Title | Marine radiocarbon evidence for the mechanism of deglacial atmospheric CO2 rise |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 2007 |
Authors | Marchitto T.M, Lehman S.J, Ortiz J.D, Fluckiger J., van Geen A. |
Journal | Science |
Volume | 316 |
Issue | 5830 |
Pagination | 1456-9 |
Date Published | Jun 08 |
ISSN | 0036-8075 (Linking) |
Accession Number | 17495139 |
Abstract | We reconstructed the radiocarbon activity of intermediate waters in the eastern North Pacific over the past 38,000 years. Radiocarbon activity paralleled that of the atmosphere, except during deglaciation, when intermediate-water values fell by more than 300 per mil. Such a large decrease requires a deglacial injection of very old waters from a deep-ocean carbon reservoir that was previously well isolated from the atmosphere. The timing of intermediate-water radiocarbon depletion closely matches that of atmospheric carbon dioxide rise and effectively traces the redistribution of carbon from the deep ocean to the atmosphere during deglaciation. |
DOI | 10.1126/science.1138679 |