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| Open AccessAbsolute dating of the European Neolithic using the 5259 BC rapid 14C excursion
The Neolithic site of Dispilio, Northern Greece, is a pile-dwelling site with 900+ piles excavated. Here, the authors use the 5259 BC Miyake event to date the juniper tree-ring chronology constructed from these piles to 5140 BC, making it the first Neolithic site in the region to be absolutely calendar dated.
- Andrej Maczkowski
- , Charlotte Pearson
- & Albert Hafner
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Article
| Open AccessEarly warning signals of the termination of the African Humid Period(s)
The end of the green Sahara in the mid-Holocene was gradual, but punctuated by rapidly changing episodes of extreme drought and wetness, to which human societies were exposed and had to adapt to, as a lake record from southern Ethiopia suggests.
- Martin H. Trauth
- , Asfawossen Asrat
- & Paul J. Valdes
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| Open AccessClimate-forced Hg-remobilization associated with fern mutagenesis in the aftermath of the end-Triassic extinction
This study provides evidence for long-term effects of volcanic emissions of large quantities of gaseous mercury (Hg) and plant mutagenesis by recording high abundances of malformed fern spores across the Triassic-Jurassic boundary and Early Jurassic.
- Remco Bos
- , Wang Zheng
- & Bas van de Schootbrugge
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| Open AccessModerate greenhouse climate and rapid carbonate formation after Marinoan snowball Earth
When the Marinoan snowball Earth deglaciated, the ocean’s chemistry determined the strength and duration of the ensuing supergreenhouse climate, while the sudden warming and biological activity could have led to a rapid formation of cap dolostones.
- Lennart Ramme
- , Tatiana Ilyina
- & Jochem Marotzke
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| Open AccessWarming drives dissolved organic carbon export from pristine alpine soils
The temperature-sensitivity of soil dissolved organic carbon (DOC) export is widely debated but limited by the duration of observations. New data from environmental archives supports a pronounced sensitivity between soil DOC leaching and warming.
- Andrew R. Pearson
- , Bethany R. S. Fox
- & Adam Hartland
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Article
| Open AccessIce sheet and precession controlled subarctic Pacific productivity and upwelling over the last 550,000 years
Ice sheets and precession are shown to control westerly strength and position, impacting nutrient-rich water upwelling and productivity in the subarctic Pacific. This finding underscores the subarctic Pacific’s significant contribution to Pleistocene CO2, particularly on a precession timescale.
- Zhengquan Yao
- , Xuefa Shi
- & Yonggui Yu
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Article
| Open AccessOcean cavity regime shift reversed West Antarctic grounding line retreat in the late Holocene
Using ice sheet model and glacio-isostatic adjustment model simulations and paleoclimate proxies, this work demonstrates that the most likely cause of past West Antarctic grounding-line reversal was a regime shift from a warm to cold ocean cavity.
- Daniel P. Lowry
- , Holly K. Han
- & Robert M. McKay
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| Open AccessOrbital- and millennial-scale Asian winter monsoon variability across the Pliocene–Pleistocene glacial intensification
Persistent millennial Asian winter monsoon variability is shown to be superposed on orbital 41-kyr and 100-kyr cycles across the Pliocene–Pleistocene glacial intensification using a paleomagnetically dated high-resolution Chinese Loess Plateau grain size record.
- Hong Ao
- , Diederik Liebrand
- & Peng Zhang
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| Open AccessGlacial isostatic adjustment reduces past and future Arctic subsea permafrost
A pan-Arctic estimate of past and future subsea permafrost including solid Earth effects causes local sea level to differ from the global mean. Future subsea permafrost disappears faster under high than low emissions scenarios.
- Roger C. Creel
- , Frederieke Miesner
- & Pier Paul Overduin
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| Open AccessA mechanism for reconciling the synchronisation of Heinrich events and Dansgaard-Oeschger cycles
In this study, an atmospheric perturbation mechanism is introduced that reconciles the synchronisation of Heinrich events and Dansgaard-Oeschger Cycles.
- Clemens Schannwell
- , Uwe Mikolajewicz
- & Florian Ziemen
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| Open AccessContamination of 8.2 ka cold climate records by the Storegga tsunami in the Nordic Seas
Tsunamis can disturb sea floor sediments. This study shows that climate records of the famous 8200-year-old cold spell inferred from Norwegian Sea sediments are likely contaminated by tsunami waves from the giant Storegga Landslide.
- Stein Bondevik
- , Bjørg Risebrobakken
- & Finn Løvholt
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Article
| Open AccessThe Persian plateau served as hub for Homo sapiens after the main out of Africa dispersal
The timing and chronology of the movement of Homo sapiens after migration out of Africa remains unclear. Here, the authors combine a genetic approach with a palaeoecological model to estimate that the Persian Plateau could have been a hub for migration out of Africa, suggesting the environment may have been suitable for population maintenance.
- Leonardo Vallini
- , Carlo Zampieri
- & Luca Pagani
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| Open AccessDeep-sea hiatus record reveals orbital pacing by 2.4 Myr eccentricity grand cycles
Cenozoic deep-sea hiatuses reveal a ~2.4 Myr eccentricity signal corresponding to orbitally-forced intensification of deep-water circulation. The signal is disrupted by a chaotic orbital transition in the Solar System at about 56 Ma.
- Adriana Dutkiewicz
- , Slah Boulila
- & R. Dietmar Müller
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| Open AccessHigh-latitude platform carbonate deposition constitutes a climate conundrum at the terminal Mesoproterozoic
Deposition of 1.2-billion-year-old Indian limestone in shallow seas near the poles imply balmy conditions of more than 15 °C and significantly higher atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations, which expands the spectrum of Earth’s climatic extremes.
- Michiel O. de Kock
- , Ingrit Malatji
- & L. P. Maré
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| Open AccessReconciling ice core CO2 and land-use change following New World-Old World contact
Ice core records of gradually declining atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) for the period 1450–1700 CE support modelled scenarios of large-scale reorganisation of land use in the Americas following New World-Old World contact.
- Amy C. F. King
- , Thomas K. Bauska
- & Matthew B. Osman
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| Open AccessGeographic range of plants drives long-term climate change
The geographic spread of plants exerted an important control over ancient climate change by modifying continental weathering and carbon burial rates. This effect is investigated using a new coupled vegetation-climate-biogeochemical model.
- Khushboo Gurung
- , Katie J. Field
- & Benjamin J. W. Mills
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| Open AccessModern anthropogenic drought in Central Brazil unprecedented during last 700 years
Speleothems from the Savanna region in Brazil documents the occurrence of an unprecedented long-term drought driven by anthropogenic forcing. Staring in the 1970´s the current drought is the most severe that has struck the region in the past 700 years.
- Nicolas Misailidis Stríkis
- , Plácido Fabrício Silva Melo Buarque
- & Valdir Felipe Novello
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| Open AccessSpatial patterns of Holocene temperature changes over mid-latitude Eurasia
New alkenone results and existing temperature records together show contrasting Holocene temperature trends and thus display spatial patterns over mid-latitude Eurasia, with implications for the Holocene temperature conundrum.
- Jiawei Jiang
- , Bowen Meng
- & Zhonghui Liu
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| Open AccessDansgaard-Oeschger cycles of the penultimate and last glacial period recorded in stalagmites from Türkiye
Abrupt millennial-scale climate variability, known as Dansgaard-Oeschger (D-O) events, characterized the last glacial. Stalagmite data from northern Türkiye show D-O events for the penultimate glacial period, though they were less frequent.
- F. Held
- , H. Cheng
- & D. Fleitmann
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| Open AccessEast Antarctic warming forced by ice loss during the Last Interglacial
Climate simulations of the Last Interglacial show that Antarctic ice loss induces warming of East Antarctica. Meltwater equivalent to the ice loss induces warming of the subsurface. Both effects can further enhance Antarctic ice sheet deterioration
- David K. Hutchinson
- , Laurie Menviel
- & Andrew McC. Hogg
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| Open AccessLoess deposits in the low latitudes of East Asia reveal the ~20-kyr precipitation cycle
Earth’s orbit has tuned the variations of the East Asian summer monsoon. Here, a low latitude loess palaeoclimate record provides evidence that variation in monsoon rainfall is dominated by the precession cycle.
- Xusheng Li
- , Yuwen Zhou
- & Huayu Lu
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| Open AccessLast millennium hurricane activity linked to endogenous climate variability
The authors present two independent reconstructions and a model simulations of Atlantic hurricane activity over the last millennium and show that it is mainly driven by internal climate variability instead of external forcings.
- Wenchang Yang
- , Elizabeth Wallace
- & Tyler S. Winkler
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| Open AccessThe emergence of modern zoogeographic regions in Asia examined through climate–dental trait association patterns
The timing of the emergence of the modern Asian terrestrial biota is unclear. Here, the authors apply redescription mining to herbivore dental trait data, finding that different aspects of modern zoogeographic patterns originated in the Pliocene and Middle and Late Miocene.
- Liping Liu
- , Esther Galbrun
- & Indrė Žliobaitė
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| Open AccessReconciling Southern Ocean fronts equatorward migration with minor Antarctic ice volume change during Miocene cooling
Hou et al. propose, based on dinocysts, clumped isotopes and ice sheet modelling, that during Miocene cooling, the Antarctic ice sheet progressively lowered in height while expanding seawards, to maintain a relatively stable volume.
- Suning Hou
- , Lennert B. Stap
- & Peter K. Bijl
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| Open AccessGlobal climate forcing on late Miocene establishment of the Pampean aeolian system in South America
Wind-blown dust accumulation in central South America began during a period of global cooling and has persisted for millions of years. This corresponds with the expansion of the Chinese Loess Plateau and is consistent with bihemispheric forcing.
- Blake Stubbins
- , Andrew L. Leier
- & Mary Kate Fidler
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| Open AccessDynamic redox and nutrient cycling response to climate forcing in the Mesoproterozoic ocean
Regional ocean redox variability and associated nutrient cycling in the Mesoproterozoic can be explained by climate forcing at individual locations, rather than specific events or step-changes in global oceanic redox conditions.
- Yafang Song
- , Fred T. Bowyer
- & Simon W. Poulton
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| Open AccessImpact of global climate cooling on Ordovician marine biodiversity
The largest increase in marine biodiversity in Earth’s history took place nearly 500 million years ago during a geological period called the Ordovician. This event is well documented based on paleontological data, but its causes are debated. This study uses a numerical model to demonstrate that global climate cooling may have triggered biodiversification at that time.
- Daniel Eliahou Ontiveros
- , Gregory Beaugrand
- & Alexandre Pohl
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| Open AccessDrought as a possible contributor to the Visigothic Kingdom crisis and Islamic expansion in the Iberian Peninsula
Here, the authors compile pollen records from across Iberia and Morocco, comparing them with other paleohydrological and archaeological data, as well as historical sources. Using these data, they suggest that a series of strong droughts could have contributed to the decline of the Visigothic Kingdom and subsequent Islamic expansion.
- Jon Camuera
- , Francisco J. Jiménez-Espejo
- & Manuel Castro-Priego
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Article
| Open AccessDeciphering local and regional hydroclimate resolves contradicting evidence on the Asian monsoon evolution
Distinguishing local hydrological, cave internal, and regional monsoon signals in speleothem records resolves disagreements among proxy reconstructions and illuminates the Holocene evolution of summer and winter monsoon in Southeast Asia.
- Annabel Wolf
- , Vasile Ersek
- & Anh Duc Trinh
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| Open AccessNorth African humid periods over the past 800,000 years
A climate model identifies that periodic wet phases in the Sahara, termed North African Humid Periods, were driven by Earths orbital variations and were suppressed during glacial periods due to the influence of extensive ice sheets.
- Edward Armstrong
- , Miikka Tallavaara
- & Paul J. Valdes
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| Open AccessAntarctic evidence for an abrupt northward shift of the Southern Hemisphere westerlies at 32 ka BP
Antarctic ice core records provide insights into past environmental conditions. Here, an abrupt, synchronous increase in dust from ice cores in Antarctica is identified that suggests a sudden equatorward shift of westerly winds and coincides with a reduction in atmospheric CO2.
- Abhijith U. Venugopal
- , Nancy A. N. Bertler
- & Marcus J. Vandergoes
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| Open AccessEffects of paleogeographic changes and CO2 variability on northern mid-latitudinal temperature gradients in the Cretaceous
Simulations using a coupled atmosphere-ocean model show that paleogeography-driven reduction in the intensity of surface ocean circulation explains much of the increase in the mid-latitudinal sea surface temperature gradient during the Cretaceous.
- Kaushal Gianchandani
- , Sagi Maor
- & Nathan Paldor
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Article
| Open AccessWeakened AMOC related to cooling and atmospheric circulation shifts in the last interglacial Eastern Mediterranean
The warm last interglacial serves as a period to investigate climate change associated with a weakened AMOC. Here the authors report evidence of Eastern Mediterranean cooling and accompanied atmospheric circulation shifts affecting rainfall.
- Elan J. Levy
- , Hubert B. Vonhof
- & Gerald H. Haug
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| Open AccessIndian Ocean glacial deoxygenation and respired carbon accumulation during mid-late Quaternary ice ages
Ocean oxygenation regulates respired carbon storage and atmospheric CO2. This study applied a novel analysis using magnetic nanoparticle fossils and found glacial Indian Ocean oxygen decline and carbon accumulation to explain recent climate cycles.
- Liao Chang
- , Babette A. A. Hoogakker
- & Richard J. Harrison
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| Open AccessMulti-proxy evidence for sea level fall at the onset of the Eocene-Oligocene transition
Sea level fall with the growth of the Antarctic Ice Sheet 34 million years ago, and the shift in nutrients and carbon from continental margins to the ocean, initially provided a negative feedback that slowed global cooling and ice sheet expansion.
- Marcelo A. De Lira Mota
- , Tom Dunkley Jones
- & James Bendle
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| Open AccessHolocene climate change in southern Oman deciphered by speleothem records and climate model simulations
Southern Oman speleothem oxygen isotope and multi-proxy data reveal diverse changes in the Afro-Indian summer monsoon circulations and local hydroclimate conditions during the Holocene, confirming climate model simulations.
- Ye Tian
- , Dominik Fleitmann
- & Hai Cheng
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| Open AccessA contracting Intertropical Convergence Zone during the Early Heinrich Stadial 1
New and existing paleoclimatic records show the rain-belt range of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) in the Indo-Asian-Australian monsoon region contracted to the northern low latitudes during the early Heinrich Stadial 1
- Yiping Yang
- , Lanlan Zhang
- & Rong Xiang
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| Open AccessRapid strengthening of westerlies accompanied intensification of Northern Hemisphere glaciation
The amount and composition of North Pacific dust tracked by rock magnetism suggests that the intensification of North Hemisphere Glaciation ca. 2.7 million years ago marked the permanent crossing of a climate threshold.
- Joshua D. Bridges
- , John A. Tarduno
- & Timothy D. Herbert
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| Open AccessPrehistoric population expansion in Central Asia promoted by the Altai Holocene Climatic Optimum
The impact of climate change on Holocene human activity in the Altai-Sayan region of Central Asia is unclear. Here, the authors use pollen, biogenic silica, and isotope records from lake cores to show that the climate prompted human population expansion and intensified cultural exchange during the Bronze Age.
- Lixiong Xiang
- , Xiaozhong Huang
- & Fahu Chen
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| Open AccessMoist and warm conditions in Eurasia during the last glacial of the Middle Pleistocene Transition
Iberian margin and Chinese Plateau climatic records combined with climate modeling reveal a warm ice age centered at ~730,000 years ago, which would have contributed to the accumulation of ice triggering the transition from the 40,000-year to the current 100,000-year climate cycles.
- María Fernanda Sánchez Goñi
- , Thomas Extier
- & André Bahr
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| Open AccessWhat the geological past can tell us about the future of the ocean’s twilight zone
Combining geological evidence and modelling, Crichton and others find life in the ocean Twilight Zone (200 m to 1000 m depth) is vulnerable to warming due to lower food supply. High emissions may lead to severe depletion and extinction in this habitat
- Katherine A. Crichton
- , Jamie D. Wilson
- & Paul N. Pearson
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| Open AccessTrends and variability in the Southern Annular Mode over the Common Era
This study uses data assimilation to reconstruct the Southern Annular Mode over the last 2000 years. The authors find that the mode’s history reflects natural climate variability, except for the most-recent positive trend
- Jonathan King
- , Kevin J. Anchukaitis
- & Amy Hessl
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Article
| Open AccessDynamic and thermodynamic influences on precipitation in Northeast Mexico on orbital to millennial timescales
A stalagmite hydroclimate record (Tamaulipas, Mexico) from 62.5 to 5.1 ka showed (1) Atlantic and Pacific temperatures impacted precipitation changes and (2) there were dry conditions during Heinrich Stadials, possibly because moisture shifted south.
- Kevin T. Wright
- , Kathleen R. Johnson
- & Laura Beramendi-Orosco
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Article
| Open AccessMultiple episodes of ice loss from the Wilkes Subglacial Basin during the Last Interglacial
Sedimentary records from offshore of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet support two episodes of ice loss during the last interglacial period (130-115 ka), leading to elevated global sea levels under global mean temperatures similar to the present day.
- Mutsumi Iizuka
- , Osamu Seki
- & Saiko Sugisaki
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Article
| Open AccessCentennial scale sequences of environmental deterioration preceded the end-Permian mass extinction
The exact drivers for the end-Permian mass extinction remain controversial. This study reveals a turning point with the exhaustion of the terrestrial input and a strong fertilization of the marine realm leading to the demise of marine ecosystems.
- Ryosuke Saito
- , Lars Wörmer
- & Kai-Uwe Hinrichs
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| Open AccessEast Gobi megalake systems reveal East Asian Monsoon dynamics over the last interglacial-glacial cycle
A Gobi Desert megalake system reconstruction enables a quantitative estimate of East Asian Monsoon climate for the last two interglacials and provides insights into dust flux variations across East Asia and northern Pacific
- Hongwei Li
- , Xiaoping Yang
- & Xuefeng Wang
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Article
| Open AccessMiddle Pleistocene re-organization of Australian Monsoon
The response of monsoons to climate change remains uncertain. Here, the authors show that the Australian Summer Monsoon was primarily driven by insolation forcing but exhibited high sensitivity to ice volume and pCO2 after ~0.95 Ma. By contrast, wind-driven winter productivity tracked glacial-interglacial variability over the past 1.6 Myr.
- Li Gong
- , Ann Holbourn
- & Nils Andersen
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Article
| Open AccessAtmospheric CO2 forcing on Mediterranean biomes during the past 500 kyrs
A 500 kyr long record of vegetation change from SE Europe demonstrates that forest resilience is lost when precipitation decreases below a threshold limit, and highlights the vulnerability of Mediterranean forests to near-future climate change
- Andreas Koutsodendris
- , Vasilis Dakos
- & Jörg Pross
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| Open AccessWeakening of the South Asian summer monsoon linked to interhemispheric ice-sheet growth since 12 Ma
The εNd record from the IODP Exp. 359 Site U1467 in the northern Indian Ocean, along with climate modeling, reveals a two-step weakening of the South Asian summer monsoon (SASM) wind since 12 Ma. The SASM evolution was mainly caused by interhemispheric ice-sheet growth since the Middle Miocene.
- Zhengquan Yao
- , Xuefa Shi
- & Pavan Miriyala