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Pollen-based continental climate reconstructions at 6 and 21 ka : A global synthesis

Bartlein, P. J. ; Harrison, S. P. ; Brewer, S. ; Connor, S. ; Davis, B. A.S. ; Gajewski, K. ; Guiot, J. ; Harrison-Prentice, T. I. ; Henderson, A. and Peyron, O. , et al. (2011) In Climate Dynamics 37(3-4). p.775-802
Abstract


Subfossil pollen and plant macrofossil data derived from
14
C-dated sediment profiles can provide quantitative information on glacial and interglacial climates. The data allow climate variables related to growing-season warmth, winter cold, and plant-available moisture to be reconstructed. Continental-scale reconstructions have been made for the mid-Holocene (MH, around 6 ka) and Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, around 21 ka), allowing comparison with palaeoclimate simulations currently being carried out as part of the fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The synthesis of the available MH and... (More)


Subfossil pollen and plant macrofossil data derived from
14
C-dated sediment profiles can provide quantitative information on glacial and interglacial climates. The data allow climate variables related to growing-season warmth, winter cold, and plant-available moisture to be reconstructed. Continental-scale reconstructions have been made for the mid-Holocene (MH, around 6 ka) and Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, around 21 ka), allowing comparison with palaeoclimate simulations currently being carried out as part of the fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The synthesis of the available MH and LGM climate reconstructions and their uncertainties, obtained using modern-analogue, regression and model-inversion techniques, is presented for four temperature variables and two moisture variables. Reconstructions of the same variables based on surface-pollen assemblages are shown to be accurate and unbiased. Reconstructed LGM and MH climate anomaly patterns are coherent, consistent between variables, and robust with respect to the choice of technique. They support a conceptual model of the controls of Late Quaternary climate change whereby the first-order effects of orbital variations and greenhouse forcing on the seasonal cycle of temperature are predictably modified by responses of the atmospheric circulation and surface energy balance.

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publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Climate model evaluation, Last glacial maximum, Mid-Holocene, Palaeovegetation palaeoclimate reconstructions, Plant macrofossils, Pollen, Reconstruction uncertainties
in
Climate Dynamics
volume
37
issue
3-4
pages
28 pages
publisher
Springer
external identifiers
  • scopus:79959908208
ISSN
0930-7575
DOI
10.1007/s00382-010-0904-1
language
English
LU publication?
no
id
55ca5e91-178f-4854-bf11-80903bf3bf78
date added to LUP
2019-03-14 21:17:37
date last changed
2022-04-25 21:58:16
@article{55ca5e91-178f-4854-bf11-80903bf3bf78,
  abstract     = {{<p><br>
                            Subfossil pollen and plant macrofossil data derived from <br>
                            <sup>14</sup><br>
                            C-dated sediment profiles can provide quantitative information on glacial and interglacial climates. The data allow climate variables related to growing-season warmth, winter cold, and plant-available moisture to be reconstructed. Continental-scale reconstructions have been made for the mid-Holocene (MH, around 6 ka) and Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, around 21 ka), allowing comparison with palaeoclimate simulations currently being carried out as part of the fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The synthesis of the available MH and LGM climate reconstructions and their uncertainties, obtained using modern-analogue, regression and model-inversion techniques, is presented for four temperature variables and two moisture variables. Reconstructions of the same variables based on surface-pollen assemblages are shown to be accurate and unbiased. Reconstructed LGM and MH climate anomaly patterns are coherent, consistent between variables, and robust with respect to the choice of technique. They support a conceptual model of the controls of Late Quaternary climate change whereby the first-order effects of orbital variations and greenhouse forcing on the seasonal cycle of temperature are predictably modified by responses of the atmospheric circulation and surface energy balance.</p>}},
  author       = {{Bartlein, P. J. and Harrison, S. P. and Brewer, S. and Connor, S. and Davis, B. A.S. and Gajewski, K. and Guiot, J. and Harrison-Prentice, T. I. and Henderson, A. and Peyron, O. and Prentice, I. C. and Scholze, M. and Seppä, H. and Shuman, B. and Sugita, S. and Thompson, R. S. and Viau, A. E. and Williams, J. and Wu, H.}},
  issn         = {{0930-7575}},
  keywords     = {{Climate model evaluation; Last glacial maximum; Mid-Holocene; Palaeovegetation palaeoclimate reconstructions; Plant macrofossils; Pollen; Reconstruction uncertainties}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{08}},
  number       = {{3-4}},
  pages        = {{775--802}},
  publisher    = {{Springer}},
  series       = {{Climate Dynamics}},
  title        = {{Pollen-based continental climate reconstructions at 6 and 21 ka : A global synthesis}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00382-010-0904-1}},
  doi          = {{10.1007/s00382-010-0904-1}},
  volume       = {{37}},
  year         = {{2011}},
}