Late Quaternary evolution of the sea surface water oxygen isotope stacked from the South China Sea

The "monsoon-type" oxygen isotope(δ18O) curve of planktonic foraminifera from the South China Sea(SCS) serves as a typical representation of low-latitude hydrological cycle evolution on orbital scales. However, this record is hard to interpret due to the inclusion of multiple climatic signals. Here we present 169 kyrs' high resolution records of G.ruber δ18O and Mg/Ca from core MD05-2896/97 in the southern SCS(latitude: 08° 49.05' N/08° 49.53' N, longitude: 111° 26.47' E/111° 26.51' E; water depth: 1657 m/1658 m), which include previously published G ruber δ18O and Mg/Ca records from 0 ka to 23 ka, our newly analyzed 442 δ18O samples and 202 Mg/Ca samples in the core depth of 2.03~11.03 m(spanning 23~123 ka) for MD05-2896, and 157 δ18O and Mg/Ca samples in the core depth of 9.4~12.5 m(spanning 120~169 ka) for MD05-2897. Then we try to update the "monsoon-type" δ18O curve since 170 ka by compiling G.ruber δ18O and Mg/Ca records of eight cores from the SCS(MD05-2896/97, GIK17961-2, TX05, 251PC, MD05-2899, MD05-2901, ODP1145 and MD05-2904), and obtain the SCS stacked residual sea surface water δ18O(δ18Osw-ivc) curve by correcting the temperature and global ice volume signals included in the original δ18O curve. In this way, we try to reveal the orbital-scale hydroclimatic linkage between SCS and surrounding Asian-Indo-Pacific regions. We find that while those northern SCS δ18Osw-ivc records are dominated by 100, 000-year and 40, 000-year cycles, the southern SCS δ18Osw-ivc also exhibit significant 23, 000-year' precessional cycles that are similar to the Indo-Pacific Warm Pool(IPWP) stacked δ18Osw-ivc curve. At precession band, the phase of SCS stacked δ18Osw-ivc lags IPWP δ18Osw-ivc by about 36°, and both are out-of-phase with the Asian stalagmite δ18O, suggesting that the SCS may be also a crucial moisture source(as IPWP) of the Asian summer monsoon. We also find that precessional cycles in the original SCS stacked "monsoon-type" δ18O can be largely attributable to temperature signal, and after correcting this temperature effect and global ice volume effect, the residual SCS δ18Osw-ivc are dominated by 100, 000-year cycle, broadly similar to the long-term trend of IPWP δ18Osw-ivc. But the fluctuation amplitudes of SCS δ18Osw-ivc were significantly larger than those of IPWP δ18Osw-ivc during periods of 130~120 ka and 20~10 ka with rapid sea-level rise. These two positive shifts of SCS δ18Osw-ivc may be preconditioned by more fresh water input from surrounding continental region(resulting negative δ18Osw-ivc) under glacial conditions, and triggered by the incursion of IPWP water mass with much more positive δ18Osw-ivc during deglacial periods. Thus, relative to the IPWP open ocean, the SCS δ18Osw-ivc is more sensitive to sea level changes than to precessional dominated monsoonal hydroclimate fluctuations.

Keyword(s)

Late Quaternary, South China Sea, residual sea water oxygen isotope(δ18Osw-ive), monsoonal hydroclimate, Indo-Pacific Warm Pool

How to cite
Sun Chunxiao, Wang Yue, Huang Enqing, Wang Tingting, Wang Xingxing, Jian Zhimin (2025). Late Quaternary evolution of the sea surface water oxygen isotope stacked from the South China Sea. Quaternary Sciences / Disiji yanjiu. 45 (2). 427-439. https://doi.org/10.11928/j.issn.1001-7410.2025.02.06

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