic foraminifera assemblage preservation associated with onset of deep AMOC during the last deglaciation

   Poirier, R. K.; Gaetano, M. Q.; Acevedo, K.; Kozdon, R.; Raymo, M. E. (October 2018, AGU Fall Meeting)

   Benthic foraminifera are used to generate the majority of paleo-proxy records reconstructing past ocean changes including variations in the strength of AMOC. To assess the reliability of geochemical proxy records generated using benthic foraminifera, a Foraminifera Preservation Index (FPI) was developed to quantify assemblage-wide changes in visual preservation quality. The qualitative criteria for preservation included in the FPI are supported by stable isotope and trace element datasets. Early application of the FPI on Cibicidoidesassemblages from the deep Pacific Ocean (IODP Sites 846, 1143, 1208) reveal quantifiably better preservation during glacial periods relative to interglacial periods for the last ~1 million years. Here, we present results from two summer REU projects tracking such preservation changes in the deep North and South Atlantic Ocean prior to and throughout the last deglaciation (~0-35 ka). Changes in Cibicidoides FPI from IODP Site 1089 in the deep South Atlantic (~4600m water depth: primarily bathed by Antarctic Bottom Water - AABW) mirror those in the Pacific with better preservation during the glacial maximum of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS 2) than the Holocene interglacial (MIS 1). Alternatively, Cibicidoides FPI from IODP Site 1059 (~3000m water depth: bathed by North Atlantic Deep Water [NADW] during interglacials; and by AABW during glacials) reveal better preservation during the Holocene relative to MIS 2. Despite these opposing trends, changes in FPI occur at both sites at ~15 ka corresponding to major changes to AMOC documented throughout the deep Atlantic basin. These findings imply that the same processes involved in water mass CO2-carbonate chemistry on glacial-interglacial timescales affect preservation of benthic foraminifera. Furthermore, our results suggest that the FPI can track major changes in deglacial AMOC, potentially providing an inexpensive method to produce preliminary data prior to or in unison with more expensive geochemical analyses. 

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