Unstable AMOC during glacial intervals and millennial variability: The role of mean sea ice extent
A striking feature of paleoclimate records is the greater stability of the Holocene epoch relative to the preceding glacial interval, especially apparent in the North Atlantic region. In particular, strong irregular variability with an approximately 1500 yr period, known as the Dansgaard-Oeschger (D...
Published in: | Earth and Planetary Science Letters |
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ftosti:oai:osti.gov:1437176 2023-07-30T04:03:54+02:00 Unstable AMOC during glacial intervals and millennial variability: The role of mean sea ice extent Sevellec, Florian Fedorov, Alexey V. 2023-06-27 application/pdf http://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1437176 https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1437176 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2015.07.022 unknown http://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1437176 https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1437176 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2015.07.022 doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2015.07.022 58 GEOSCIENCES 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES 2023 ftosti https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2015.07.022 2023-07-11T09:25:46Z A striking feature of paleoclimate records is the greater stability of the Holocene epoch relative to the preceding glacial interval, especially apparent in the North Atlantic region. In particular, strong irregular variability with an approximately 1500 yr period, known as the Dansgaard-Oeschger (D-O) events, punctuates the last glaciation, but is absent during the interglacial. Prevailing theories, modeling and data suggest that these events, seen as abrupt warming episodes in Greenland ice cores and sea surface temperature records in the North Atlantic, are linked to reorganizations of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). In this study, using a new low-order ocean model that reproduces a realistic power spectrum of millennial variability, we explore differences in the AMOC stability between glacial and interglacial intervals of the 100 kyr glacial cycle of the Late Pleistocene (1 kyr = 1000 yr). Previous modeling studies show that the edge of sea ice in the North Atlantic shifts southward during glacial intervals, moving the region of the North Atlantic Deep Water formation and the AMOC also southward. Finally, here we demonstrate that, by shifting the AMOC with respect to the mean atmospheric precipitation field, such a displacement makes the system unstable, which explains chaotic millennial variability during the glacials and the persistence of stable ocean conditions during the interglacials. Other/Unknown Material Greenland Greenland ice cores North Atlantic Deep Water North Atlantic Sea ice SciTec Connect (Office of Scientific and Technical Information - OSTI, U.S. Department of Energy) Greenland Earth and Planetary Science Letters 429 60 68 |
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SciTec Connect (Office of Scientific and Technical Information - OSTI, U.S. Department of Energy) |
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ftosti |
language |
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topic |
58 GEOSCIENCES 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES |
spellingShingle |
58 GEOSCIENCES 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES Sevellec, Florian Fedorov, Alexey V. Unstable AMOC during glacial intervals and millennial variability: The role of mean sea ice extent |
topic_facet |
58 GEOSCIENCES 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES |
description |
A striking feature of paleoclimate records is the greater stability of the Holocene epoch relative to the preceding glacial interval, especially apparent in the North Atlantic region. In particular, strong irregular variability with an approximately 1500 yr period, known as the Dansgaard-Oeschger (D-O) events, punctuates the last glaciation, but is absent during the interglacial. Prevailing theories, modeling and data suggest that these events, seen as abrupt warming episodes in Greenland ice cores and sea surface temperature records in the North Atlantic, are linked to reorganizations of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). In this study, using a new low-order ocean model that reproduces a realistic power spectrum of millennial variability, we explore differences in the AMOC stability between glacial and interglacial intervals of the 100 kyr glacial cycle of the Late Pleistocene (1 kyr = 1000 yr). Previous modeling studies show that the edge of sea ice in the North Atlantic shifts southward during glacial intervals, moving the region of the North Atlantic Deep Water formation and the AMOC also southward. Finally, here we demonstrate that, by shifting the AMOC with respect to the mean atmospheric precipitation field, such a displacement makes the system unstable, which explains chaotic millennial variability during the glacials and the persistence of stable ocean conditions during the interglacials. |
author |
Sevellec, Florian Fedorov, Alexey V. |
author_facet |
Sevellec, Florian Fedorov, Alexey V. |
author_sort |
Sevellec, Florian |
title |
Unstable AMOC during glacial intervals and millennial variability: The role of mean sea ice extent |
title_short |
Unstable AMOC during glacial intervals and millennial variability: The role of mean sea ice extent |
title_full |
Unstable AMOC during glacial intervals and millennial variability: The role of mean sea ice extent |
title_fullStr |
Unstable AMOC during glacial intervals and millennial variability: The role of mean sea ice extent |
title_full_unstemmed |
Unstable AMOC during glacial intervals and millennial variability: The role of mean sea ice extent |
title_sort |
unstable amoc during glacial intervals and millennial variability: the role of mean sea ice extent |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
http://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1437176 https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1437176 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2015.07.022 |
geographic |
Greenland |
geographic_facet |
Greenland |
genre |
Greenland Greenland ice cores North Atlantic Deep Water North Atlantic Sea ice |
genre_facet |
Greenland Greenland ice cores North Atlantic Deep Water North Atlantic Sea ice |
op_relation |
http://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1437176 https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1437176 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2015.07.022 doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2015.07.022 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2015.07.022 |
container_title |
Earth and Planetary Science Letters |
container_volume |
429 |
container_start_page |
60 |
op_container_end_page |
68 |
_version_ |
1772815023526117376 |