Ocean History and Climate Evolution

• Main Authors: Roy-Barman, Matthieu, Jeandel, Catherine
• Format: Book Part
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford University PressOxford 2016
• Subjects: Arctic; Climate change; Global warming; Sea ice
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198787495.003.0011; https://academic.oup.com/book/chapter-pdf/51185193/acprof-9780198787495-chapter-11.pdf

Abstract Over Earth history, there has been an interplay between the ocean and the climate evolution and this will continue in the future. Elemental and isotopic tracers called proxies are used to reconstruct environmental changes over timescales from billions of years to decades. Over the long term, the ocean acts on the climate through the carbon cycle (in relation with life evolution and carbon storage in marine sediments) and plate tectonics (ocean circulation changes with continental masses location, isthmus opening or closing). Studying the past climate variability during the last interglacial/glacial cycle highlights some of the mechanisms and retroactions controlling the ongoing climate change. Global warming impacts such as warmer sea surface temperature, Arctic sea-ice decrease or shifts in plankton phenology are already observed. Other forecast impacts such as the meridional overturning circulation slow-down or changes of the ocean biological productivity have not yet clearly emerged from the natural variability.