Annually-resolved coral-based d11B-pH reconstruction for the past 323 years from New Caledonia

Increasing atmospheric CO2 from man-made climate change is reducing surface ocean pH. Due to limited instrumental measurements and historical pH records in the world's oceans, seawater pH variability at the decadal and centennial scale remains largely unknown and requires documentation. Here we...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Wu, Henry C, Dissard, Delphine, Douville, Eric, Blamart, Dominique, Bordier, Louise, Tribollet, Aline, Le Cornec, Florence, Pons-Branchu, Edwige, Dapoigny, Arnaud, Lazareth, Claire E
Format: Dataset
Language:English
Published: PANGAEA 2018
Subjects:
Age
Diploastrea heliopora
δ11B
standard deviation
δ13C
δ18O
New_Caledonia
Pacific
Ocean acidification
Online Access:https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.886966
https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.886966
Description
Summary:Increasing atmospheric CO2 from man-made climate change is reducing surface ocean pH. Due to limited instrumental measurements and historical pH records in the world's oceans, seawater pH variability at the decadal and centennial scale remains largely unknown and requires documentation. Here we present evidence of striking secular trends of decreasing pH since the late nineteenth century with pronounced interannual to decadal–interdecadal pH variability in the South Pacific Ocean from 1689 to 2011 CE. High-amplitude oceanic pH changes, likely related to atmospheric CO2 uptake and seawater dissolved inorganic carbon fluctuations, reveal a coupled relationship to sea surface temperature variations and highlight the marked influence of El Niño/Southern Oscillation and Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation. We suggest changing surface winds strength and zonal advection processes as the main drivers responsible for regional pH variability up to 1881 CE, followed by the prominent role of anthropogenic CO2 in accelerating the process of ocean acidification.

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