Origin of delta C-13 minimum events in thermocline and intermediate waters of the western South Atlantic

Author(s):Show less -

Nascimento, R. A. ^[1] ; Santos, T. P. ^[1] ; Venancio, I. M. ^{[2, 1]} ; Chiessi, C. M. ^[3] ; Ballalai, J. M. ^[1] ; Kuhnert, H. ^[4] ; Govin, A. ^[5] ; Portilho-Ramos, R. C. ^[4] ; Lessa, D. ^[1] ; Dias, B. B. ^{[3, 1]} ; Pinho, T. M. L. ^[6] ; Crivellari, S. ^[3] ; Mulitza, S. ^[4] ; Albuquerque, A. L. S. ^[1]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Fed Fluminense, Programa Geociencias Geoquim, Niteroi, RJ - Brazil

^[2] Natl Inst Space Res INPE, Ctr Weather Forecasting & Climate Studies CPTEC, Cachoeira Paulista - Brazil

^[3] Univ Sao Paulo, Sch Arts Sci & Humanities, Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[4] Univ Bremen, MARUM Ctr Marine Environm Sci, Bremen - Germany

^[5] Univ Paris Saclay, Lab Sci Climat & Environm, Inst Pierre Simon Laplace, CEA CNRS UVSQ, Gif Sur Yvette - France

^[6] Univ Sao Paulo, Inst Geosci, Sao Paulo - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS; v. 272, NOV 15 2021.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

Stable carbon isotopic (delta C-13) minimum events have been widely described in marine archives recording the properties of thermocline and intermediate waters during glacial terminations. However, the mechanisms associated with these events remain ambiguous. Here we present three high temporal resolution deep-dwelling planktonic foraminifera delta C-13 records from the main thermocline and one benthic delta C-13 record from the modern core of Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW). Our sediment cores are distributed along the western South Atlantic from the equator to the subtropics, with the longest record spanning the last similar to 300 kyr. The results show that delta C-13 minimum events were pervasive features of the last three glacial terminations and Marine Isotope Stage 4/3 transition in the western South Atlantic. Two distinct mechanisms were responsible for the delta C-13 minima at the thermocline and intermediate depths of the Atlantic, respectively. We suggest that the delta C-13 minimum events at the thermocline were mostly driven by the thermodynamic ocean-atmosphere isotopic equilibration, which is supported by calculated delta C-13 of dissolved inorganic carbon in the subtropical western South Atlantic as well as by previously published model simulations. On the other hand, intermediate depths delta C-13 minimum events in the tropics were likely caused by the slowdown of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation and the associated accumulation of isotopically light carbon at mid and intermediate depths of the Atlantic Ocean. (C) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 18/15123-4 - Past perspectives on tipping elements of the climate system: the Amazon Rainforest and the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (PPTEAM)
• Grantee: Cristiano Mazur Chiessi
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Research Program on Global Climate Change - Young Investigators - Phase 2
• FAPESP's process: 19/24349-9 - Assessing the effects of past and future climate change on Amazonian biodiversity (CLAMBIO)
• Grantee: Cristiano Mazur Chiessi
• Support Opportunities: BIOTA-FAPESP Program - Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 19/10642-6 - Response of the upper water column at the origin of the Brazil Current to slowdown events of the Atlantic Meridional Ocean Circulation during the last 80 ka
• Grantee: Tainã Marcos Lima Pinho
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• FAPESP's process: 20/11452-3 - Carbon storage changes in the mid-depth South Atlantic during the penultimate glacial termination and the Anthropocene
• Grantee: Bruna Borba Dias
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral