Premium
Abrupt climatic events during the last glacial‐interglacial transition in Alaska
Author(s) -
Hu Feng Sheng,
Nelson David M.,
Clarke Gina H.,
Rühland Kathleen M.,
Huang Yongsong,
Kaufman Darrell S.,
Smol John P.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/2006gl027261
Subject(s) - stadial , interglacial , geology , glacial period , younger dryas , paleoclimatology , ice core , climatology , oceanography , holocene , boreal , physical geography , abrupt climate change , period (music) , climate change , global warming , paleontology , geography , effects of global warming , physics , acoustics
Evidence is mounting that abrupt climatic shifts occurred during the last glacial‐interglacial transition (LGIT) in the North Atlantic and other regions. However, few high‐resolution climatic records of the LGIT exist from the high latitudes of the North Pacific rim. We analyzed lake sediments from southwestern Alaska for biogenic silica, organic carbon, organic nitrogen, diatom assemblages, and compound‐specific hydrogen isotopes. Results reveal climatic changes coincident with the Younger Dryas, Intra‐Allerød Cold Period, and Pre‐Boreal Oscillation. However, major discrepancies exist in the paleoclimate patterns of the Bølling‐Allerød interstadial between our data and the GISP2 δ 18 O record from Greenland, and causes are uncertain. These data suggest that the North Pacific and North Atlantic experienced similar reversals during climatic warming of the LGIT but that the Bølling‐Allerød cooling trend in the GISP2 δ 18 O record is probably not a hemispheric or global pattern.