Evidence for an early Holocene climate optimum in the Antarctic deep ice-core record
- Institute of Geography, Moscow (Russian Federation)
In the interpretation of the Antarctic deep ice-core data, little attention has been given to the Holocene part of the records. As far as translation of the stable isotope content in terms of temperature is concerned, this can be understood because expected temperature changes may be obscured by isotopic noise of various origins and because no {sup 14}C dating has yet been available for this type of sequence. In this article, we focus on the Dome C and Vostok cores and on a new 850-m long ice core drilled out at Komsomolskaia by the Soviet Antarctic Expeditions. These three sites are located in East Antarctica, on the Antarctic plateau, in a region essentially undisturbed by ice-flow conditions, so that their detailed intercomparison may allow us to identify the climatically significant isotopic signal. Our results compare well with the proximal records of Southern Hemisphere high latitudes and support the existence of a warmer {open_quotes}climatic optimum{close_quotes} between 10 and 6 ka y BP. Maximum temperatures are reached just at the end of the last deglaciation, which confirms previous observations at high latitudes, in contrast with later dates for the Atlantic and hypsithermal optima in Europe and North America. 60 refs., 6 figs.
- OSTI ID:
- 181936
- Journal Information:
- Climate Dynamics, Vol. 6, Issue 3-4; Other Information: PBD: Jan 1992
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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