Investigating North Atlantic circulation changes during Late Quaternary interglacial periods

北大西洋是了解全球气候动态的关键地区。北大西洋环流的变化与过去暖期(间冰期)的突然气候事件有关，包括现在的间冰期(全新世，约11.700年--今天)，但这些变化的性质和原因机制尚未完全阐明。该项目将利用北大西洋次极地具有战略意义的地点网络，调查前几次间冰期海洋变化的空间模式，并探索其起源。不同的古海洋学指标，包括动物群有孔虫组合、冰排碎屑和可分类的泥沙，以及钕和碳同位素，将被用来研究过去45万年间间冰期期间表层和深海环流的变化。将上述记录结合在一起，将能够确定系统阈值以及海洋环流在短(即百年)和长(几千年)时间尺度上的间冰期变化所涉及的基本模式和机制，以及间冰期开始和结束期间发生的机制。这些限制将为北大西洋环流的稳定性提供新的见解，为气候模型模拟提供信息，并提高我们预测突然气候变化事件的能力。

The North Atlantic is a key region for understanding global climate dynamics. Variability in North Atlantic circulation has been linked with abrupt climate events during past warm periods (interglacials), including the current interglacial (Holocene, ~11.700 years - today), but the nature and causal mechanisms of these changes have not yet been fully elucidated. This project will use a network of strategically located sites in the subpolar North Atlantic to investigate the spatial pattern of ocean changes during previous interglacials and explore their origin. Different palaeoceanographic proxies, including faunal foraminiferal assemblages, ice-rafted debris, and sortable silt, as well as neodymium and carbon isotopes, will be used to investigate changes in the surface and deep ocean circulation for interglacial intervals of the last 450,000 years. The combination of the above records will allow the identification of system thresholds as well as the underlying patterns and mechanisms involved in interglacial variability of ocean circulation on both short (i.e., centennial) and long (multi-millennial) timescales, and the mechanisms occurring during the onset and end of interglacials. These constraints will provide new insights on the stability of North Atlantic circulation, informing climate model simulations and improving our ability to forecast abrupt climate change events.