Publication - Southern Ocean warming and Wilkes Land ice sheet retreat during the mid-Miocene
Abstract
Observations and model experiments highlight the importance of ocean heat in forcing ice sheet retreat during the present and geological past, but past ocean temperature data are virtually missing in ice sheet proximal locations. Here we document paleoceanographic conditions and the (in)stability of the Wilkes Land subglacial basin (East Antarctica) during the mid-Miocene (~17–13.4 million years ago) by studying sediment cores from offshore Adélie Coast. Inland retreat of the ice sheet, temperate vegetation, and warm oligotrophic waters characterise the mid-Miocene Climatic Optimum (MCO; 17–14.8 Ma). After the MCO, expansion of a marine-based ice sheet occurs, but remains sensitive to melting upon episodic warm water incursions. Our results suggest that the mid-Miocene latitudinal temperature gradient across the Southern Ocean never resembled that of the present day. We demonstrate that a strong coupling of oceanic climate and Antarctic continental conditions existed and that the East Antarctic subglacial basins were highly sensitive to ocean warming.
Authors
| Name | Organization |
| Francesca Sangiorgi | Utrecht University, Faculty of Geosciences (UU) |
| Peter Bijl | Utrecht University, Faculty of Geosciences (UU) |
| Sandra Passchier | VU University Amsterdam |
| Ulrich Salzmann | |
| Stefan Schouten | |
| Robert McKay | |
| Rosemary D. Cody | |
| Jörg Pross | |
| Tina van de Flierdt | |
| Steven M. Bohaty | |
| Richard Levy | |
| Trevor Williams | |
| Carlota Escutia | |
| Henk Brinkhuis | Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ) |
Datasets
No datasets linked to this publication yetProjects
| Title | Funding id | Period |
| Reconstructing the the evolution and dynamics of the Antarctic cryosphere from Ocean Drilling; a dinoflagellate perspective | 866.10.110 | 2012-05-01 - 2018-01-14 |
External resource
Publication type
Journal Article
Date
2018-01-22
Journal
Nature Communications
Volume
9
Issue
1
