Late Medieval Climate Changes in the Tropical Atlantic and Interannual Variability Documented in Northeastern Caribbean Corals

Loading...
Thumbnail Image

Files

Publication or External Link

Date

2014

Citation

Abstract

Tropical sea surface temperature (SST) has been implicated as a driver of climate changes during the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA, 950-1300 CE) but little data exist from the tropical oceans for this time period. I collected multiple Diploria strigosa coral colonies from Anegada, British Virgin Islands (18.73°N, 63.33°W) in order to reconstruct climate in the northeastern Caribbean and tropical North Atlantic during the MCA. My Sr/Ca-temperature calibration results derived from three modern Diploria strigosa corals suggest that the temperature sensitivity for Diploria strigosa is -0.048 (±0.001) mmol/mol°C-1. My reconstruction of MCA climate suggests cooler and wetter conditions in the northeastern Caribbean during the late MCA, indicating that a Pacific La Niña-type climate pattern may have influenced local conditions. Additional analysis indicates that the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) was the principal driver of interannual climate variability during the late MCA.

Notes

Rights