Recent 2000-year geological records of mud in the inner shelf of the East China Sea and their climatic implications

AXIS(14)C dating and grain-size analysis for Core DD2, located at the north of the Yangtze River-derived mud off the Zhejiang-Fujian coasts in the inner shelf of the East China Sea, provide us a high-resolution grain-size distribution curve varying with depth and time. Data in the upper mud layer of Core DD2 indicate that there are at least 9 abrupt grain-size increasing in recent 2000 years, with each corresponding very well with the low-temperature events in Chinese history, which might result from the periodical strengthening of the East Asian Winter Monsoon (EAWM), including the first-revealed maximum temperature lowering event at around 990 a BP. At the same time, the finer grain size section in Core DD2 agrees well with the Sui-Tang Warming Period (600-1000 a AD) defined previously by Zhu Kezhen, during which the climate had a warm, cold and warm fluctuation, with a dominated cooling period of 750-850 a AD. The Little Ice Age (LIA) can also be identified in the core. It starts around 1450 a AD and was followed by a subsequent cooling events at 1510, 1670 and 1840 a AD. Timing of these cold events revealed here still needs to be further verified owing to some current uncertainty of dating we used in this study.

Heinrich event imprints in the Okinawa Trough: evidence from oxygen isotope and planktonic foraminifera

Planktonic foraminiferal faunas, oxygen isotope and modern analog technique sea surface temperature records were obtained in piston core DGKS9603 (28degrees08.869'N, 127degrees16.238'E, water depth 1100 in) collected from the middle Okinawa Trough. During the last glaciation, four cold events were identified and correlate Heinrich events (HE) H2-5 of the last 45 ka. During the last deglaciation, core DGKS9603 has begun to be influenced by the Kuroshio since about 16 cal ka BP. Three weakenings of this warm current occurred at about 2.8-5.3, 11.4 and 15.5 cal ka BP respectively. Among the three fluctuations, the oldest one is synchronous with HE1 and could be a response to the strong cooling observed in the North Atlantic Ocean. The fluctuation occurring at about 11.4 cal ka ago corresponds to the Younger Dryas within the age error bars. Our observations provide new evidence that the HEs documented from Greenland and the northern North Atlantic had a global climatic impact. Changes in the intensity of the East Asian monsoon could be the main mechanism responsible for the paleoccanographic variations observed in the Okinawa Trough. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

The paleoclimatic events and cause in the Okinawa Trough during 50 kaBP

Planktonic foraminiferal delta O-18 record for core DGKS9603 from the Okinawa Trough shows a series of climatic fluctuations and sudden cooling events in short time scale during 50 kaBP, which appear to correlate closely to the Younger Dryas and Heinrich events H1-5 recorded in Chinese loess, the South China Sea, the North Atlantic cores and the Greenland ice cores. Three polarity reversal events, correlating to Gothenburg, Mungo and Laschamp events, approximately correspond to Heinrich events H1, H3 and H5 respectively, which could be a cause of global climate changes. The delta O-18 curve of the Okinawa Trough is well associated with the grain size record of the Lijiayuan loess profile in northwestern China and is somewhat different from the climate fluctuations documented in the Greenland ice cores. These correlation results indicate that regional factors play an important role in controlling the climate changes in the East Asia, and the East Asian Monsoon could be the prominent regional controlling factor.

PALEOMONSOONS OF CHINA OVER THE LAST 130,000 YEARS - PALEOMONSOON VARIATION

Based upon the effect of land-sea interaction on the paleomonsoon variation and the time series of climatic proxy-indicators, the historical Asian monsoon variation over the last 130,000 and 18,000 years has been reconstructed with an emphasis on the basic characteristics of summer monsoon circulation. The monsoon-climatic cycles and associated model of environmental development over the central and eastern China are proposed and the mechanism of paleomonsoon variation of China preliminarily discussed. The variation of East Asian monsoon circulation should be regarded as a regional result of both solar-radiation changes and the global glacial-interglacial cycles. The episodic uplifting of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau since the late Miocene has to a large extent controlled the forming and evolution of the paleomonsoon circulation of China.

Sea surface temperature reconstruction for the middle Okinawa Trough during the last glacial-interglacial cycle using C-37 unsaturated alkenones

C-37 unsaturated alkenones were analyzed on a core retrieved from the middle Okinawa Trough. The calculated U-37(K') displays a trend generally parallel with those of the oxygen isotopic compositions of two planktonic foraminiferal species, Neogloboquadrina dutertrei and Globigerinoides sacculifer, suggesting that in this region, SST has varied in phase with global ice volume change since the last glacial -interglacial cycle. The U-37(K')-derived SST ranged from ca. 24.0 to 27.5 degrees C, with the highest value 27.5 degrees C occurring in marine isotope stage 5 and the lowest similar to 24.0 degrees C in marine isotope stage 2. This trend is consistent with the continental records from the East Asian monsoon domain and the marine records from the Equatorial Pacific. The deglacial increase of the U-37(K')-derived SST is similar to 2.4 degrees C from the Last Glacial Maximum to the Holocene. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Equatorial pacific SSTA-related decadal variations of potential predictability of ENSO and interannual climate

Based on analysis of NCEP reanalysis data and SST indices of the recent 50 years, decadal changes of the potential predictability of ENSO and interannual climate anomalies were investigated. Autocorrelation of Nino3 SST anomalies (SSTA) and correlation between atmospheric anomalies fields and Nino3 SSTA exhibit obvious variation in different decades, which indicates that Nino3 SSTA-related potential predictability of ENSO and interannual climate anomalies has significant decadal changes. Time around 1977 is not only a shift point of climate on the interdecadal time scale but also a catastrophe point of potential predictability of ENSO and interannual climate. As a whole, ENSO and the PNA pattern in boreal winter are more predictable in 1980s than in 1960s and 1970s, while the Nino3 SSTA-related potential predictability of the Indian monsoon and the East Asian Monsoon is lower in 1980s than in 1960s and 1970s.

末次冰消期以来东亚季风演化：来自东海和北黄海沉积孢粉记录

本论文通过对冲绳海槽南部的MD05-2908孔、北黄海的B-U35、B-U41、B-L44孔和北黄海的299份表层样中的孢粉组成、堆积速率、有机碳氮同位素的综合研究，分析了北黄海的孢粉来源、传播动力和途径，并与其它古气候记录对比，重建了末次冰消期以来东亚季风的演化。 MD05-2908孔孢粉组合特征显示6800-3800a BP间气候温暖干燥，其间存在着两次明显的温度降低、湿度增加阶段，即6800-6600a BP和5800-4850a BP；3800a BP以后，气候变得比较寒冷湿润，中世纪暖期和小冰期分别位于990-480a BP和480-230a BP。 北黄海表层孢粉百分含量等值线图显示北黄海不同海域孢粉来源不同，北黄 海东部海域(123.5°E以东的陆架区域)孢粉主要来源于鸭绿江；北黄海中部海域(123.5°E-122.6°E的陆架区域)孢粉来源比较复杂，既有来自辽东半岛、沿海岛屿、山东半岛，还有由黄海暖流携带而来的；北黄海西部海域(122.6°E以西的陆架区域)孢粉以黄海沿岸流携带而来的黄河来源的为主。 北黄海表层孢粉百分含量等值线图还显示，北黄海东部海域孢粉分布主要受 鸭绿江冲淡水影响，波浪和潮汐的作用较弱；北黄海中部海域孢粉分布受黄海暖流和辽东沿岸流的分支共同影响；黄海暖流与黄海沿岸流在山东半岛东北部相遇，形成一逆时针方向的涡旋，该涡旋控制着北黄海西部海域孢粉的分布。 B-U35孔、B-U41和B-L44孔孢粉组合特征显示，12830-12350a BP时气候 寒冷干燥，植被以旱生草本植物为主，时间上可能对应YD事件；12350-10100a BP时植被以针叶林为主，林下生长着大量蕨类植物，气候寒冷湿润，可能对应着YD事件；10100-6600a BP时植被以落叶阔叶林为主，伴生大量旱生草本植物，气候温暖干燥；6600-5000a BP时植被以针叶-落叶阔叶混交林为主，旱生草本植物含量下降，相对上一阶段温度有所降低，但气候更湿润，可能对应全新世最佳期；5000-4000a BP时针叶林所占比例扩大，温度再次降低，湿度变化不明显；4000-500a BP旱生草本植物含量增加，气候寒冷干燥；500a BP-至今，受人类活动影响，植被遭到严重破坏。 B-U35孔和B-U41孔淡水水生植物花粉百分含量曲线显示11750a BP以来黄河河口地区沼泽湿地面积几经变化。10100-6600a BP时沼泽湿地范围在上一阶段的基础上进一步扩大；6600-2850a BP间沼泽湿地大面积缩小，水生植物属种式微；2850a BP之后黄河河口地区沼泽湿地面积再次扩大，水生植物重新繁盛。 MD05-2908孔蕨类孢子百分含量被用来作为中国东南部季风演化的代用指标。结果显示6800-3800a BP时夏季风较强，其间有两次夏季风减弱阶段，分别位于6800-6600a BP和5800-4850a BP，3800a BP以来，夏季风明显减弱，此期的夏季风减弱除受太阳辐射量的减少影响外，可能还与El Nino的频繁爆发有关。 B-U35孔和B-U41孔蒿属、藜科、麻黄科百分含量被用来作为中国中北部夏季风演化的代用指标。研究表明，11750a BP以来东亚夏季风强度在10100-6600a BP时，显著加强，6600a BP左右，夏季风开始减弱，4000a BP以后夏季风显著减弱。 将MD05-2908孔、B-U35孔和B-U41孔夏季风代用指标进行对比发现，中晚全新世以来中国南-北湿度变化特征正好相反，东亚夏季风强度变化以及由此引起的雨锋的南进北撤可能是导致中国不同区域中晚全新世以来降雨量不同的主要原因。