Project Details
Projekt
Hydroclimatologic variability in the Panama Bight region during Termination 1 and the Holocene (HydroPaTH)
Applicants
Dr. Matthias Prange; Professor Dr. Michael Schulz, since 3/2013
Subject Area
Palaeontology
Term
from 2009 to 2016
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 152112318
The tropical eastern Pacific is a key area for monitoring climate variability, as it is highly sensitive to ITCZ (Intertropical Convergence Zone) and ENSO (El Niño-Southern Oscillation) dynamics. A sequence of new sediment cores from high deposition rate locations along the Colombian and Panamanian margins thus provides an opportunity to improve our understanding of the role of the tropical hydrological cycle as a potential driving force for global climate change. Using stable isotope and trace metal analyses on planktonic foraminifera as well as organic geochemical tracers and Accelerator Mass Spectrometer (AMS) 14C dating, we will develop a history of sea surface temperature and salinity changes, thermocline depth, precipitation and river runoff in the Panama Bight, covering the last glacial termination and the Holocene. Mapping of temporal changes in the spatial hydro-climatologic patterns within the study area will provide unprecedented information about ITCZ shifts and ENSO-like climate changes. The proxy studies will be accompanied by simulations of Holocene and deglacial climate states, using a high-resolution version of the comprehensive climate model CCSM3. The model results will help to interpret the proxy records and to set them into a global dynamical context. In particular, the model will provide quantitative information about changes in the Atlantic-to-Pacific water vapor flux, while the proxy records will be indispensable for verifying the model output.
DFG Programme
Priority Programmes
International Connection
USA
Participating Person
Dr. Lloyd Keigwin
Ehemalige Antragstellerin
Dr. Silke Steph, until 3/2013
