Late Cenozoic history of deep water circulation in the western North Pacific: Evidence from Nd isotopes of ferromanganese crusts

Despite its importance in regulating the global climate, the past deep ocean circulation in the western North Pacific has still been poorly understood. Nd isotopes of ferromanganese crusts have been proven to be a good proxy to monitor paleoceanic circulation changes. In this study, late Cenozoic Nd isotopic records are recovered from two ferromanganese crusts located near Mariana arc but at different water depths (MKD13: 1530 m, MDD53: 2700 m), and their implications for paleocirculation change in this area are explored. From the early to late Miocene, Nd isotopic compositions of MDD53 remained stable, and they were also characterized by the least radiogenic signatures ( Nd4.0 to5.0) compared to crusts of similar water depths in the Miocene North Pacific. Afterward, an abrupt increase in its Nd value occurred in the Pliocene. In contrast, Nd isotopes of MKD13 became more radio- genic with time in the Miocene and were almost invariable thereafter. The continual increase in Nd of shallower crust MKD13 is interpreted as reflecting progressive closure of Indonesian Seaway in the Miocene, while the deep western boundary current sourced from the Southern Pacific may have dominated Nd isotopes of deeper crust MDD53 during the same time interval. The lack of Nd isotopic variation of MKD13 in the Pliocene indicates that there were no changes in Nd sources in shallower waters and the final restriction between the Indian and Pacific may have only occurred since then. Therefore the observed large shift to more radiogenic Nd isotopes of MDD53 in the Pliocene should not be resulted from changes in vertical input from shallower to deeper water. Instead, a decreased ventilation of deep southern component current along the studied water depth range (~2700 m) may have continued in the Pliocene.     

Early Pleistocene formation of the asymmetric east-west pattern of upper water structure in the equatorial Pacific Ocean

Surface-and subsurface-dwelling planktonic foraminifera from the upper 43 m of Hole A at the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Site 807,which was recovered from the western Pacific warm pool during ODP Leg 130,were analyzed for stable oxygen and carbon isotopes.By comparing these results with data from ODP Site 851 in the eastern equatorial Pacific,this study has reconstructed the paleoceanographic changes in upper ocean waters in the equatorial Pacific since 2.5 Ma.During the period from 1.6-1.4 Ma,the oxygen isotopes of surface and subsurface waters were found to markedly change in the western and eastern equatorial Pacific,further confirming the final formation of the well-defined asymmetric east-west (E-W) pattern at that time.This feature was similar to the zonal temperature gradient (sea surface temperature is higher in the west and lower in the east) and the asymmetric upper water structure (thermocline depth is deeper in the west and shallower in the east) in the modern equatorial Pacific.The zonal gradient change of subsurface water δ18O was greater than that of surface water δ18O,indicating that the formation of the asymmetric E-W pattern in the equatorial Pacific should be much more related to the shoaled thermocline and markedly decreased subsurface water temperature in the eastern equatorial Pacific.Moreover,since ～1.6 Ma,the carbon isotopic differences between surface and subsurface waters clearly decreased in the equatorial Pacific,and their long-term eccentricity periods changed from 400 ka to ～500 ka,reflecting the reorganization of the ocean carbon reservoir.This probably resulted from the deep water reorganization in the Southern Ocean at that time and its enhanced influence on the tropical Pacific (especially subsurface water).Our study demonstrates that the tropical ocean plays an important role in global climate change.     

Sm-Nd isotopic compositions of Cambrian-Ordovician strata at the Jinggangshan area in Jiangxi Province: Tectonic implications

Whole-rock Sm-Nd isotopes were investigated for Cambrian-Ordovician strata from the Jinggangshan area between the Yangtze Block and Cathysia Block in South China. These strata were deposited as a greatly thick unit of muddy-sandy laminas with intercalated carbonate and organic carbon-bearing layers. They have low εNd（t） values of -13.9 to -7.9 and old Nd model ages of 1842 to 2375 Ma. In tDM-tStr diagram, they are far away from the concordant line but fall within the evolution zone of the Proterozoic crust of South China. This indicates that the Cambrian-Ordovician strata are mainly composed of matters eroded from ancient Paleoproterozoic crust that may mainly consist of continental-derived detrital sediments with high maturity in the Cathysia Block. However, the Ordovician Jueshangou Formation and Dui＇ershi Formation have εNd（t） values of -10.5 and -7.9 at the higher end of the above range and Nd model ages of 1842 to 2059 Ma at the lower end of the above range. This suggests involvement of more detritus that were eroded from the relatively juvenile crust from Late Paleoproterozoic to the Early Neoproterozoic. All the Nd model ages for the Cambrian-Ordovician sedimentary rocks in the Cathysia Block and the southeastern margin of the Yangtze Block are older than 1800 Ma, suggesting that no material from the Early Paleozoic depleted mantle-derived magmas was involved in these regions.     

Preliminary Mo isotope data of Phanerozoic clastic sediments from the northern margin of the Yangtze block and its implication for paleoenvironmental conditions

Mo isotopes along with Nd isotopes and other geochemical characteristics of the Phanerozoic clastic sediments from the northern margin of the Yangtze block were analyzed by MC-ICP-MS and some other techniques, spanning the period from Cambrian to Jurassic. The δ 98Mo values and εNd(t ) in these sedimets were observed to exhibit a large range of variation (?0.65‰―+1.87‰, ?1.46―?10.90, respec-tively). Specifically, the sample from Late Permian Maokou Formation has relatively positive values in both δ 98Mo and...     

Temperature-induced fractionation of oxygen isotopes of diatom frustules and growth water in Lake Sihailongwan in Northeast China

Diatom oxygen isotopes have been widely applied in quantitative reconstruction of the paleoclimate and paleoenvironment, but have rarely been reported in China. In the present study, Lake Sihailongwan in Northeast China was selected for detailed investigation of oxygen isotopic fractionation between diatom frustules and lake water induced by growth temperature. This study involved a 2-year period of field monitoring of the lake water temperature at multiple depths and biweekly collections of traps for both sediment and water at shallow and bottom depths (7 and 49 m below the lake surface, respectively), diatom separation and purification of the trap sediments, and oxygen isotope measurement for diatom silica and lake water samples. The conditioned experiment conducted herein demonstrated that the laboratory device, methods and techniques used in this study were capable of generating reliable data for the typical oxygen isotope composition of diatom frustules. The data obtained revealed a prominent linear relationship between the oxygen isotope composition of the modern diatom and lake temperature during growth. The fractionation coefficient was about −0.185‰/°C−0.238‰/°C in the temperature range of 3.6–24°C, which is consistent with the observations from various aquatic environments and laboratory culture with different diatom taxa. These findings provide strong support for the dominant control of the growth temperature on the oxygen isotope fractionation between the diatom frustules and ambient water. A notable difference in the fractionation coefficient was observed between the surface and bottom diatom oxygen isotopes, suggesting that various depositional processes and taphonomic effects influenced the surface and bottom trap samples. Another factor leading to this difference may be that enrichment by evaporation and dilution by rainfall have a stronger influence on the surface. Overall, the results presented here demonstrate significant progress in evaluation of diatom oxygen isotopes in China and draw attention to the differences between surface and bottom diatom oxygen isotope compositions.     

Relationship between the Antarctic oscillation in the western North Pacific typhoon frequency

Relationship between the Antarctic oscillation (AAO) and the western North Pacific typhoon number (WNPTN) in the interannual variability is examined in this research. The WNPTN is correlated with the AAO in June-July-August-September (JJAS) in 1949-1998 at -0.48 for the detrended time series, statistically significant at 99% level. The tropical atmospheric circulation as well as the sea surface temperature variability over the western Pacific associated with AAO has been analyzed. It follows that a positive phase of JJAS AAO corresponds to the larger magnitude of the vertical zonal wind shear, the anomalous low-lever anticyclonic circulation and anomalous high-level cyclonic circulation, and lower sea surface temperature in the major typhoon genesis region in the western North Pacific, thus providing unfavorable environment for the typhoon genesis, and vice versa.     

Potash-rich volcanic rocks and lamprophyres in western Shandong Province: 40Ar-39Ar dating and source tracing

Highly precise ⁴⁰Ar-³⁹Ar dating results demonstrate that the ages of potash-rich volcanic rocks in western Shandong Province are 114.7–124.3 Ma, and that of the lamprophyres is 119.6 Ma. The potash-rich volcanic rocks have relatively high (⁸⁷Sr÷⁸⁶Sr)_i ratios (0.708715–0.711418) and distinctly negative ε_nd values (−11.47–−17.54), and are enriched in radiogenic lead (²⁰⁶Pb÷²⁰⁴Pb=17.341−17.622, ²⁰⁷Pb÷²⁰⁴Pb=15.525−15.538, ²⁰⁸Pb÷²⁰⁴Pb = 37.563−37.684). Similarly, the lamprophyres also have quite low ε_nd values (−11.57–−19.64). Based on the fact that the Sr, Nd and Pb isotopic compositions of potash-rich volcanic rocks are very consistent with that of the clinopyroxene separates, and by integrating comprehensive analyses of their tectonic settings, and extensive comparisons of the Sr, Nd isotopic compositions with that of the related simultaneous rocks, it is concluded that the potash-rich volcanic rocks and lamprophyres in western Shandong Province were most possibly derived from the partial melting of enriched mantle which was caused by source contamination and metasomatism of subducted continental crustal materials.     

Interdecadal shift in the western North Pacific Summer SST anomaly in the late 1980s

An interdecadal shift in summer (June―August) sea surface temperature (SST) variations during the period of 1968―2002 was identified in the late 1980s, which is characterized by a phase alternating from negative to positive phases of the leading mode of the empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis of the summer monthly mean SST in the Pacific domain 100°―180°E and 0°―40°N, accounting for 30.5% of the total variance. During the period of 1968―1987, the leading mode with a mean negative phase state (mean standard deviation = ?0.586) controlled SST variability in the western North Pacific. Correspondingly, negative SST anomalies occupied the western North Pacific south of Japan and Chinese marginal seas. During the period of 1988―2002, the leading mode shifted to its strong positive polarity (mean standard deviation = 0.781), thus positive SST anomalies appeared in the western North Pacific. Accompanied by the interdecadal shift in summer mean SST, summer mean rainfall increased in southern and southeastern China during the late period, particularly in southeastern China where increase in summer mean rainfall exceeded 40 mm, at the 0.05 significance level.     

Variation of the Fe/Mn ratio of ferromanganese crusts from the Central North Pacific: implication for paleoclimate changes

Hydrogeneticferromanganesecrusts(Fe Mn crustshereafter),areinorganiccolloidprecipitatesfromseawater,whicharebelievedtohaverecorded theevolutionofelementalandisotopiccompositionsof seawaterovertime[1—7].Studiesontraceelements andisotopeshavebroughtmoreinsightsthanstudies onironandmanganesecontents.TheMn/Feratio hasbeenconsideredtoreflectwaterdepth,deep wa teroxygenation[8,9],andhasalsobeensuggestedasa reliablecriterionfordistinguishingdifferentgenetic typesofferromanganesedeposits[10].Apossi…     

Evidence for deep-water production in the North Pacific Ocean during the early Cenozoic warm interval

The deep-ocean circulation is responsible for a significant component of global heat transport. In the present mode of circulation, deep waters form in the North Atlantic and Southern oceans where surface water becomes sufficiently cold and dense to sink. Polar temperatures during the warmest climatic interval of the Cenozoic era (approximately 65 to 40 million years (Myr) ago) were significantly warmer than today, and this may have been a consequence of enhanced oceanic heat transport. However, understanding the relationship between deep-ocean circulation and ancient climate is complicated by differences in oceanic gateways, which affect where deep waters form and how they circulate. Here I report records of neodymium isotopes from two cores in the Pacific Ocean that indicate a shift in deep-water production from the Southern Ocean to the North Pacific approximately 65 Myr ago. The source of deep waters reverted back to the Southern Ocean 40 Myr ago. The relative timing of changes in the neodymium and oxygen isotope records indicates that changes in Cenozoic deep-water circulation patterns were the consequence, not the cause, of extreme Cenozoic warmth.     

Lithium isotope evidence for subduction-enriched mantle in the source of mid-ocean-ridge basalts

'Recycled' crustal materials, returned from the Earth's surface to the mantle by subduction, have long been invoked to explain compositional heterogeneity in the upper mantle. Yet increasingly, problems have been noted with this model. The debate can be definitively addressed using stable isotope ratios, which should only significantly vary in primitive, mantle-derived materials as a consequence of recycling. Here we present data showing a notable range in lithium isotope ratios in basalts from the East Pacific Rise, which correlate with traditional indices of mantle heterogeneity (for example, 143Nd/144Nd ratios). Such co-variations of stable and radiogenic isotopes in melts from a normal ridge segment provide critical evidence for the importance of recycled material in generating chemical heterogeneity in the upper mantle. Contrary to many models, however, the elevated lithium isotope ratios of the 'enriched' East Pacific Rise lavas imply that subducted ocean crust is not the agent of enrichment. Instead, we suggest that fluid-modified mantle, which is enriched during residency in a subduction zone, is mixed back into the upper mantle to cause compositional variability.     

Coral reef ecosystems in the South China Sea as a source of atmospheric CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> in summer

Field measurements of air-sea CO2 exchange in three coral reef areas of the South China Sea (i.e. the Yongshu Reef atoll of the Nansha Islands, southern South China Sea (SCS); Yongxing Island of Xisha Islands, north-central SCS; and Luhuitou Fringing Reef in Sanya of Hainan Island, northern SCS) during the summers of 2008 and 2009 revealed that both air and surface seawater partial pressures of CO2 (pCO2) showed regular diurnal cycles. Minimum values occurred in the evening and maximum values in the morning. Air pCO2 in each of the three study areas showed small diurnal variations, while large diurnal variations were ob-served in seawater pCO2. The diurnal variation amplitude of seawater pCO2 was ~70 μmol mol–1 at the Yongshu Reef lagoon, 420–619 μmol mol–1 on the Yongxing Island reef flat, and 264–579 μmol mol–1 on the reef flat of the Luhuitou Fringing Reef, and 324–492 μmol mol–1 in an adjacent area just outside of this fringing reef. With respect to spatial relations, there were large differences in air-sea CO2 flux across the South China Sea (e.g. ~0.4 mmol CO2 m–2 d–1 at Yongshu Reef, ~4.7 mmol CO2 m–2 d–1 at Yongxing Island, and ~9.8 mmol CO2 m–2 d–1 at Luhuitou Fringing Reef). However, these positive values suggest that coral reef ecosystems of the SCS may be a net source of CO2 to the atmosphere. Additional analyses indicated that diurnal variations of surface seawater pCO2 in the shallow water reef flat are controlled mainly by biological metabolic processes, while those of deeper water lagoons and outer reef areas are regulated by both biological metabolism and hydrodynamic factors. Unlike the open ocean, inorganic metabolism plays a significant role in influencing seawater pCO2 variations in coral reef ecosystems.     

Paleozoic sedimentary record of the Xing-Meng Orogenic Belt,Inner Mongolia: Implications for the provenances and tectonic evolution of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt

The Xing-Meng Orogenic Belt is the eastern extension of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt, which marks the boundary between the North China and Siberian blocks. Key information on the collision between these two blocks and the evolution of this orogenic belt at the end of the Paleozoic are preserved in the widely distributed Paleozoic sedimentary sequences. Petrographic studies of the clastic sedimentary rocks from the Ordovician to the Permian in this region have shown that the rocks are mainly greywackes and arkosic sandstones characterized by low maturity, poor sorting and a large number of lithic fragments. Provenances of Paleozoic sandstones are mainly newly accreted crustal materials. Nd model ages range from the Neoproterozoic to the Late Mesoproterozoic. These ages are very different from those of the North China Block, but the change of εNd(t) (from the initial εNd value) is similar to that of igneous rocks in the Xing-Meng Orogen. This result indicates that provenances of these Paleozoic sedimentary rocks mainly arise from the Xing-Meng Orogen itself. These clastic sedimentary rocks mainly consist of inputs of juvenile accreted crustal materials and limited recycled old crusts. Their provenance is controlled by the following three end members: a felsic basement, a partially melted mafic, and a mafic end member. From the point view of lithology, these three end members must have mixed in a ratio of 53:41:5 to form the average composition of the clastic sedimentary rocks. The depositional environment began to change from an arc to an orogen during the Permian, and therefore the collision was complete before the Triassic. This interpretation is consistent with the argument that the final collision time was at the end of the Permian or beginning of the Triassic.     

Compound-specific carbon isotope compositions of individual long-chain n-alkanes in severe Asian dust episodes in the North China coast in 2002

Asian dust storms originating from the arid regions of central and eastern Asia and from the Loess Plateau in China frequently occur in spring [1,2]. Driven by the East Asian monsoon, Asian dust can be transported to northern Pacific Ocean[2―8]. Asian du…     

^226Ra evidence for the ecosystem shift over the past 40 years in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre

Surface seawater was collected for ~(226)Ra measurement in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre from July to October, 1999 and October to December, 2003. Combined with the historical data reported for this sea area, a declined trend of surface ~(226)Ra concentrations was observed since 1960s, indicating the ecosystem shift in response to global warming. On one side, the enhanced stratification of the upper water column resulting from global warming reduced the ~(226)Ra input from the depth, on the other, the temporal increase of biological production resulting from the climate-related ecosystem structure change strengthened the ~(226)Ra removal from the surface ocean. Both the physical and biological processes resulted in the decrease of surface ~(226)Ra concentrations in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre. The temporal trend of surface ~(226)Ra concentrations was consistent with the trends of chlorophyll a, silicate, phosphate and primary production previously reported. This study provided ~(226)Ra evidence for the ecosystem shift under global change.     

High-latitude controls of thermocline nutrients and low latitude biological productivity

The ocean's biological pump strips nutrients out of the surface waters and exports them into the thermocline and deep waters. If there were no return path of nutrients from deep waters, the biological pump would eventually deplete the surface waters and thermocline of nutrients; surface biological productivity would plummet. Here we make use of the combined distributions of silicic acid and nitrate to trace the main nutrient return path from deep waters by upwelling in the Southern Ocean and subsequent entrainment into subantarctic mode water. We show that the subantarctic mode water, which spreads throughout the entire Southern Hemisphere and North Atlantic Ocean, is the main source of nutrients for the thermocline. We also find that an additional return path exists in the northwest corner of the Pacific Ocean, where enhanced vertical mixing, perhaps driven by tides, brings abyssal nutrients to the surface and supplies them to the thermocline of the North Pacific. Our analysis has important implications for our understanding of large-scale controls on the nature and magnitude of low-latitude biological productivity and its sensitivity to climate change.     

Meteorological conditions of ice accretion based on real-time observation of high voltage transmission line

Meteorological conditions during ice accretion on the 500 kV high voltage transmission lines and test cables are presented, together with a calculation of liquid water content (LWC). The data include meteorological observations and real-time ice accretion on the transmission lines of the central China power grid, from 2008 to 2009 in Hubei Province. Also included are observations of ice thickness, microphysics of fog droplets, and other relevant data from a nearby automated weather station at Enshi radar station, from January to March 2009. Results show that temperature at Zhangen tower #307 was correlated with the temperature at Enshi radar station. The temperature on the surface of the high voltage transmission line was 2-4°C higher than ambient air temperature, although the temperatures were positively correlated. Ice formation temperature was about -2°C and ice shedding temperature was about -2 to -1°C on the high voltage transmission line, both of which were lower than the temperature threshold values on the test cable. Ice thickness was significantly affected by temperature variation when the ice was thin. The calculated LWC was correlated with observed LWC, although the calculated value was greater.     

The relationship between sea surface temperature anomaly and wind energy input in the Pacific Ocean

The relationship between sea surface temperature anomaly (SSTA) and wind energy input in the Pacific Ocean over the period of 1949–2003 is studied by using daily-mean NOAA/NCEP wind stress and monthly mean Reynolds SST data. The results indicate the strong negative correlation between SSTA and local wind energy input to surface waves in most of the domain at low and middle latitudes. The SST is low (high) during the years with more (less) wind energy input. The correlation coefficients are high in the central and eastern tropical Pacific and the central midlatitude North Pacific at the decadal scale, and in the central tropical Pacific at the interannual scale. Vertical mixing processes in the upper ocean are closely associated with wind energy input, indicating that wind energy input may play an important role in interannual and decadal variability in the Pacific Ocean via regulating vertical mixing.     

Crustal P-wave velocity structure in Lower Yangtze region： Reinterpretation of Fuliji-Fengxian deep seismic sounding profile

A deep seismic sounding profile in this paper, from Fuliji in Anhui Province to Fengxian of Shanghai City, is located at eastern China (Fig. 1). The field work was jointly accomplished by the Chinese Geological and Mineral Bureau, the China Seismological …     

Carbon dioxide release from the North Pacific abyss during the last deglaciation

Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations were significantly lower during glacial periods than during intervening interglacial periods, but the mechanisms responsible for this difference remain uncertain. Many recent explanations call on greater carbon storage in a poorly ventilated deep ocean during glacial periods, but direct evidence regarding the ventilation and respired carbon content of the glacial deep ocean is sparse and often equivocal. Here we present sedimentary geochemical records from sites spanning the deep subarctic Pacific that--together with previously published results--show that a poorly ventilated water mass containing a high concentration of respired carbon dioxide occupied the North Pacific abyss during the Last Glacial Maximum. Despite an inferred increase in deep Southern Ocean ventilation during the first step of the deglaciation (18,000-15,000 years ago), we find no evidence for improved ventilation in the abyssal subarctic Pacific until a rapid transition approximately 14,600 years ago: this change was accompanied by an acceleration of export production from the surface waters above but only a small increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration. We speculate that these changes were mechanistically linked to a roughly coeval increase in deep water formation in the North Atlantic, which flushed respired carbon dioxide from northern abyssal waters, but also increased the supply of nutrients to the upper ocean, leading to greater carbon dioxide sequestration at mid-depths and stalling the rise of atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations. Our findings are qualitatively consistent with hypotheses invoking a deglacial flushing of respired carbon dioxide from an isolated, deep ocean reservoir, but suggest that the reservoir may have been released in stages, as vigorous deep water ventilation switched between North Atlantic and Southern Ocean source regions.