Stable Carbon Cycle–Climate Relationship During the Late Pleistocene

• Published in: Science
• Main Authors: Siegenthaler, Urs, Stocker, Thomas F., Monnin, Eric, Lüthi, Dieter, Schwander, Jakob, Stauffer, Bernhard, Raynaud, Dominique, Barnola, Jean-Marc, Fischer, Hubertus, Masson-Delmotte, Valérie, Jouzel, Jean
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) 2005
• Subjects: Antarctic; Antarc*; Antarctica; EPICA; ice core
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1120130; https://www.science.org/doi/pdf/10.1126/science.1120130

A record of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) concentrations measured on the EPICA (European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica) Dome Concordia ice core extends the Vostok CO 2 record back to 650,000 years before the present (yr B.P.). Before 430,000 yr B.P., partial pressure of atmospheric CO 2 lies within the range of 260 and 180 parts per million by volume. This range is almost 30% smaller than that of the last four glacial cycles; however, the apparent sensitivity between deuterium and CO 2 remains stable throughout the six glacial cycles, suggesting that the relationship between CO 2 and Antarctic climate remained rather constant over this interval.