Intensification of the meridional temperature gradient in the Great Barrier Reef following the Last Glacial Maximum

Type Article
Date 2014-06-17
Language English
Author(s) Felis Thomas1, McGregor Helen V.2, Linsley Braddock K.3, Tudhope Alexander W.4, Gagan Michael K.2, Suzuki Atsushi5, Inoue Mayuri6, Thomas Alexander L.4, 7, Esat Tezer M.2, 8, 9, Thompson William G.10, Tiwari Manish11, Potts Donald C.12, Mudelsee Manfred13, 14, Yokoyama Yusuke6, Webster Jody M.15
Affiliation(s) 1 : Univ Bremen, MARUM Ctr Marine Environm Sci, D-28359 Bremen, Germany.
2 : Australian Natl Univ, Res Sch Earth Sci, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia.
3 : Columbia Univ, Lamont Doherty Earth Observ, Palisades, NY 10964 USA.
4 : Univ Edinburgh, Sch Geosci, Edinburgh EH9 3JW, Midlothian, Scotland.
5 : Natl Inst Adv Ind Sci & Technol, Geol Survey Japan, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 3058567, Japan.
6 : Univ Tokyo, Atmosphere & Ocean Res Inst, Kashiwa, Chiba 2778564, Japan.
7 : Univ Oxford, Dept Earth Sci, Oxford OX1 3AN, England.
8 : Australian Nucl Sci & Technol Org, Inst Environm Res, Kirrawee Dc, NSW 2232, Australia.
9 : Australian Natl Univ, Dept Nucl Phys, Res Sch Phys Sci & Engn, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia.
10 : Woods Hole Oceanog Inst, Dept Geol & Geophys, Woods Hole, MA 02543 USA.
11 : Natl Ctr Antarctic & Ocean Res, Vasco Da Gama 403804, Goa, India.
12 : Univ Calif Santa Cruz, Dept Ecol & Evolutionary Biol, Santa Cruz, CA 95064 USA.
13 : Helmholtz Ctr Polar & Marine Res AWI, Alfred Wegener Inst, D-27570 Bremerhaven, Germany.
14 : Climate Risk Anal, D-37581 Bad Gandersheim, Germany.
15 : Univ Sydney, Sch Geosci, Geocoastal Res Grp, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.
Source Nature Communications (2041-1723) (Nature Publishing Group), 2014-06-17 , Vol. 5 , P. 1-7
DOI 10.1038/ncomms5102
WOS© Times Cited 57
Abstract Tropical south-western Pacific temperatures are of vital importance to the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), but the role of sea surface temperatures (SSTs) in the growth of the GBR since the Last Glacial Maximum remains largely unknown. Here we present records of Sr/Ca and delta O-18 for Last Glacial Maximum and deglacial corals that show a considerably steeper meridional SST gradient than the present day in the central GBR. We find a 1-2 degrees C larger temperature decrease between 17 degrees and 20 degrees S about 20,000 to 13,000 years ago. The result is best explained by the northward expansion of cooler subtropical waters due to a weakening of the South Pacific gyre and East Australian Current. Our findings indicate that the GBR experienced substantial meridional temperature change during the last deglaciation, and serve to explain anomalous deglacial drying of northeastern Australia. Overall, the GBR developed through significant SST change and may be more resilient than previously thought.
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Felis Thomas, McGregor Helen V., Linsley Braddock K., Tudhope Alexander W., Gagan Michael K., Suzuki Atsushi, Inoue Mayuri, Thomas Alexander L., Esat Tezer M., Thompson William G., Tiwari Manish, Potts Donald C., Mudelsee Manfred, Yokoyama Yusuke, Webster Jody M. (2014). Intensification of the meridional temperature gradient in the Great Barrier Reef following the Last Glacial Maximum. Nature Communications, 5, 1-7. Publisher's official version : https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms5102 , Open Access version : https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00290/40136/