Climate variability in the North Atlantic since 3 Ma in a stratigraphic framework using stable isotopes and relative paleointensity

University Of Florida, Gainesville FL

Investigators

Abstract

This work will produce a stratigraphic template of Pleistocene climate change in the North Atlantic over the past 3 million years. Working with colleagues in the UK, the PI will generate and correlate high-resolution stable isotope and paleo-magnetic intensity records along a proximal to distal transect from the mouth of the Labrador Sea across the belt of detritus left by ancient ice-rafting events in the North Atlantic. The project will document millennial-scale variability in ice-rafting, ocean circulation, and geomagnetic properties with the goal of addressing important questions about the evolution of the Earth's climate during a critical period of transition (the mid-Pleistocene transition) and mechanisms for abrupt climate change. In addition, the results will provide a stratigraphic framework for the broader scientific community studying climate change in the North Atlantic. Further broader impacts of this work include international partnership and student exchange with NERC-funded UK scientists.