Ice Age Terminations

• Published in: Science
• Main Authors: Cheng, Hai, Edwards, R. Lawrence, Broecker, Wallace S., Denton, George H., Kong, Xinggong, Wang, Yongjin, Zhang, Rong, Wang, Xianfeng
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) 2009
• Subjects: ice core
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.1177840; https://www.science.org/doi/pdf/10.1126/science.1177840

Monsoon Cave Recordings Rocky deposits in caves in central China record the changes over time in the Asian Monsoon through the oxygen isotopic composition of the minerals from which they are formed. These deposits can be precisely dated and provide an absolute time line for climate system changes. Cheng et al. (p. 248 see the Perspective by Severinghaus ) present oxygen isotope data from speleothems collected from Sanbao Cave, China, for the three glacial terminations that occurred between 120,000 and 350,000 years ago. The data reveal variations in the amount of precipitation delivered by the Asian Monsoon over time. Comparison of the timing of these changes with corresponding changes in ice core and marine sedimentary records provides mechanistic insights into how variations in insolation affect ice sheets and ice age terminations.