The Miocene: The Future of the Past
The Miocene epoch (23.03–5.33 Ma) was a time interval of global warmth, relative to today. Continental configurations and mountain topography transitioned toward modern conditions, and many flora and fauna evolved into the same taxa that exist today. Miocene climate was dynamic: long periods of earl...
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ftethz:oai:www.research-collection.ethz.ch:20.500.11850/483186 2023-05-15T16:41:17+02:00 The Miocene: The Future of the Past Steinthorsdottir, Margret Stoll, Heather 2021-04 application/application/pdf https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11850/483186 https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000483186 en eng American Geophysical Union info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1029/2020PA004037 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/wos/000644566400021 http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11850/483186 doi:10.3929/ethz-b-000483186 info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International CC-BY-NC-ND Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology, 36 (4) climate modeling paleobiota paleoclimate paleoenvironments review the Miocene info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion 2021 ftethz https://doi.org/20.500.11850/483186 https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000483186 https://doi.org/10.1029/2020PA004037 2022-04-25T14:25:50Z The Miocene epoch (23.03–5.33 Ma) was a time interval of global warmth, relative to today. Continental configurations and mountain topography transitioned toward modern conditions, and many flora and fauna evolved into the same taxa that exist today. Miocene climate was dynamic: long periods of early and late glaciation bracketed a ∼2 Myr greenhouse interval—the Miocene Climatic Optimum (MCO). Floras, faunas, ice sheets, precipitation, pCO2, and ocean and atmospheric circulation mostly (but not ubiquitously) covaried with these large changes in climate. With higher temperatures and moderately higher pCO2 (∼400–600 ppm), the MCO has been suggested as a particularly appropriate analog for future climate scenarios, and for assessing the predictive accuracy of numerical climate models—the same models that are used to simulate future climate. Yet, Miocene conditions have proved difficult to reconcile with models. This implies either missing positive feedbacks in the models, a lack of knowledge of past climate forcings, or the need for re‐interpretation of proxies, which might mitigate the model‐data discrepancy. Our understanding of Miocene climatic, biogeochemical, and oceanic changes on broad spatial and temporal scales is still developing. New records documenting the physical, chemical, and biotic aspects of the Earth system are emerging, and together provide a more comprehensive understanding of this important time interval. Here, we review the state‐of‐the‐art in Miocene climate, ocean circulation, biogeochemical cycling, ice sheet dynamics, and biotic adaptation research as inferred through proxy observations and modeling studies. ISSN:2572-4525 ISSN:2572-4517 Article in Journal/Newspaper Ice Sheet ETH Zürich Research Collection |
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Open Polar |
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ETH Zürich Research Collection |
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ftethz |
language |
English |
topic |
climate modeling paleobiota paleoclimate paleoenvironments review the Miocene |
spellingShingle |
climate modeling paleobiota paleoclimate paleoenvironments review the Miocene Steinthorsdottir, Margret Stoll, Heather The Miocene: The Future of the Past |
topic_facet |
climate modeling paleobiota paleoclimate paleoenvironments review the Miocene |
description |
The Miocene epoch (23.03–5.33 Ma) was a time interval of global warmth, relative to today. Continental configurations and mountain topography transitioned toward modern conditions, and many flora and fauna evolved into the same taxa that exist today. Miocene climate was dynamic: long periods of early and late glaciation bracketed a ∼2 Myr greenhouse interval—the Miocene Climatic Optimum (MCO). Floras, faunas, ice sheets, precipitation, pCO2, and ocean and atmospheric circulation mostly (but not ubiquitously) covaried with these large changes in climate. With higher temperatures and moderately higher pCO2 (∼400–600 ppm), the MCO has been suggested as a particularly appropriate analog for future climate scenarios, and for assessing the predictive accuracy of numerical climate models—the same models that are used to simulate future climate. Yet, Miocene conditions have proved difficult to reconcile with models. This implies either missing positive feedbacks in the models, a lack of knowledge of past climate forcings, or the need for re‐interpretation of proxies, which might mitigate the model‐data discrepancy. Our understanding of Miocene climatic, biogeochemical, and oceanic changes on broad spatial and temporal scales is still developing. New records documenting the physical, chemical, and biotic aspects of the Earth system are emerging, and together provide a more comprehensive understanding of this important time interval. Here, we review the state‐of‐the‐art in Miocene climate, ocean circulation, biogeochemical cycling, ice sheet dynamics, and biotic adaptation research as inferred through proxy observations and modeling studies. ISSN:2572-4525 ISSN:2572-4517 |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Steinthorsdottir, Margret Stoll, Heather |
author_facet |
Steinthorsdottir, Margret Stoll, Heather |
author_sort |
Steinthorsdottir, Margret |
title |
The Miocene: The Future of the Past |
title_short |
The Miocene: The Future of the Past |
title_full |
The Miocene: The Future of the Past |
title_fullStr |
The Miocene: The Future of the Past |
title_full_unstemmed |
The Miocene: The Future of the Past |
title_sort |
miocene: the future of the past |
publisher |
American Geophysical Union |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11850/483186 https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000483186 |
genre |
Ice Sheet |
genre_facet |
Ice Sheet |
op_source |
Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology, 36 (4) |
op_relation |
info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1029/2020PA004037 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/wos/000644566400021 http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11850/483186 doi:10.3929/ethz-b-000483186 |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International |
op_rightsnorm |
CC-BY-NC-ND |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/20.500.11850/483186 https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000483186 https://doi.org/10.1029/2020PA004037 |
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1766031711562366976 |