Ocean carbon cycling during the past 130,000 years - a pilot study on inverse paleoclimate record modelling

What role did changes in marine carbon cycle processes and calcareous organisms play in glacial-interglacial variation in atmospheric pCO2? In order to answer this question, we explore results from an ocean biogeochemical general circulation model. We attempt to systematically reconcile model result...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Heinze, C, Hoogakker, B, Winguth, A
Formato: Journal article
Publicado: European Geosciences Union 2016
_version_ 1826273516971884544
author Heinze, C
Hoogakker, B
Winguth, A
author_facet Heinze, C
Hoogakker, B
Winguth, A
author_sort Heinze, C
collection OXFORD
description What role did changes in marine carbon cycle processes and calcareous organisms play in glacial-interglacial variation in atmospheric pCO2? In order to answer this question, we explore results from an ocean biogeochemical general circulation model. We attempt to systematically reconcile model results with time dependent sediment core data from the observations. For this purpose, we fit simulated sensitivities of oceanic tracer concentrations to changes in governing carbon cycle parameters to measured sediment core data. We assume that the time variation of the governing carbon cycle parameters follows the general pattern of the glacial-interglacial deuterium anomaly. Our analysis provides an independent estimate of a maximum mean sea surface temperature drawdown of about 5◦C and a maximum outgassing of the land biosphere by about 430 PgC at the last glacial maximum as compared to preindustrial times. The overall fit of modelled paleoclimate tracers to observations, however, remains quite weak, indicating the potential of more detailed modelling studies to fully exploit the information stored in the paleo-climatic archive. This study confirms the hypothesis that a decline in ocean temperature and a more efficient biological carbon pump in combination with changes in ocean circulation are the key factors for explaining the glacial CO2 drawdown. The analysis suggests that potential changes in the export rain ratio POC:CaCO3 may not have a substantial imprint on the paleo-climatic archive. The use of the last glacial as an inverted analogue to potential ocean acidification impacts thus may be quite limited. A strong decrease in CaCO3 export production could potentially contribute to the glacial CO2 decline in the atmosphere, but remains hypothetical.
first_indexed 2024-03-06T22:29:23Z
format Journal article
id oxford-uuid:57c8117c-d43d-4efc-8080-bc7af2b145ac
institution University of Oxford
last_indexed 2024-03-06T22:29:23Z
publishDate 2016
publisher European Geosciences Union
record_format dspace
spelling oxford-uuid:57c8117c-d43d-4efc-8080-bc7af2b145ac2022-03-26T16:58:51ZOcean carbon cycling during the past 130,000 years - a pilot study on inverse paleoclimate record modellingJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:57c8117c-d43d-4efc-8080-bc7af2b145acSymplectic Elements at OxfordEuropean Geosciences Union2016Heinze, CHoogakker, BWinguth, AWhat role did changes in marine carbon cycle processes and calcareous organisms play in glacial-interglacial variation in atmospheric pCO2? In order to answer this question, we explore results from an ocean biogeochemical general circulation model. We attempt to systematically reconcile model results with time dependent sediment core data from the observations. For this purpose, we fit simulated sensitivities of oceanic tracer concentrations to changes in governing carbon cycle parameters to measured sediment core data. We assume that the time variation of the governing carbon cycle parameters follows the general pattern of the glacial-interglacial deuterium anomaly. Our analysis provides an independent estimate of a maximum mean sea surface temperature drawdown of about 5◦C and a maximum outgassing of the land biosphere by about 430 PgC at the last glacial maximum as compared to preindustrial times. The overall fit of modelled paleoclimate tracers to observations, however, remains quite weak, indicating the potential of more detailed modelling studies to fully exploit the information stored in the paleo-climatic archive. This study confirms the hypothesis that a decline in ocean temperature and a more efficient biological carbon pump in combination with changes in ocean circulation are the key factors for explaining the glacial CO2 drawdown. The analysis suggests that potential changes in the export rain ratio POC:CaCO3 may not have a substantial imprint on the paleo-climatic archive. The use of the last glacial as an inverted analogue to potential ocean acidification impacts thus may be quite limited. A strong decrease in CaCO3 export production could potentially contribute to the glacial CO2 decline in the atmosphere, but remains hypothetical.
spellingShingle Heinze, C
Hoogakker, B
Winguth, A
Ocean carbon cycling during the past 130,000 years - a pilot study on inverse paleoclimate record modelling
title Ocean carbon cycling during the past 130,000 years - a pilot study on inverse paleoclimate record modelling
title_full Ocean carbon cycling during the past 130,000 years - a pilot study on inverse paleoclimate record modelling
title_fullStr Ocean carbon cycling during the past 130,000 years - a pilot study on inverse paleoclimate record modelling
title_full_unstemmed Ocean carbon cycling during the past 130,000 years - a pilot study on inverse paleoclimate record modelling
title_short Ocean carbon cycling during the past 130,000 years - a pilot study on inverse paleoclimate record modelling
title_sort ocean carbon cycling during the past 130 000 years a pilot study on inverse paleoclimate record modelling
work_keys_str_mv AT heinzec oceancarboncyclingduringthepast130000yearsapilotstudyoninversepaleoclimaterecordmodelling
AT hoogakkerb oceancarboncyclingduringthepast130000yearsapilotstudyoninversepaleoclimaterecordmodelling
AT wingutha oceancarboncyclingduringthepast130000yearsapilotstudyoninversepaleoclimaterecordmodelling