Description: Research campaigns over the last decade have yielded a growing stream of data that highlight the dynamic nature of Arctic cryosphere and climate change over a range of time scales. As a consequence, rather than seeing the Arctic as a near static environment in which large scale changes occur slowly, we now view the Arctic as a system that is typified by frequent, large and abrupt changes. The traditional focus on end members in the system - glacial versus interglacial periods - has been replaced by a new interest in understanding the patterns and causes of such dynamic change. Instead of interpreting changes almost exclusively as near linear responses to external forcing (e.g. orbitally-forced climate change), research is now concentrated on the importance of strong feedback mechanisms that in our palaeo-archives often border on chaotic behaviour. The last decade of research has revealed the importance of on-off switching of ice streams, strong feedbacks between sea level and ice sheets, spatial and temporal changes in ice shelves and perennial sea ice, as well as alterations in ice sheet dynamics caused by shifting centres of mass in multi-dome ice sheets. Recent advances in dating techniques and modelling have improved our understanding of leads and lags that exist in different Arctic systems, on their interactions and the driving mechanisms of change. Future Arctic research challenges include further emphases on rapid transitions and untangling the feedback mechanisms as well as the time scales they operate on.

Description: Sediment core MSM5/5-712 from the West Spitsbergen continental margin has been investigated at high resolution for its seawater-derived neodymium (Nd) and lead (Pb) isotope compositions stored in ferromanganese oxyhydroxide coatings of the sediment particles to reconstruct Holocene changes in the sources and mixing of bottom waters passing the site. The radiogenic isotope data are used in combination with a multitude of proxy indicators for the climatic and oceanographic development of the eastern Fram Strait during the past 8500 years. To calibrate the downcore data, seawater and core top samples from the area were analysed for their radiogenic isotope compositions. Core top leachates reveal relatively high (more radiogenic) Nd isotope compositions between εNd −9.7 and −9.1, which are higher than present-day seawater εNd in eastern Fram Strait (−12.6 to −10.5) and indicate that the seawater values have only been established very recently. The core top data agree well with the downcore signatures within the uppermost 40 cm of the sediment core (εNd −9.1 to −8.8) indicating a reduced inflow of waters from the Nordic Seas, concurrent with cool conditions and a south-eastward shift of the marginal ice zone after ca 2.8 cal ka BP (Late Holocene). High sea-ice abundances in eastern Fram Strait are coeval with the well-known Neoglacial trend in the northern North Atlantic region. In contrast, warmer conditions of the late Early to Mid-Holocene were accompanied by lower (less radiogenic) εNd signatures of the bottom waters indicating an increased admixture from the Nordic Seas (−10.6 to −10.1). A shift to significantly more radiogenic εNd signatures of the detrital material also occurred at 3 cal ka BP and was accompanied by a marked increase in supply of fine-grained ice-rafted material (IRF) from the Arctic Ocean to the core site. The most likely source areas for this radiogenic material are the shallow Arctic shelves, in particular the Kara Sea shelf. The evolution of the Pb isotope compositions of past seawater was dominated by local signatures characterized by high 208, 207, 206Pb/204Pb values during the warm Early and Mid-Holocene periods related to enhanced chemical weathering on Svalbard and high glacial and riverine input derived from young granitic (more radiogenic) material to the West Spitsbergen margin. At 3 cal ka BP both detrital and seawater Pb isotope data changed towards more Kara Sea-like signatures.

Description: To better understand Pleistocene climatic changes in the Arctic, integrated palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic signals from a variety of marine and terrestrial geological records as well as geochronologic age control are required, not least for correlation to extra-Arctic records. In this paper we discuss, from an Arctic perspective, methods and correlation tools that are commonly used to date Arctic Pleistocene marine and terrestrial events. We review the state of the art of Arctic geochronology, with focus on factors that affect the possibility and quality of dating, and support this overview by examples of application of modern dating methods to Arctic terrestrial and marine sequences. Event stratigraphy and numerical ages are important tools used in the Arctic to correlate fragmented terrestrial records and to establish regional stratigraphic schemes. Age control is commonly provided by radiocarbon, luminescence or cosmogenic exposure ages. Arctic Ocean deep-sea sediment successions can be correlated over large distances based on geochemical and physical property proxies for sediment composition, patterns in palaeomagnetic records and, increasingly, biostratigraphic data. Many of these proxies reveal cyclical patterns that provide a basis for astronomical tuning. Recent advances in dating technology, calibration and age modelling allow for measuring smaller quantities of material and to more precisely date previously undatable material (i.e. foraminifera for C-14, and single-grain luminescence). However, for much of the Pleistocene there are still limits to the resolution of most dating methods. Consequently improving the accuracy and precision (analytical and geological uncertainty) of dating methods through technological advances and better understanding of processes are important tasks for the future. Another challenge is to better integrate marine and terrestrial records, which could be aided by targeting continental shelf and lake records, exploring proxies that occur in both settings, and by creating joint research networks that promote collaboration between marine and terrestrial geologists and modellers.

Description: The warm and saline North Atlantic inflow to the Arctic Ocean is a major component of high northern latitude circulation and the main mechanism of deep water renewal in the Arctic Ocean. Knowledge of its past variability is critical for understanding the high latitude feedback mechanisms of the climate system. Here we present the first combined seawater Hf and Nd isotope compositions of past Arctic Intermediate Water extracted from the authigenic Fe–Mn oxyhydroxide fraction of two sediment cores recovered near the North Pole, to reconstruct changes in contributions from glacial brines of the Eurasian shelf and past inflow of Atlantic waters. The Hf and Nd isotopic compositions obtained from leachates of the authigenic fraction show closely coupled and environmentally controlled variations over the past 14 million years. An observed offset of these data from seawater εHf and εNd compositions from other ocean basins (seawater array) is interpreted as the result of continuously prevailing glacial weathering conditions on the high latitude Eurasian continent. In the late Quaternary, large amplitude Hf and Nd isotopic variations of Arctic Intermediate Water (AIW) was characterized by more radiogenic isotope signatures generally prevailing under glacial conditions and less radiogenic values during interglacial periods. On the basis of the close coupling between Nd and Hf isotopes, we suggest that the evolution of Hf isotope compositions of central Arctic AIW has primarily been controlled by changes in ocean circulation and provenance of weathering inputs, rather than changes in weathering regime.

Description: The paleoceanographic development of the eastern Fram Strait during the transition from the cold Late Glacial and into the warm Early Holocene was elucidated via a multiproxy study of a marine sediment record retrieved at the western Svalbard slope. The multiproxy study includes analyses of planktic foraminiferal fauna, bulk sediment grain size and CaCO3 content in addition to Mg/Ca ratios and stable isotopes (delta C-13 and delta O-18) measured on the planktic foraminifer Neogloboquadrina pachyderma. Furthermore paleosubsurface water temperatures were reconstructed via Mg/Ca ratios (sSST(Mg/Ca)) and transfer functions (sSST(Transfer)) enabling comparison between the two proxies within a single record. The age model was constrained by four accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) C-14 dates. From 14,000 to 10,300 cal yr B.P. N. pachyderma dominated the planktic fauna and cold polar sea surface conditions existed. The period was characterized by extensive sea ice cover, iceberg transport and low subsea surface temperatures (sSST(Transfer) similar to 2.1 degrees C; sSST(Mg/Ca) similar to 3.5 degrees C) resulting in restricted primary production. Atlantic Water inflow was reduced compared to the present-day and likely existed as a subsurface current. At ca. 10,300 cal yr B.P. Atlantic Water inflow increased and the Arctic Front retreated north-westward resulting in increased primary productivity, higher foraminiferal fluxes and a reduction in sea ice cover and iceberg transport. The fauna rapidly became dominated by the subpolar planktic foraminifer Turborotalita quinqueloba and summer sSST(Transfer) increased by similar to 3.5 degrees C. Concurrently, the sSST(Mg/Ca) recorded by N. pachyderma rose only similar to 0.5 degrees C. From ca. 10,300 to 8600 cal yr B.F. the average sSST(Mg/Ca) and sSST(Transfer) were similar to 4.0 degrees C and similar to 55 degrees C, respectively. The relatively modest change in sSST(Mg/Ca) compared to sSST(Transfer) can probably be tied to a change of the main habitat depth and/or shift in the calcification season for N. pachyderma during this period.

Description: Terrestrial and marine geological archives in the Arctic contain information on environmental change through Quaternary interglacial–glacial cycles. The Arctic Palaeoclimate and its Extremes (APEX) scientific network aims to better understand the magnitude and frequency of past Arctic climate variability, with focus on the “extreme” versus the “normal” conditions of the climate system. One important motivation for studying the amplitude of past natural environmental changes in the Arctic is to better understand the role of this region in a global perspective and provide base-line conditions against which to explore potential future changes in Arctic climate under scenarios of global warming. In this review we identify several areas that are distinct to the present programme and highlight some recent advances presented in this special issue concerning Arctic palaeo-records and natural variability, including spatial and temporal variability of the Greenland Ice Sheet, Arctic Ocean sediment stratigraphy, past ice shelves and marginal marine ice sheets, and the Cenozoic history of Arctic Ocean sea ice in general and Holocene oscillations in sea ice concentrations in particular. The combined sea ice data suggest that the seasonal Arctic sea ice cover was strongly reduced during most of the early Holocene and there appear to have been periods of ice free summers in the central Arctic Ocean. This has important consequences for our understanding of the recent trend of declining sea ice, and calls for further research on causal links between Arctic climate and sea ice.

Description: As the planet cooled from peak warmth in the early Cenozoic, extensive Northern Hemisphere ice sheets developed by 2.6 Ma ago, leading to changes in the circulation of both the atmosphere and oceans. From not, vert, similar2.6 to not, vert, similar1.0 Ma ago, ice sheets came and went about every 41 ka, in pace with cycles in the tilt of Earth’s axis, but for the past 700 ka, glacial cycles have been longer, lasting not, vert, similar100 ka, separated by brief, warm interglaciations, when sea level and ice volumes were close to present. The cause of the shift from 41 ka to 100 ka glacial cycles is still debated. During the penultimate interglaciation, not, vert, similar130 to not, vert, similar120 ka ago, solar energy in summer in the Arctic was greater than at any time subsequently. As a consequence, Arctic summers were not, vert, similar5 °C warmer than at present, and almost all glaciers melted completely except for the Greenland Ice Sheet, and even it was reduced in size substantially from its present extent. With the loss of land ice, sea level was about 5 m higher than present, with the extra melt coming from both Greenland and Antarctica as well as small glaciers. The Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) peaked not, vert, similar21 ka ago, when mean annual temperatures over parts of the Arctic were as much as 20 °C lower than at present. Ice recession was well underway 16 ka ago, and most of the Northern Hemisphere ice sheets had melted by 6 ka ago. Solar energy reached a summer maximum (9% higher than at present) not, vert, similar11 ka ago and has been decreasing since then, primarily in response to the precession of the equinoxes. The extra energy elevated early Holocene summer temperatures throughout the Arctic 1–3 °C above 20th century averages, enough to completely melt many small glaciers throughout the Arctic, although the Greenland Ice Sheet was only slightly smaller than at present. Early Holocene summer sea ice limits were substantially smaller than their 20th century average, and the flow of Atlantic water into the Arctic Ocean was substantially greater. As summer solar energy decreased in the second half of the Holocene, glaciers re-established or advanced, sea ice expanded, and the flow of warm Atlantic water into the Arctic Ocean diminished. Late Holocene cooling reached its nadir during the Little Ice Age (about 1250–1850 AD), when sun-blocking volcanic eruptions and perhaps other causes added to the orbital cooling, allowing most Arctic glaciers to reach their maximum Holocene extent. During the warming of the past century, glaciers have receded throughout the Arctic, terrestrial ecosystems have advanced northward, and perennial Arctic Ocean sea ice has diminished. Here we review the proxies that allow reconstruction of Quaternary climates and the feedbacks that amplify climate change across the Arctic. We provide an overview of the evolution of climate from the hot-house of the early Cenozoic through its transition to the ice-house of the Quaternary, with special emphasis on the anomalous warmth of the middle Pliocene, early Quaternary warm times, the Mid Pleistocene transition, warm interglaciations of marine isotope stages 11, 5e, and 1, the stage 3 interstadial, and the peak cold of the last glacial maximum.

Description: A multiproxy data set of an AMS radiocarbon dated 46 cm long sediment core from the continental margin off western Svalbard reveals multidecadal climatic variability during the past two millennia. Investigation of planktic and benthic stable isotopes, planktic foraminiferal fauna, and lithogenic parameters aims to unveil the Atlantic Water advection to the eastern Fram Strait by intensity, temperatures, and salinities. Atlantic Water has been continuously present at the site over the last 2,000 years. Superimposed on the increase in sea ice/icebergs, a strengthened intensity of Atlantic Water inflow and seasonal ice-free conditions were detected at ~ 1000 to 1200 AD, during the well-known Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA). However, temperatures of the MCA never exceeded those of the 20th century. Since ~ 1400 AD significantly higher portions of ice rafted debris and high planktic foraminifer fluxes suggest that the site was located in the region of a seasonal highly fluctuating sea ice margin. A sharp reduction in planktic foraminifer fluxes around 800 AD and after 1730 AD indicates cool summer conditions with major influence of sea ice/icebergs. High amounts of the subpolar planktic foraminifer species Turborotalia quinqueloba in size fraction 150–250 μm indicate strengthened Atlantic Water inflow to the eastern Fram Strait already after ~ 1860 AD. Nevertheless surface conditions stayed cold well into the 20th century indicated by low planktic foraminiferal fluxes. Most likely at the beginning of the 20th century, cold conditions of the terminating Little Ice Age period persisted at the surface whereas warm and saline Atlantic Water already strengthened, hereby subsiding below the cold upper mixed layer. Surface sediments with high abundances of subpolar planktic foraminifers indicate a strong inflow of Atlantic Water providing seasonal ice-free conditions in the eastern Fram Strait during the last few decades.

Description: Sediment core MSM5/5-712 from the West Spitsbergen continental margin has been investigated at high resolution for its seawater-derived neodymium (Nd) and lead (Pb) isotope compositions stored in ferromanganese oxyhydroxide coatings of the sediment particles to reconstruct Holocene changes in the sources and mixing of bottom waters passing the site. The radiogenic isotope data are used in combination with a multitude of proxy indicators for the climatic and oceanographic development of the eastern Fram Strait during the past 8500 years. To calibrate the downcore data, seawater and core top samples from the area were analysed for their radiogenic isotope compositions. Core top leachates reveal relatively high (more radiogenic) Nd isotope compositions between εNd −9.7 and −9.1, which are higher than present-day seawater εNd in eastern Fram Strait (−12.6 to −10.5) and indicate that the seawater values have only been established very recently. The core top data agree well with the downcore signatures within the uppermost 40 cm of the sediment core (εNd −9.1 to −8.8) indicating a reduced inflow of waters from the Nordic Seas, concurrent with cool conditions and a south-eastward shift of the marginal ice zone after ca 2.8 cal ka BP (Late Holocene). High sea-ice abundances in eastern Fram Strait are coeval with the well-known Neoglacial trend in the northern North Atlantic region. In contrast, warmer conditions of the late Early to Mid-Holocene were accompanied by lower (less radiogenic) εNd signatures of the bottom waters indicating an increased admixture from the Nordic Seas (−10.6 to −10.1). A shift to significantly more radiogenic εNd signatures of the detrital material also occurred at 3 cal ka BP and was accompanied by a marked increase in supply of fine-grained ice-rafted material (IRF) from the Arctic Ocean to the core site. The most likely source areas for this radiogenic material are the shallow Arctic shelves, in particular the Kara Sea shelf. The evolution of the Pb isotope compositions of past seawater was dominated by local signatures characterized by high 208, 207, 206Pb/204Pb values during the warm Early and Mid-Holocene periods related to enhanced chemical weathering on Svalbard and high glacial and riverine input derived from young granitic (more radiogenic) material to the West Spitsbergen margin. At 3 cal ka BP both detrital and seawater Pb isotope data changed towards more Kara Sea-like signatures.