Iceberg discharges of the last glacial period driven by oceanic circulation changes.

ABSTRACT: Proxy data reveal the existence of episodes of increased deposition of ice-rafted detritus in the North Atlantic Ocean during the last glacial period interpreted as massive iceberg discharges from the Laurentide Ice Sheet. Although these have long been attributed to self-sustained ice sheet oscillations, growing evidence of the crucial role that the ocean plays both for past and future behavior of the cryosphere suggests a climatic control of these ice surges. Here, we present simulations of the last glacial period carried out with a hybrid ice sheet-ice shelf model forced by an oceanic warming index derived from proxy data that accounts for the impact of past ocean circulation changes on ocean temperatures. The model generates a time series of iceberg discharge that closely agrees with ic

SUBMITTER: Alvarez-Solas J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3799353 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature