Temperature Trends in the Northwestern Tibetan Plateau Constrained by Ice Core Water Isotopes Over the Past 7, 000 Years. Issue 19 (9th October 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Pang, Hongxi; Hou, Shugui; Zhang, Wangbin; Wu, Shuangye; Jenk, Theo M.; Schwikowski, Margit; Jouzel, Jean
• Is Part Of: Journal of geophysical research. Volume 125:Issue 19(2020)
• Page Start: n/a
• Page End: n/a
• Publication Date: 2020-10-09
• Subjects: Tibetan Plateau -- glacier -- ice core -- water stable isotopes -- climate change; Atmospheric physics -- Periodicals; Geophysics -- Periodicals; 551.5
• DOI: 10.1029/2020JD032560
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2169-897X

Abstract

Abstract: The reasons for the Holocene temperature conundrum, known as the inconsistency between the reconstructed cooling and the inferred warming simulations during the Holocene, remain unclear. Temperature reconstructions from the Tibetan Plateau (TP) provide important insights for understanding the Holocene temperature conundrum due to enhanced sensitivity to climate at high altitudes. Given the significant positive correlation between air temperature and δ 18 O in precipitation over the northern TP, the stable isotopic records of ice cores recovered from this area are widely used for paleotemperature reconstruction. Here we present a new high‐resolution δ 18 O record from the Chongce ice cores to bedrock, dated back to 7 ka BP by the accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) 14 C dating technique. Our reconstructed temperature record shows a long‐term warming trend until ~2 ka BP, followed by an abrupt change to a relatively cool period until the start of the industrial‐era warming. This record challenges the widely recognized Holocene reconstruction from the neighboring Guliya ice core. It is also different from many previous temperature reconstructions, most of which have summer biases and show a long‐term cooling trend over the past two millennia. In addition, our record shows that temperatures during the recent decades are almost the highest during the past 7 ka BP, highlighting the unusual warming forced by anthropogenic greenhouse gases. Key Points: A new high‐resolution ice core δ 18 O record dated back to 7 ka BP from the northwestern Tibetan Plateau was presented The record shows a long‐term warming trend between 7 and 2 ka BP and followed by a cool period until the start of the industrial‐era warming Temperatures during the recent decades are almost the highest during the past 7 ka BP