Reconstruction of palaeoprecipitation over south and Southeastern Brazil during the last six glacial-interglacial cycles based on stable isotope records of speleothems

• Grant number: 12/03231-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Post-doctor
• Effective date (Start): June 01, 2012
• Effective date (End): November 30, 2012
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Geosciences
• Principal Investigator: Francisco William da Cruz Junior
• Grantee: Christian Millo
• Supervisor: Hai Cheng
• Host Institution: Instituto de Geociências (IGC). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Research place: University of Minnesota (U of M), United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 11/11662-9 - Paleoclimatic changes over southern and southeastern Brazil during the last six glacial-inreglacial cycles from speleothem isotope records., BP.PD

Abstract

This project aims at extending the investigation of the stable isotope records of the last six glacial cycles based on the study of speleothems collected from caves located in Santa Catarina, São Paulo e Minas Gerais. Brazil has one of the greatest potential worldwide in terms of availability of continuous and radiometrically-dated isotope records spanning over the last 600,000 years, a potential insofar encountered only in China. In this respect, the research project relies on previously dated samples, which assure the achievement of the longest and best dated speleothem records from the southern hemisphere. Based on these new palaeoclimatic records, we aim at investigating the regional and temporal variability of climate during the Late Pleistocene glacial and interglacial periods. Particular emphasis will be given, among others, to the response of summer Monsoon to the climate forcing induced by both the variability of insolation linked to the precessional cycle (19 to 23 thousand years) and the millennial-scale changes in ocean circulation (1 to 3 thousand years). These factors can change profoundly the climate conditions on the continent and in the ocean, due to large-scale changes in atmospheric circulation both in South America and worldwide. (AU)