Reduced North Pacific Deep Water formation across the Northern Hemisphere Glaciation
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Today, deep waters do not form in the northern high latitudes of the Pacific Ocean, but this may not have been the case during the Pliocene. Evidence suggests there was a Pacific Meridional Overturning Circulation during the warm Late Pliocene, similar to the modern Atlantic Ocean with a weak halocline in the subpolar North Pacific resulting in North Pacific Deep Water (NPDW) formation. However, much of this evidence comes from proxies that can be biased by changes in local productivity. We present a coupled Mg/Ca-δ18O record from the North Pacific which shows two distinct water masses in the Pliocene North Pacific Ocean, with NPDW colder and fresher than the underlying deeper water. Here, we show a decline in NPDW formation during glacials from 2.7 million years ago, which we suggest demonstrates the strong sensitivity of ocean gateways to sea level and ice volume change in shaping deep water circulation, and thus the climate system.
Source: Nature Communications
Language: English
Subfield: Atmospheric Science
Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Climate action
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $6,990
Awards: Reconstructing intermediate and deep ocean circulation during the Pliocene warm period, The London NERC Doctoral Training Partnership 2, CAREER: Understanding Cloud Feedback and Natural Aerosol Fingerprints to Interpret Past Warm Climate Forcing and Constrain Tropical Climate Sensitivity, Collaborative Research: Tracing Pacific Ocean circulation and ventilation during the warm Pliocene Epoch, G6995730016, NERC - NSFGEO: Pliocene Lessons for the Indian Ocean Dipole (PLIOD)
OpenAlex ID: W4408614142