| Summary: | The combined isotopic records in the Greenland ice cores, in modern and ancient wood samples, and in marine foraminifera provide a climatic record for the Alleröd-Bølling-Younger Dryas and post-Younger Dryas Periods that is not compatible with the usual climatic interpretation of the ^2H/^1H ratios in the Greenland ice cores. For example, the Younger Dryas was not solely a North Atlantic event because evidence for it is also found in the ^2H/^1H record in wood samples which grew on the north slope of Alaska. The Younger Dryas was not necessarily a time of cooling over the ice caps. Moreover, it might have been a warming period in the temperate zones of the northern hemisphere continents. A better understanding of the climatic scenarios during these periods of time could be ascertained from additional isotopic data in plant remains which grew during these intervals and which cover a wider climatic range on the continents. © 1995 by the American Geophysical Union. Received July 23, 1995; revised August 30, 1995; accepted September 5, 1995. It is a pleasure to acknowledge David Carter, USGS Alaska Branch, for providing the ^(14)C-dated samples from the north slope of Alaska and for his helpful remarks on earlier versions of this manuscript. Crayton Yapp made critical contributions to this manuscript with his cogent and greatly appreciated remarks. We also acknowledge the technical assistance of Eleanor Dent, Xiahong Feng, Xiaomei Xu, and Meg Garstang. This research was supported by NSF ATM9219891 to Samuel Epstein. Published - gbc310.pdf
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