Climate variability features of the last interglacial in the East Antarctic EPICA Dome C ice core

• Published in: Geophysical Research Letters
• Main Authors: Pol, K., Masson-Delmotte, Valérie, Cattani, O., Debret, Maxime, Falourd, S., Jouzel, J., Landais, A., Minster, B., Mudelsee, M., Schulz, M., Stenni, B.
• Other Authors: Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement Gif-sur-Yvette (LSCE), Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (UVSQ)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université Paris-Saclay-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Direction de Recherche Fondamentale (CEA) (DRF (CEA)), Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA)-Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA), British Antarctic Survey (BAS), Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), Glaces et Continents, Climats et Isotopes Stables (GLACCIOS), Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA)-Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA)-Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (UVSQ)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université Paris-Saclay-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Direction de Recherche Fondamentale (CEA) (DRF (CEA)), Morphodynamique Continentale et Côtière (M2C), Université de Caen Normandie (UNICAEN), Normandie Université (NU)-Normandie Université (NU)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université de Rouen Normandie (UNIROUEN), Normandie Université (NU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Alfred-Wegener-Institut, Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung = Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research = Institut Alfred-Wegener pour la recherche polaire et marine (AWI), Helmholtz-Gemeinschaft = Helmholtz Association, Center for Marine Environmental Sciences Bremen (MARUM), Universität Bremen Deutschland = University of Bremen Germany = Université de Brême Allemagne, Università degli studi di Trieste = University of Trieste
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: CCSD 2014
• Subjects: [SDU.OCEAN]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Ocean; Atmosphere; [SDU.ENVI]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Continental interfaces; environment; Antarctic; Antarc*; EPICA; ice core
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-03103753; https://hal.science/hal-03103753v1/document; https://hal.science/hal-03103753v1/file/2014GL059561.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1002/2014GL059561

International audience Whereas millennial to submillennial climate variability has been identified during the current interglacial period, past interglacial variability features remain poorly explored because of lacking data at sufficient temporal resolutions. Here we present new deuterium data from the EPICA Dome C ice core, documenting at decadal resolution temperature changes occurring over the East Antarctic plateau during the warmer-than-today last interglacial. Expanding previous evidence of instabilities during the last interglacial, multicentennial subevents are identified and labeled for the first time in a past interglacial context. A variance analysis further reveals two major climatic features. First, an increase in variability is detected prior to the glacial inception, as already observed at the end of Marine Isotopic Stage 11 in the same core. Second, the overall variance level is systematically higher during the last interglacial than during the current one, suggesting that a warmer East Antarctic climate may also be more variable.