Hydroclimate variability during the last 2700 years based on stalagmite multi-proxy records in the central-western Mediterranean

This study presents the first high-resolution speleothem-based hydrological reconstruction for much of the last 2.7 kyr in the central-western Mediterranean. The paleohydrological information comes from a combination of five U-Th dated stalagmites from two Mallorca island caves. Interpretations are...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Cisneros Bermejo, Mercè, Cacho Lascorz, Isabel, Moreno, Ana, Stoll, Heather, Torner Perez, Judit, Català, Albert, Edwards, R. Lawrence, Cheng, Hai, Fornós, Joan J. (Joan Josep)
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión aceptada para publicación
Fecha de publicación:2021
País:España
Institución:Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya)
Repositorio:Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya
OAI Identifier:oai:recercat.cat:2445/185176
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/2445/185176
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Oceanografia
Paleoceanografia
Paleoclimatologia
Mediterrània (Mar : nord-oest)
Oceanography
Paleoceanography
Paleoclimatology
Mediterranean Sea (northwest)
Descripción
Sumario:This study presents the first high-resolution speleothem-based hydrological reconstruction for much of the last 2.7 kyr in the central-western Mediterranean. The paleohydrological information comes from a combination of five U-Th dated stalagmites from two Mallorca island caves. Interpretations are based on high-resolution records of d18O, d13C and trace element analyses combined with information from mineralogical X-ray diffraction, fabrics and morphological features, and cave monitoring data. None of the studied stalagmites cover the whole 2.7 kyr period but they provide sufficient overlap to replicate most of the discussed climatic intervals with the exception of the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA), which is represented by a hiatus. Taking into account the results of five years farmed calcite collected in glass plates and cave environmental parameters, we argue that main patterns in the stalagmite geochemical records are mostly controlled by changing rates of prior calcite precipitation (PCP) that respond to hydrological changes in the region. We apply a principal component analysis to the stalagmite geochemical data set and a composite d18O record to obtain a robust regional hydrological record. This record supports wet conditions for the early Roman Period (RP), the first half of the Early Middle Ages (EMA) and the Little Ice Age (LIA), and drier conditions for the late RP, the late EMA and the entire MCA. These results are discussed in the context of other climatic and oceanographic records from the region including paleo North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) records. This ocean-atmosphere approach suggests complex non-stationary climate patterns for the last 2.7 kyr, including the occurrence of both wetwarm and wet-cold intervals and underlying the complex interaction of factors controlling climate evolution in the region. Overall, positive (negative) NAO phases appear coincident with drier (wetter) conditions for all the examined period at decadal time-scales