In-phase millennial-scale glacier changes in the tropics and North Atlantic regions during the Holocene

• Published in: Nature Communications
• Main Authors: Jomelli, V., Swingedouw, D, Vuille, M, Favier, V, Goehring, B, Shakun, J, Braucher, R, Schimmelpfennig, I., Menviel, L, Rabatel, A, Martin, L, Blard, P.-H, Condom, T, Lupker, M, Christl, M, He, Z, Verfaillie, D., Gorin, A, Aumaître, G., Bourles, D.L., Keddadouche, Karim
• Other Authors: Centre européen de recherche et d'enseignement des géosciences de l'environnement (CEREGE), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Aix Marseille Université (AMU)-Collège de France (CdF (institution))-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE), UMR 5805 Environnements et Paléoenvironnements Océaniques et Continentaux (EPOC), Observatoire aquitain des sciences de l'univers (OASU), Université Sciences et Technologies - Bordeaux 1 (UB)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Sciences et Technologies - Bordeaux 1 (UB)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-École pratique des hautes études (EPHE), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), University at Albany SUNY, State University of New York (SUNY), Institut des Géosciences de l’Environnement (IGE), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Grenoble Alpes (UGA)-Institut polytechnique de Grenoble - Grenoble Institute of Technology (Grenoble INP ), Université Grenoble Alpes (UGA), Tulane University, Department of Environmental, Earth and Ocean Sciences Boston (EEOS), University of Massachusetts Boston (UMass Boston), University of Massachusetts System (UMASS)-University of Massachusetts System (UMASS), University of New South Wales Sydney (UNSW), Centre de Recherches Pétrographiques et Géochimiques (CRPG), Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université de Lorraine (UL)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Universiteit Utrecht, Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule - Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zürich (ETH Zürich), Department of Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences Albany (DAES), State University of New York (SUNY)-State University of New York (SUNY), Boston College (BC), - International Joint Laboratory GREAT-ICE- French Service National d'Observation GLACIOCLIM - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), ANR-10-LABX-0056,OSUG@2020,Innovative strategies for observing and modelling natural systems(2010)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2022
• Subjects: FRESH-WATER RELEASEQUELCCAYA ICE CAPANDES; FLUCTUATIONS; HISTORYAGE; CHRONOLOGY; 16-DEGREES-S; CALIBRATION; EVOLUTION; [SDU.STU.GL]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences/Glaciology; [SDE.MCG]Environmental Sciences/Global Changes; North Atlantic
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-03629935; https://hal.science/hal-03629935/document; https://hal.science/hal-03629935/file/Jomelli%20et%20al.%202022%20AMOC%20Holocene.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-28939-9

International audience Based on new and published cosmic-ray exposure chronologies, we show that glacier extent in the tropical Andes and the north Atlantic regions (TANAR) varied in-phase on millennial timescales during the Holocene, distinct from other regions. Glaciers experienced an early Holocene maximum extent, followed by a strong mid-Holocene retreat and a re-advance in the late Holocene. We further explore the potential forcing of TANAR glacier variations using transient climate simulations. Since the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) evolution is poorly represented in these transient simulations, we develop a semi-empirical model to estimate the "AMOC-corrected" temperature and precipitation footprint at regional scales. We show that variations in the AMOC strength during the Holocene are consistent with the observed glacier changes. Our findings highlight the need to better constrain past AMOC behavior, as it may be an important driver of TANAR glacier variations during the Holocene, superimposed on other forcing mechanisms.