Temperate rainforests near the South Pole during peak Cretaceous warmth
The mid-Cretaceous period was one of the warmest intervals of the past 140 million years1,2,3,4,5, driven by atmospheric carbon dioxide levels of around 1,000 parts per million by volume6. In the near absence of proximal geological records from south of the Antarctic Circle, it is disputed whether p...
Published in: | Nature |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | unknown |
Published: |
Nature Research
2020
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/527403/ https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-020-2148-5 |
id |
ftnerc:oai:nora.nerc.ac.uk:527403 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftnerc:oai:nora.nerc.ac.uk:527403 2023-05-15T13:41:45+02:00 Temperate rainforests near the South Pole during peak Cretaceous warmth Klages, Johann P. Salzmann, Ulrich Bickert, Torsten Hillenbrand, Claus-Dieter Gohl, Karsten Kuhn, Gerhard Bohaty, Steven M. Titschack, Jürgen Müller, Juliane Frederichs, Thomas Bauersachs, Thorsten Ehrmann, Werner van de Flierdt, Tina Pereira, Patric Simões Larter, Robert D. Lohmann, Gerrit Niezgodzki, Igor Uenzelmann-Neben, Gabriele Zundel, Maximilian Spiegel, Cornelia Mark, Chris Chew, David Francis, Jane E. Nehrke, Gernot Schwarz, Florian Smith, James A. Freudenthal, Tim Esper, Oliver Pälike, Heiko Ronge, Thomas A. Dziadek, Ricarda 2020-04-01 http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/527403/ https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-020-2148-5 unknown Nature Research Klages, Johann P.; Salzmann, Ulrich; Bickert, Torsten; Hillenbrand, Claus-Dieter orcid:0000-0003-0240-7317 Gohl, Karsten; Kuhn, Gerhard; Bohaty, Steven M.; Titschack, Jürgen; Müller, Juliane; Frederichs, Thomas; Bauersachs, Thorsten; Ehrmann, Werner; van de Flierdt, Tina; Pereira, Patric Simões; Larter, Robert D. orcid:0000-0002-8414-7389 Lohmann, Gerrit; Niezgodzki, Igor; Uenzelmann-Neben, Gabriele; Zundel, Maximilian; Spiegel, Cornelia; Mark, Chris; Chew, David; Francis, Jane E.; Nehrke, Gernot; Schwarz, Florian; Smith, James A. orcid:0000-0002-1333-2544 Freudenthal, Tim; Esper, Oliver; Pälike, Heiko; Ronge, Thomas A.; Dziadek, Ricarda. 2020 Temperate rainforests near the South Pole during peak Cretaceous warmth. Nature, 580 (7801). 81-86. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2148-5 <https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2148-5> Publication - Article PeerReviewed 2020 ftnerc https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2148-5 2023-02-04T19:50:31Z The mid-Cretaceous period was one of the warmest intervals of the past 140 million years1,2,3,4,5, driven by atmospheric carbon dioxide levels of around 1,000 parts per million by volume6. In the near absence of proximal geological records from south of the Antarctic Circle, it is disputed whether polar ice could exist under such environmental conditions. Here we use a sedimentary sequence recovered from the West Antarctic shelf—the southernmost Cretaceous record reported so far—and show that a temperate lowland rainforest environment existed at a palaeolatitude of about 82° S during the Turonian–Santonian age (92 to 83 million years ago). This record contains an intact 3-metre-long network of in situ fossil roots embedded in a mudstone matrix containing diverse pollen and spores. A climate model simulation shows that the reconstructed temperate climate at this high latitude requires a combination of both atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations of 1,120–1,680 parts per million by volume and a vegetated land surface without major Antarctic glaciation, highlighting the important cooling effect exerted by ice albedo under high levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctic South pole South pole Natural Environment Research Council: NERC Open Research Archive Antarctic The Antarctic South Pole Nature 580 7801 81 86 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Natural Environment Research Council: NERC Open Research Archive |
op_collection_id |
ftnerc |
language |
unknown |
description |
The mid-Cretaceous period was one of the warmest intervals of the past 140 million years1,2,3,4,5, driven by atmospheric carbon dioxide levels of around 1,000 parts per million by volume6. In the near absence of proximal geological records from south of the Antarctic Circle, it is disputed whether polar ice could exist under such environmental conditions. Here we use a sedimentary sequence recovered from the West Antarctic shelf—the southernmost Cretaceous record reported so far—and show that a temperate lowland rainforest environment existed at a palaeolatitude of about 82° S during the Turonian–Santonian age (92 to 83 million years ago). This record contains an intact 3-metre-long network of in situ fossil roots embedded in a mudstone matrix containing diverse pollen and spores. A climate model simulation shows that the reconstructed temperate climate at this high latitude requires a combination of both atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations of 1,120–1,680 parts per million by volume and a vegetated land surface without major Antarctic glaciation, highlighting the important cooling effect exerted by ice albedo under high levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Klages, Johann P. Salzmann, Ulrich Bickert, Torsten Hillenbrand, Claus-Dieter Gohl, Karsten Kuhn, Gerhard Bohaty, Steven M. Titschack, Jürgen Müller, Juliane Frederichs, Thomas Bauersachs, Thorsten Ehrmann, Werner van de Flierdt, Tina Pereira, Patric Simões Larter, Robert D. Lohmann, Gerrit Niezgodzki, Igor Uenzelmann-Neben, Gabriele Zundel, Maximilian Spiegel, Cornelia Mark, Chris Chew, David Francis, Jane E. Nehrke, Gernot Schwarz, Florian Smith, James A. Freudenthal, Tim Esper, Oliver Pälike, Heiko Ronge, Thomas A. Dziadek, Ricarda |
spellingShingle |
Klages, Johann P. Salzmann, Ulrich Bickert, Torsten Hillenbrand, Claus-Dieter Gohl, Karsten Kuhn, Gerhard Bohaty, Steven M. Titschack, Jürgen Müller, Juliane Frederichs, Thomas Bauersachs, Thorsten Ehrmann, Werner van de Flierdt, Tina Pereira, Patric Simões Larter, Robert D. Lohmann, Gerrit Niezgodzki, Igor Uenzelmann-Neben, Gabriele Zundel, Maximilian Spiegel, Cornelia Mark, Chris Chew, David Francis, Jane E. Nehrke, Gernot Schwarz, Florian Smith, James A. Freudenthal, Tim Esper, Oliver Pälike, Heiko Ronge, Thomas A. Dziadek, Ricarda Temperate rainforests near the South Pole during peak Cretaceous warmth |
author_facet |
Klages, Johann P. Salzmann, Ulrich Bickert, Torsten Hillenbrand, Claus-Dieter Gohl, Karsten Kuhn, Gerhard Bohaty, Steven M. Titschack, Jürgen Müller, Juliane Frederichs, Thomas Bauersachs, Thorsten Ehrmann, Werner van de Flierdt, Tina Pereira, Patric Simões Larter, Robert D. Lohmann, Gerrit Niezgodzki, Igor Uenzelmann-Neben, Gabriele Zundel, Maximilian Spiegel, Cornelia Mark, Chris Chew, David Francis, Jane E. Nehrke, Gernot Schwarz, Florian Smith, James A. Freudenthal, Tim Esper, Oliver Pälike, Heiko Ronge, Thomas A. Dziadek, Ricarda |
author_sort |
Klages, Johann P. |
title |
Temperate rainforests near the South Pole during peak Cretaceous warmth |
title_short |
Temperate rainforests near the South Pole during peak Cretaceous warmth |
title_full |
Temperate rainforests near the South Pole during peak Cretaceous warmth |
title_fullStr |
Temperate rainforests near the South Pole during peak Cretaceous warmth |
title_full_unstemmed |
Temperate rainforests near the South Pole during peak Cretaceous warmth |
title_sort |
temperate rainforests near the south pole during peak cretaceous warmth |
publisher |
Nature Research |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/527403/ https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-020-2148-5 |
geographic |
Antarctic The Antarctic South Pole |
geographic_facet |
Antarctic The Antarctic South Pole |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic South pole South pole |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic South pole South pole |
op_relation |
Klages, Johann P.; Salzmann, Ulrich; Bickert, Torsten; Hillenbrand, Claus-Dieter orcid:0000-0003-0240-7317 Gohl, Karsten; Kuhn, Gerhard; Bohaty, Steven M.; Titschack, Jürgen; Müller, Juliane; Frederichs, Thomas; Bauersachs, Thorsten; Ehrmann, Werner; van de Flierdt, Tina; Pereira, Patric Simões; Larter, Robert D. orcid:0000-0002-8414-7389 Lohmann, Gerrit; Niezgodzki, Igor; Uenzelmann-Neben, Gabriele; Zundel, Maximilian; Spiegel, Cornelia; Mark, Chris; Chew, David; Francis, Jane E.; Nehrke, Gernot; Schwarz, Florian; Smith, James A. orcid:0000-0002-1333-2544 Freudenthal, Tim; Esper, Oliver; Pälike, Heiko; Ronge, Thomas A.; Dziadek, Ricarda. 2020 Temperate rainforests near the South Pole during peak Cretaceous warmth. Nature, 580 (7801). 81-86. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2148-5 <https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2148-5> |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2148-5 |
container_title |
Nature |
container_volume |
580 |
container_issue |
7801 |
container_start_page |
81 |
op_container_end_page |
86 |
_version_ |
1766156795434237952 |