Lack of evidence for a substantial sea-level fluctuation within the Last Interglacial.
During the Last Interglacial, global mean sea level reached approximately 6 to 9 m above the present level. This period of high sea level may have been punctuated by a fall of more than 4 m, but a cause for such a widespread sea-level fall has been elusive. Reconstructions of global mean sea level a...
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Online Access: | http://dro.dur.ac.uk/25432/ http://dro.dur.ac.uk/25432/1/25432.pdf https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0195-4 |
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ftunivdurham:oai:dro.dur.ac.uk.OAI2:25432 2023-05-15T16:41:04+02:00 Lack of evidence for a substantial sea-level fluctuation within the Last Interglacial. Barlow, N.L.M. McClymont, E.L. Whitehouse, P.L. Stokes, C.R. Jamieson, S.S.R. Woodroffe, S.A. Bentley, M.J. Callard, S.L. Ó Cofaigh, C. Evans, D.J.A. Horrocks, J.R. Lloyd, J.M. Long, A.J. Margold, M. Roberts, D.H. Sanchez-Montes, M.L. 2018-08-06 application/pdf http://dro.dur.ac.uk/25432/ http://dro.dur.ac.uk/25432/1/25432.pdf https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0195-4 unknown Nature Publishing Group dro:25432 issn:1752-0894 issn: 1752-0908 doi:10.1038/s41561-018-0195-4 http://dro.dur.ac.uk/25432/ https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0195-4 http://dro.dur.ac.uk/25432/1/25432.pdf Nature geoscience, 2018, Vol.11, pp.627-634 [Peer Reviewed Journal] Article PeerReviewed 2018 ftunivdurham https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0195-4 2020-06-04T22:24:47Z During the Last Interglacial, global mean sea level reached approximately 6 to 9 m above the present level. This period of high sea level may have been punctuated by a fall of more than 4 m, but a cause for such a widespread sea-level fall has been elusive. Reconstructions of global mean sea level account for solid Earth processes and so the rapid growth and decay of ice sheets is the most obvious explanation for the sea-level fluctuation. Here, we synthesize published geomorphological and stratigraphic indicators from the Last Interglacial, and find no evidence for ice-sheet regrowth within the warm interglacial climate. We also identify uncertainties in the interpretation of local relative sea-level data that underpin the reconstructions of global mean sea level. Given this uncertainty, and taking into account our inability to identify any plausible processes that would cause global sea level to fall by 4 m during warm climate conditions, we question the occurrence of a rapid sea-level fluctuation within the Last Interglacial. We therefore recommend caution in interpreting the high rates of global mean sea-level rise in excess of 3 to 7 m per 1,000 years that have been proposed for the period following the Last Interglacial sea-level lowstand. Article in Journal/Newspaper Ice Sheet Durham University: Durham Research Online Nature Geoscience 11 9 627 634 |
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Durham University: Durham Research Online |
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ftunivdurham |
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unknown |
description |
During the Last Interglacial, global mean sea level reached approximately 6 to 9 m above the present level. This period of high sea level may have been punctuated by a fall of more than 4 m, but a cause for such a widespread sea-level fall has been elusive. Reconstructions of global mean sea level account for solid Earth processes and so the rapid growth and decay of ice sheets is the most obvious explanation for the sea-level fluctuation. Here, we synthesize published geomorphological and stratigraphic indicators from the Last Interglacial, and find no evidence for ice-sheet regrowth within the warm interglacial climate. We also identify uncertainties in the interpretation of local relative sea-level data that underpin the reconstructions of global mean sea level. Given this uncertainty, and taking into account our inability to identify any plausible processes that would cause global sea level to fall by 4 m during warm climate conditions, we question the occurrence of a rapid sea-level fluctuation within the Last Interglacial. We therefore recommend caution in interpreting the high rates of global mean sea-level rise in excess of 3 to 7 m per 1,000 years that have been proposed for the period following the Last Interglacial sea-level lowstand. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Barlow, N.L.M. McClymont, E.L. Whitehouse, P.L. Stokes, C.R. Jamieson, S.S.R. Woodroffe, S.A. Bentley, M.J. Callard, S.L. Ó Cofaigh, C. Evans, D.J.A. Horrocks, J.R. Lloyd, J.M. Long, A.J. Margold, M. Roberts, D.H. Sanchez-Montes, M.L. |
spellingShingle |
Barlow, N.L.M. McClymont, E.L. Whitehouse, P.L. Stokes, C.R. Jamieson, S.S.R. Woodroffe, S.A. Bentley, M.J. Callard, S.L. Ó Cofaigh, C. Evans, D.J.A. Horrocks, J.R. Lloyd, J.M. Long, A.J. Margold, M. Roberts, D.H. Sanchez-Montes, M.L. Lack of evidence for a substantial sea-level fluctuation within the Last Interglacial. |
author_facet |
Barlow, N.L.M. McClymont, E.L. Whitehouse, P.L. Stokes, C.R. Jamieson, S.S.R. Woodroffe, S.A. Bentley, M.J. Callard, S.L. Ó Cofaigh, C. Evans, D.J.A. Horrocks, J.R. Lloyd, J.M. Long, A.J. Margold, M. Roberts, D.H. Sanchez-Montes, M.L. |
author_sort |
Barlow, N.L.M. |
title |
Lack of evidence for a substantial sea-level fluctuation within the Last Interglacial. |
title_short |
Lack of evidence for a substantial sea-level fluctuation within the Last Interglacial. |
title_full |
Lack of evidence for a substantial sea-level fluctuation within the Last Interglacial. |
title_fullStr |
Lack of evidence for a substantial sea-level fluctuation within the Last Interglacial. |
title_full_unstemmed |
Lack of evidence for a substantial sea-level fluctuation within the Last Interglacial. |
title_sort |
lack of evidence for a substantial sea-level fluctuation within the last interglacial. |
publisher |
Nature Publishing Group |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
http://dro.dur.ac.uk/25432/ http://dro.dur.ac.uk/25432/1/25432.pdf https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0195-4 |
genre |
Ice Sheet |
genre_facet |
Ice Sheet |
op_source |
Nature geoscience, 2018, Vol.11, pp.627-634 [Peer Reviewed Journal] |
op_relation |
dro:25432 issn:1752-0894 issn: 1752-0908 doi:10.1038/s41561-018-0195-4 http://dro.dur.ac.uk/25432/ https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0195-4 http://dro.dur.ac.uk/25432/1/25432.pdf |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0195-4 |
container_title |
Nature Geoscience |
container_volume |
11 |
container_issue |
9 |
container_start_page |
627 |
op_container_end_page |
634 |
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1766031502118748160 |