Warm summers during the Younger Dryas cold reversal
(2018) In Nature Communications 9(1).- Abstract
The Younger Dryas (YD) cold reversal interrupts the warming climate of the deglaciation with global climatic impacts. The sudden cooling is typically linked to an abrupt slowdown of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) in response to meltwater discharges from ice sheets. However, inconsistencies regarding the YD-response of European summer temperatures have cast doubt whether the concept provides a sufficient explanation. Here we present results from a high-resolution global climate simulation together with a new July temperature compilation based on plant indicator species and show that European summers remain warm during the YD. Our climate simulation provides robust physical evidence that atmospheric blocking of... (More)
The Younger Dryas (YD) cold reversal interrupts the warming climate of the deglaciation with global climatic impacts. The sudden cooling is typically linked to an abrupt slowdown of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) in response to meltwater discharges from ice sheets. However, inconsistencies regarding the YD-response of European summer temperatures have cast doubt whether the concept provides a sufficient explanation. Here we present results from a high-resolution global climate simulation together with a new July temperature compilation based on plant indicator species and show that European summers remain warm during the YD. Our climate simulation provides robust physical evidence that atmospheric blocking of cold westerly winds over Fennoscandia is a key mechanism counteracting the cooling impact of an AMOC-slowdown during summer. Despite the persistence of short warm summers, the YD is dominated by a shift to a continental climate with extreme winter to spring cooling and short growing seasons.
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- author
- Schenk, Frederik ; Väliranta, Minna ; Muschitiello, Francesco ; Tarasov, Lev ; Heikkilä, Maija ; Björck, Svante LU ; Brandefelt, Jenny ; Johansson, Arne V. ; Näslund, Jens Ove and Wohlfarth, Barbara LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2018-12-01
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- in
- Nature Communications
- volume
- 9
- issue
- 1
- article number
- 1634
- publisher
- Nature Publishing Group
- external identifiers
-
- pmid:29691388
- scopus:85045988355
- ISSN
- 2041-1723
- DOI
- 10.1038/s41467-018-04071-5
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- fef1917d-6990-4f64-a638-34d8717ae1c6
- date added to LUP
- 2018-05-04 14:49:43
- date last changed
- 2024-09-02 20:03:35
@article{fef1917d-6990-4f64-a638-34d8717ae1c6, abstract = {{<p>The Younger Dryas (YD) cold reversal interrupts the warming climate of the deglaciation with global climatic impacts. The sudden cooling is typically linked to an abrupt slowdown of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) in response to meltwater discharges from ice sheets. However, inconsistencies regarding the YD-response of European summer temperatures have cast doubt whether the concept provides a sufficient explanation. Here we present results from a high-resolution global climate simulation together with a new July temperature compilation based on plant indicator species and show that European summers remain warm during the YD. Our climate simulation provides robust physical evidence that atmospheric blocking of cold westerly winds over Fennoscandia is a key mechanism counteracting the cooling impact of an AMOC-slowdown during summer. Despite the persistence of short warm summers, the YD is dominated by a shift to a continental climate with extreme winter to spring cooling and short growing seasons.</p>}}, author = {{Schenk, Frederik and Väliranta, Minna and Muschitiello, Francesco and Tarasov, Lev and Heikkilä, Maija and Björck, Svante and Brandefelt, Jenny and Johansson, Arne V. and Näslund, Jens Ove and Wohlfarth, Barbara}}, issn = {{2041-1723}}, language = {{eng}}, month = {{12}}, number = {{1}}, publisher = {{Nature Publishing Group}}, series = {{Nature Communications}}, title = {{Warm summers during the Younger Dryas cold reversal}}, url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-018-04071-5}}, doi = {{10.1038/s41467-018-04071-5}}, volume = {{9}}, year = {{2018}}, }