eolian deposition in the northeast pacific ocean cenozoic history of atmospheric circulation the mass accumulation rate and grain size distribution of the total eolian component of north pacific pelagic clays have been used to evaluate changes in eolian sedimentation and in the intensity of atmospheric circulation that have occurred during the past 70 m y eolian deposition was relatively low approximately 12 mg cm2 1 000 yr in the late cretaceous and paleocene reflecting an increasingly humid environment a peak in accumulation rates across the paleocene eocene boundary may be the result of episodic volcanism in mexico a sharp decrease in grain size across the paleocene eocene boundary is not readily interpreted fine eolian grain size and the low accumulation rates averaging 8 mg cm2 1 000 yr in the eocene and early oligocene are in agreement with low early tertiary thermal gradients and less vigorous atmospheric circulation large increases in grain size between 37 and 30 m y ago 20 and 10 m y ago and 5 m y ago to the present suggest that atmospheric circulation intensified by a factor of 1 5 1 8 and 1 4 respectively at these times eolian accumulation rates increased from 8 mg cm2 1 000 yr at the eocene oligocene boundary to approximately 25 mg cm2 1 000 yr at the end of the miocene with significant changes at 25 and 13 m y ago increased rates about 25 m y ago probably reflect movement of the core site into the influence of the westerlies and the increase 13 m y ago appears to be a response to steepening thermal gradients and intensifying atmospheric circulation resulting from major expansion of antarctic ice in the mid miocene along with a general increase in global aridity in the late cenozoic an order of magnitude increase in eolian accumulation rates 25 to 226 mg cm2 1 000 yr in pliocene pleistocene time coincides with the onset of northern hemisphere glaciation and consequent climatic deterioration the large increase in accumulation rates in pliocene pleistocene time coincides with a relatively smal increase in the intensity of atmospheric circulation compared to that in oligocene and miocene time suggesting that the increased deposition rates were the result of an increase in global aridity in glacial times rather than a further increase in the vigor of the global wind systems

the paleoclimatic record provided by eolian deposition in the deep sea the geologic history of wind the mineral component of pelagic sediment is brought to the deep sea by transport in the wind extraction and analysis of this dust allows estimation of the past aridity of the eolian source region via flux determinations and of the intensity of the transporting winds from grain size data these two parameters the grain size and mass flux of dust vary independently there are three significant sources of modern dust eastern and central asia northwest africa and arabia all in the northern hemisphere as the rainfall associated with the intertropical convergence zone is an effective barrier to southerly transport of dust the northern hemisphere is an order of magnitude more dusty than is the southern an asymmetry that has characterized most of the cenozoic eolian flux data show that most of the northern hemisphere was more arid during glacial maxima with 3 to 5 times as much dust transported during glacial stages than during interglacials only northwestern south america varied in the opposite sense the periodicity of quaternary variation in both eolian flux and eolian grain size data is strongly influenced by the milankovitch cycles of orbital variability wind intensities vary on a shorter time scale than the general 100 kyr cycles of glaciation and general aridity eolian grain sizes display forcing at precessional 19 and 23 kyr tilt 41 kyr and at approximately 30 kyr periodicities as a result the generalization that winds are uniformly stronger during glacial times is not valid whole cenozoic records show that the largest change in dust flux an order of magnitude increase occurred in the northern hemisphere and reflects continental drying associated with the late pliocene onset of northern hemisphere glaciation southern hemisphere eolian records show no sign of paleoclimatic changes in the late pliocene the most important change in cenozoic atmospheric circulation was a severalfold reduction in wind intensity that occurred at the time of the paleocene eocene boundary before then latest cretaceous and paleocene winds were essentially as strong as those of the late cenozoic this shift appears to be one of several climatic responses to a change in the nature and amount of global heat transport at about 55 ma

oceanwide imprint of large tectonic and oceanic events on seawater nd isotope composition in the indian ocean from 90 to 40 ma 1 we have analyzed four sediment cores from the southern indian ocean odp sites 757 758 1135 and 762 with high carbonate content in order to reconstruct the neodymium isotopic composition end of ancient intermediate south indian seawater from late cretaceous 90 ma to early eocene 40 ma the endvariations are highly consistent and exhibit reproducible patterns over a very large geographic area confirming the seawater origin of the signal combining geochemical constraints with paleogeographic reconstructions we highlight the respective roles of 1 large scale tectonic events 2 continental weathering from surrounding precambrian terrains 90 65 ma 3 oceanic circulation changes 50 40 ma and possibly 4 local volcanism of the ultra fast spreading south east indian ridge seir 60 50 ma on the nd isotopic composition of south indian seawater between 60 ma and 50 ma the regional nd isotopic variations closely mimic changes in seir spreading rate we suggest that the nd isotopic composition of seawater could be influenced by nd of volcanic origin in the vicinity of ultra fast spreading ridges 13 cm yr the india asia collision closed the equatorial seaway between asia and india and drastically changed oceanic circulation patterns in the indian ocean warm and more radiogenic pacific equatorial seawater was diverted to the south by the east indian coast a stronger mixing of this pacific seawater with south indian seawater would explain the rapid shift ofend from 50 ma 11 to 40 ma 8

exchange of neodymium and its isotopes between seawater and small and large particles in the sargasso sea the concentrations and isotopic ratios of nd were measured in small 1 53 m and large 53 m in situ filtered particles sediment trap material sediment and aerosol samples collected during oligotrophic and productive conditions in the sargasso sea atmospheric input is the main source of exogeneous nd into the sargasso sea based on ndal ratios in trapped material we suggest that up to 50 of atmospheric nd could dissolve at the air sea interface the concentration and isotopic composition of nd vary with both depth and the particle size neodymium concentrations of small and large particles increase with depth from 2 9 12 g g and 5 8 11 8 g g respectively at 40 m the nd signature of large particles is significantly more negative nd 0 13 1 0 2 than that of the small ones nd 0 11 7 0 3 and the particles filtered deeper below 237 m the nd 0 values for small particles match the seawater whereas the nd 0 values of large particles remain less radiogenic these differences are related to the different behaviors of the particulate fractions small particles apparently exchange nd with seawater and then sink rapidly to depth as biologically formed aggregates large particles these aggregates isolate the small particles slowing the exchange with the water to produce different signatures between large particles and seawater since these exchange processes modify the particulate nd signature the shallow radiogenic nd 0 signature observed in the surface and subsurface waters in the nw atlantic is not due to external contributions and is likely of advective origin at depth below 800 m the magnitude of the aggregation disaggregation process varies significantly with season the fraction of small particles repackaged into large aggregates can vary from 0 8 to 80 100 in productive and oligotrophic conditions respectively this seasonal variation may correspond to sinking particles of different zooplanktonic origin vertical fluxes of nd into and out of the sargasso sea as well as exchange fluxes in the water column are examined about 50 of the particulate flux from the surface is remineralized at depth a net scavenging flux of 0 8 10 4 g m2 y is required this value corresponds to a scavenging nd residence time of 1900 y considerably longer than previous estimates of global oceanic residence time of nd on the order of 400 y

tectonic history of sumba island indonesia since the late cretaceous and its rapid escape into the forearc in the miocene abstract the island of sumba lies within the sunda banda forearc and contains volcanic plutonic and volcaniclastic rocks that record a history of arc volcanism extending from late cretaceous 80 ma or earlier to oligocene 31 ma time during the late cretaceous sumba formed part of a great indonesian volcanic arc system near southeastern eurasia between late cretaceous and early miocene time sumba remained part of that arc system which ceased to be volcanically active by 31 ma during the late miocene 18 ma sumba as part of the relict arc system was situated near the present site of alor and wetar at 16 ma sumba was torn from the relict arc and began to move at a velocity of 50 mm yr in a west south westerly direction volcanism along the modern banda arc soon followed by 7 ma sumba finally came to rest after having moved 450 km into the forearc we interpret the rapid motion of sumba into the forearc as a discrete block to have been a response to the collision between australia and indonesia in the area of timor the savu basin possibly originated as an arc crestal rift which then opened behind sumba as the latter moved westward over the past 16 my more than 3 km of sediment have been deposited in the savu basin by erosion from the surrounding islands sumba stopped moving to the west south west at 7 ma after reaching approximately its present location since then the island has ceased to be a discrete tectonic fragment and has behaved as an integral part of the forearc during the past 7 my compressional tectonics within the forearc has led to elevation of the rocks exposed on sumba by as much as 4 km

differing controls over the cenozoic pb and nd isotope evolution of deepwater in the central north pacific ocean dissolved pb and nd isotope ratios of seawater as recorded by chemical marine precipitates such as hydrogenetic ferromanganese crusts have been used as paleoenvironmental proxy tracers for the north pacific however all ferromanganese crusts studied so far have either been subject to phosphatization or hydrothermal influence in their old part or only the young parts have been analyzed thus the pb and nd isotope compositions of north pacific deep waters prior to 20 ma are not well constrained we present new results for three ferromanganese crusts one of which cj01 shows no phosphatization and is located far away from the epr its age is inferred to be 75 ma and thus provides for the first time an opportunity to trace the nd and pb isotope evolution of central north pacific seawater back to the latest cretaceous the three crusts no matter whether phosphatized or not display very similar pb and nd isotope trends with age suggesting no modification of the pb and nd isotope distribution by post depositional phosphatization our data suggest that dissolved pb in deep waters of the central north pacific over the cenozoic and latest cretaceous has mainly been derived from eolian dust and only to a minor extent from weathering of island arcs for pb these trends broadly resemble the pb isotope evolution of the eolian silicate dust fraction of core ll44 gpc3 in the central north pacific we suggest that the isotope evolution of dissolved pb in central north pacific seawater has been mainly controlled by pb released from eolian dust from north america prior to 50 ma and after 40 ma from asia in contrast the nd isotope time series of the crusts are by no means similar to the nd isotope evolution of the silicate dust fraction in core gpc3 suggesting a decoupling from the pb and negligible contributions from dust to the dissolved nd in the central north pacific deep water the rise of nd isotope ratios of pacific seawater during the cenozoic has most likely been caused by the increasing volcanic activity and erosion of the volcanic arcs around the pacific

cenozoic evolution of asian climate and sources of pacific seawater pb and nd derived from eolian dust of sediment core ll44 gpc3 1 the large diameter piston core ll44 gpc3 from the central north pacific ocean records continuous sedimentation of eolian dust since the late cretaceous two intervals resolved by nd and pb isotopic data relate to dust coming from america prior to 40 ma and dust coming from asia since 40 ma the intertropical convergence zone itcz separates these depositional regimes today and may have been at a paleolatitude of 23 n prior to 40 ma such a northerly location of the itcz is consistent with sluggish atmospheric circulation and warm climate for the northern hemisphere of the early to middle eocene since 40 ma correlations between nd 7 55 end t 10 81 and pb 18 625 206 4pb 18 879 15 624 207 4pb 15 666 38 611 208 4pb 38 960 0 8294 207 6pb 0 8389 2 0539 208 6pb 2 0743 isotopes reflect the progressive drying of central asia triggered by the westward retreat of the paleo tethys comparisons between the changes with time in the isotopically well defined dust flux and nd and pb isotopic compositions of pacific deep water allow one to draw two major conclusions 1 dust bound nd became a resolvable contribution to pacific seawater only after the one order of magnitude increase in dust flux starting at 3 5 ma therefore eolian nd was unimportant for pacific seawater nd prior to 3 5 ma 2 the lack of a response of pacific deep water pb to this huge flux increase suggests that dust bound pb has never been important instead mobile pb associated with island arc volcanic exhalatives probably consists of a significant contribution to pacific deep water pb and possibly to seawater elsewhere far away from landmasses

nd isotopic excursion across cretaceous ocean anoxic event 2 cenomanian turonian in the tropical north atlantic late cretaceous fish debris from demerara rise exhibits a dramatic positive excursion of 8 nd units during ocean anoxic event 2 oae2 that is superimposed on extremely low nd t values 14 to 16 5 observed throughout the rest of the studied interval the oae2 nd excursion is the largest yet documented in marine sediments and the majority of the shift is estimated to have occurred over nd values on demerara rise are explained as the nd isotopic signature of the south american craton whereas eruptions of the caribbean large igneous province or enhanced mixing of intermediate waters in the north atlantic could have caused the excursion

antidunes and traction carpet deposits in deep water channel sandstones cretaceous british columbia canada abstract sandstone beds intercalated with thick shale of the upper member of the haida formation albian turonian in the queen charlotte islands british columbia canada show thinly laminated graded bedding the sandstones generally are present as successions of more than a few tens of inversely to normally graded thin beds the beds at the base of each succession contain much coarser detritus than the beds at the top each succession of graded beds shows a lens shaped channel geometry wavy bed forms similar in shape to the hummock and swale topography that is thought to form hummocky cross stratification hcs characterize the uppermost part of the succession however grain fabric and spacing of the bed forms indicate that they are of antidune origin it is concluded that the successions of multiple laminated sandstone beds were produced by high density turbidity currents that were probably associated with a gravity transformation in which a successive freezing of traction carpets took place lack of shale in the succession together with the common presence of antidunes suggest that each succession was the product of one sedimentation event without decrease in stream power

paleogene deepwater mass composition of the tropical pacific and implications for thermohaline circulation in a greenhouse world 1 the pacific ocean likely exerted the greatest marine influence on climate during the greenhouse interval of the paleogene the first step toward assessing the role of pacific deepwater circulation in global heat transport is a comprehensive reconstruction of deepwater mass composition and circulation patterns we present new deepwater mass nd isotope data from odp leg 199 sites 1215 1217 1219 and 1221 to augment the existing coverage provided by ferromanganese crust and fossil fish debris data the new data corroborate the notion that the pacific ocean operated in a bimodal pattern with deepwater sources in both the southern ocean and north pacific for much of the early to middle paleogene in addition the data indicate that there was little to no influence of atlantic waters on the deepwater composition of the tropical pacific the available deepwater nd isotope data provide refined constraints on the geographic and depth range of influence of both a southern ocean and north pacific deepwater mass from 65 to 45 ma the deep tropical pacific was the mixing location of deep waters sourced from the southern ocean and the north pacific the southern ocean deepwater mass extended from 1800 m to abyssal depths until 53 6 ma it circulated northward in the western pacific at least as far as the paleolocation of fe mn crust cld01 5 n paleolatitude and in the eastern portion of the pacific as far as site 1215 10 n paleolatitude a north pacific deepwater mass extended from at least 2400 m to 2900 m water depth from 65 to 54 ma south to shatsky rise paleolatitude 10 15 n and possibly as far as site 1215 700 km to the south of shatsky rise sites 1209 and 1211

reconstructing the evolution of the submarine monterey canyon system from os nd and pb isotopes in hydrogenetic fe mn crusts the sources of terrestrial material delivered to the california margin over the past 7 myr were assessed using 187os 188os nd and pb isotopes in hydrogenetic ferromanganese crusts from three seamounts along the central and southern california margin from 6 8 to 4 5 0 5 ma all three isotope systems show more radiogenic values at davidson seamount located near the base of the monterey canyon system than in fe mn crusts from the more remote taney and hoss seamounts at the taney seamounts approximately 225 km farther offshore from davidson seamount 187os 188os values but not pb and nd isotope ratios also deviate from the cenozoic seawater curve towards more radiogenic values from 6 8 to 4 5 0 5 ma however none of the isotope systems in fe mn crusts deviate from seawater at hoss seamount located approximately 450 km to the south the regional gradients in isotope ratios indicate that substantial input of dissolved and particulate terrestrial material into the monterey canyon system is responsible for the local deviations in the seawater nd pb and os isotope compositions from 6 8 to 4 5 0 5 ma the isotope ratios recorded in fe mn crusts are consistent with a southern sierra nevada or western basin and range provenance of the terrestrial material which was delivered by rivers to the canyon the exhumation of the modern monterey canyon must have begun between 10 and 6 8 0 5 ma as indicated by our data the age of incised strata and paleo location of the monterey canyon relative to the paleo coastline

reduced north atlantic deep water flux to the glacial southern ocean inferred from neodymium isotope ratios the global circulation of the oceans and the atmosphere transports heat around the earth broecker and denton1 suggested that changes in the global ocean circulation might have triggered or enhanced the glacial interglacial cycles but proxy data for past circulation taken from sediment cores in the south atlantic ocean have yielded conflicting interpretations of ocean circulation in glacial times 13c variations in benthic foraminifera2 3 4 5 6 support the idea of a glacial weakening or shutdown of north atlantic deep water production whereas other proxies such as cd ca ba ca and 231pa 230th ratios show little change from the last glacial maximum to the holocene epoch7 8 9 here we report neodymium isotope ratios from the dispersed fe mn oxide component of two southeast atlantic sediment cores both cores show variations that tend towards north atlantic signatures during the warm marine isotope stages 1 and 3 whereas for the full glacial stages 2 and 4 they are closer to pacific ocean signatures we conclude that the export of north atlantic deep water to the southern ocean has resembled present day conditions during the warm climate intervals but was reduced during the cold stages an increase in biological productivity may explain the various proxy data during the times of reduced north atlantic deep water export

new constraints on the sources and behavior of neodymium and hafnium in seawater from pacific ocean ferromanganese crusts the behavior of dissolved hf in the marine environment is not well understood due to the lack of direct seawater measurements of hf isotopes and the limited number of hf isotope time series obtained from ferromanganese crusts in order to place better constraints on input sources and develop further applications a combined nd hf isotope time series study of five pacific ferromanganese crusts was carried out the samples cover the past 38 myr and their locations range from sites at the margin of the ocean to remote areas sites from previously unstudied north and south pacific areas and water depths corresponding to deep and bottom waters for most of the samples a broad coupling of nd and hf isotopes is observed in the equatorial pacific end and ehf both decrease with water depth similarly end and ehf both increase from the south to the north pacific these data indicate that the hf isotopic composition is in general terms a suitable tracer for ocean circulation since inflow and progressive admixture of bottom water is clearly identifiable the time series data indicate that inputs and outputs have been balanced throughout much of the late cenozoic a simple box model can constrain the relative importance of potential input sources to the north pacific assuming steady state the model implies significant contributions of radiogenic nd and hf from young circum pacific arcs and a subordinate role of dust inputs from the asian continent for the dissolved nd and hf budget of the north pacific some changes in ocean circulation that are clearly recognizable in nd isotopes do not appear to be reflected by hf isotopic compositions at two locations within the pacific ocean a decoupling of nd and hf isotopes is found indicating limited potential for hf isotopes as a stand alone oceanographic tracer and providing evidence of additional local processes that govern the hf isotopic composition of deep water masses in the case of the southwest pacific there is evidence that decoupling may have been the result of changes in weathering style related to the buildup of antarctic glaciation

morphological characters and multi element isotopic signatures of carbonates from chinese loess paleosol sequences abstract morphological characters and multi element isotopic compositions of carbonates from the loess paleosol sequences in northwestern china are examined to explore the origin of the minerals samples are collected from various sections ranging from holocene to 0 9 ma within the sequences and fractions with grain sizes 45 and 45 m exhibit an almost perfect spherical shape while those 13 c and 18 o values between minerals and biologically originated samples indicates that the 206 pb 204 pb 207 pb 204 pb 208 pb 204 pb and 87 sr 86 sr these results suggest the utility of fine carbonate particles in the soil profile in reconstructing a potentially higher resolution 13 c and 18 o time series to elucidate the paleoclimatic fluctuation in the chinese loess plateau during pleistocene the discovery of the nano rod calcite in chinese loess together with previous findings of the similar mineral form in asian dust strongly suggests the possibility that these highly reactive caco 3 form may alter the aerosol properties during transport

lead isotope provinciality of central north pacific deep water over the cenozoic understanding the pre anthropogenic pb cycle of central north pacific deep water has attracted a lot of attention in recent years partly because of its unique geographical location in that it is a remote gyre system characterized by high dust fluxes and sluggish overturning circulation however the factors controlling pb isotope evolution in this area over the cenozoic are still controversial and various mechanisms have been proposed in previous studies here we report new pb and nd isotope time series of four ferromanganese crusts two from the western pacific near the mariana arc and the other two from the central pacific together with previously published records we discuss for the first time the significance of a persistent and systematic pb isotopic provinciality recorded by central north pacific crusts over the cenozoic we propose that globally well mixed stratosphere volcanic aerosols could contribute pb but have not been the major factors controlling the pb isotope distribution in the central north pacific over time island arc input and probably enhanced hydrothermal input between about 45 and 20 ma likely controlled the pb isotope provinciality and evolution prior to 20 ma when coeval pb isotope records in different crusts showed large differences and atmospheric silicate dust flux was extremely low after the eocene in particular after 20 ma asian dust input has become an isotopically resolvable source while island arc derived pb has remained important to balance the dust input and to produce the observed pb isotope distribution in the central north pacific during this period

marine cobalt resources ferromanganese oxides in the open oceans are more enriched in cobalt than any other widely distributed sediments or rocks concentrations of cobalt exceed 1 percent in ferromanganese crusts on seamounts ocean ridges and other raised areas of the ocean the cobaltrich crusts may be the slowest growing of any earth material accumulating one molecular layer every 1 to 3 months attention has been drawn to crusts as potential resources because they contain cobalt manganese and platinum three of the four priority strategic metals for the united states moreover unlike abyssal nodules whose recovery is complicated by their dominant location in international waters some of the most cobalt rich crusts occur within the exclusive economic zone of the united states and other nations environmental impact statements for crust exploitation are under current development by the department of the interior

the influence of the carbonate dissolution rate on the growth and composition of co rich ferromanganese crusts from central pacific seamount areas abstract the metal composition of oceanic ferromanganese deposits occurring in seamount regions line islands chain and mid pacific mountains varies with water depth and age the results of metal determinations of carbonate plankton samples suggest that carbonate dissolution in the water column might have an important influence on the accretion and composition of hydrogenetic precipitates two ferromanganese crust generations of different age have been observed the precipitation of the older crust took probably place during early oligocene the younger crust began to form during middle miocene between the two crust generations periods of carbonate sedimentation and of phosphorite deposition occur the hydrogenetic formation of the crusts is controlled by the metal supply from the water column according to the laws of colloidal surface chemistry dissolution experiments with carbonate plankton samples show that the main fe source for the hydrogenetic crust formation are colloidal fe hydroxide particles being released in the water column from the dissolution of carbonate plankton skeletons in the case of mn maximum dissolved mn occurs in the oxygen minimum zone as the result of in situ break down of organic matter and the in situ reduction of mn bearing solid phases closely beneath the oxygen minimum zone a fe supply mobilized within the oxygen minimum zone has also to be taken into account in the water column below the oxygen minimum zone a mixture of colloidal particles of mn fe oxyhydroxide and colloidal al fe silicate precipitate together on the surface of substratum rocks the mixing ratio of these colloidal phases controlling the metal composition of the ferromanganese precipitates is depth dependent and shows also temporal variations in general mn fe ratio ni and co contents decrease with depth down to the calcite compensation depth the most probable mechanism for the ultimate removal of co and ni from the water column might be a surface reaction mno2 is specifically able to absorb hydrous co2 and ni2 ions because of the surface enrichment of co and the strong electrical field of mn iv a subsequent oxidation of co2 to co3 takes place leading to higher enrichment of co in comparison to ni the most important factor governing the high co enrichment in the ferromanganese crusts is the growth rate the lower the growth rate the higher the co content maximum values of up to 2 co occurring in samples from water depths between 1500 and 1100 m 1 are related to lower carbonate dissolution rates and corresponding lower fe supply the metal supply from the water column is strongly related to distinct environmental factors such as bio productivity range of lysocline and calcite compensation depth rate of carbonate dissolution and activity of the antarctic bottom water thus our model shows that the growth periods and the metal composition of hydrogenetic seamount crusts are controlled by changes in the paleoceanography and reflect distinct environmental conditions

weathering versus circulation controlled changes in radiogenic isotope tracer composition of the labrador sea and north atlantic deep water geological reconstructions and general circulation models suggest that the onset of both northern hemisphere glaciation 2 7 myr ago and convection of labrador sea water lsw were caused by the closure of the panama gateway 4 5 myr ago time series data that have been obtained from studies of ferromanganese crusts from the northwestern atlantic suggest that radiogenic isotopes of intermediate ocean residence time pb and nd can serve as suitable tracers to reconstruct these events however it has been unclear until now as to whether the changes that have been observed in isotope composition at this time are the result of increased thermohaline circulation or due to the effects of increased glacial weathering in this paper we adopt a box model approach to demonstrate that the shifts in radiogenic isotope compositions are unlikely to be due to changes in convection in lsw but can be explained in terms of increases of erosion levels due to the glaciation of greenland and canada furthermore we provide experimental evidence for the incongruent release of a labile fraction of strongly radiogenic pb and nonradiogenic nd from continental detritus eroding into the labrador sea this can be attributed to the glacial weathering of old continents and accounts for the paradox that one of the areas of the world most deficient in radiogenic pb should provide such a rich supply of radiogenic pb to the oceans an important general conclusion is that the compositions of radiogenic isotopes in seawater are not always a reflection of their continental sources perhaps more importantly the transition from chemical weathering to mechanical erosion is likely to result in significant variations in radiogenic tracers in seawater

a new approach to the nd residence time in the ocean the role of atmospheric inputs concentrations of rare earth elements ree and nd isotopic ratios were analyzed for seawater filtered suspension and sediment trap samples collected in the tropical atlantic ocean eumeli program eutrophic mesotrophic and oligotrophic sites 20 n 18 21 w this is the first ree nd dataset on solution and different sized particles collected at the same site we present direct evidence of the nd isotopic exchange between particulate lithogenic fraction and seawater without significant mass transfer this exchange is probably one of the main factors that simultaneously constrains the nd concentration and isotopic ratio budget we propose a new approach to estimate the residence time of nd in the ocean nd based on isotopic exchange 200 yr nd 1000 yr the exchange requires a partial dissolution of lithogenic nd we estimate that the fraction of soluble nd proportion in atmospheric dust is of the order of 20 based on the isotopic ratios we suggest that the partial dissolution of atmospheric fallout is probably one of the main ree sources of the ocean

the isotopic composition of neodymium in the north pacific abstract we have determined the isotopic composition of neodymium in two water column profiles in the western north pacific and in bottom waters from three other locations in the north pacific the vertical profiles reveal that the water column is stratified with respect to isotopic composition mid depths associated with pacific deep water are uniform having nd 0 3 shallow waters are variable but deep waters are less radiogenic having md 0 4 4 to 5 in the western basin the more negative bottom waters in the western north pacific provide evidence for the advective transport of rare earth elements from antarctic sources to this region bottom waters in the eastern north pacific are more radiogenic nd 0 3 3 to 3 8 indicating very little transport of ree from antarctic sources to this basin overall the isotopic composition of nd in pacific bottom waters appears to be conservative when compared to the silica distribution in spite of evidence for nd removal the findings are generally compatible with other parameters such as temperature salinity and nutrient distributions the presence of nd isotopic signatures associated with antarctic sources in these waters provides evidence for a small component of rare earth elements of north atlantic origin in the bottom waters of the north pacific this is the first tracer evidence to corroborate the suggestion of reid and lynn 1971 that some of the temperature and salinity properties of the deep waters of the north pacific originated in the norwegian and greenland seas

dust production and deposition in asia and the north pacific ocean over the past 12 myr the silicate fractions of recent pelagic sediments in the central north pacific ocean are dominated by eolian dust derived from central asia an 11 myr sedimentary record at odp sites 885 886 at 44 7 n 168 3 w allows the evaluation of how such dust and its sources have changed in response to late cenozoic climate and tectonics the extracted eolian fraction contains variable amounts 70 of clay minerals with subordinate quartz and plagioclase uniform nd isotopic compositions nd 8 6 to 10 5 and sm nd ratios 0 170 0 192 for most of the 11 myr record demonstrate a well mixed provenance in the basins north of the tibetan plateau and the gobi desert that was a source of dust long before the oldest preserved asian loess formed nd values of up to 6 5 for samples 2 9 ma indicate 35 wt admixture of a young kamchatka like volcanic arc component the coherence of pb and nd in the erosional cycle allows us to constrain the pb isotopic composition of asian loess devoid of anthropogenic contamination to 206pb 204pb 18 97 0 06 207pb 204pb 15 67 0 02 208pb 204pb 39 19 0 11 87sr 86sr 0 711 0 721 and rb sr ratios 0 39 1 1 vary with dust mineralogy and provide an age indication of 250 ma 40ar 39ar ages of six dust samples are uniform around 200 ma and match the k ar ages of modern dust deposited on hawaii these data reflect the weighted age average of illite formation changes from illite smectite with significant kaolinite to illite and chlorite rich kaolinite free assemblages since the late pliocene document changes in the intensity of chemical weathering in the source region such weathering evidently did not disturb the k ar systematics and only induced scatter in the rb sr data we propose that when smectite forms at the expense of illite k and ar are quantitatively lost from what becomes smectite but are quantitatively retained in adjacent illite layers 40ar 39ar age data therefore are insensitive to smectite formation during chemical weathering but date the diagenetic growth of illite the major k bearing phase in the dust over the past 12 myr the dust flux to the north pacific increased by more than an order of magnitude documenting a substantial drying of central asia this climatic change however did not alter the ultimate source of the dust and neoformational products of chemical weathering always remained subordinate to assemblages reworked by mechanical erosion in dust deposited in eastern asia and the pacific ocean

the osmium isotopic composition change of cenozoic sea water as inferred from a deep sea core corrected for meteoritic contributions a detailed study was made of the oceanic 187os 186os variation through the cenozoic by using a hydrogen peroxide leaching procedure on a pelagic clay core from the north pacific long lines 44 gpc3 a 6 h2o2 solution was used the range of 187os 186os obtained by this procedure was between 2 and 8 2 a milder leach 0 15 h2o2 in three out of four samples yielded a slightly higher 187os 186os value than the stronger leach implying that the stronger leach released some meteoritic os with 187os 186os of 1 using published 3he concentrations in gpc3 and cosmic dust 3he and os fluxes to deep sea sediments the extraterrestrial os concentration was estimated for each core segment and subtracted to yield corrected values of 187os 186os the results based on the milder leaching protocol and the 3he correction protocol yield similar values the corrected ocean water 187os 186os pattern for the past 25 million years is similar to that obtained by other workers and is compatible with other results for the entire cenozoic the variation with time in gpc3 uniquely provides a statigraphic signature for the paleogene

changes in pacific ocean circulation following the miocene onset of permanent antarctic ice cover we integrate micropaleontological and geochemical records benthic stable isotopes neodymium isotopes benthic foraminiferal abundances and xrf scanner derived elemental data from well dated pacific ocean successions 15 12 7 ma to monitor circulation changes during the middle miocene transition into a colder climate mode with permanent antarctic ice cover together with previously published records our results show improvement in deep water ventilation and strengthening of the meridional overturning circulation following major ice expansion at 13 9 ma neodymium isotope data reveal however that the provenance of intermediate and deep water masses did not change markedly between 15 and 12 7 ma we attribute the increased 13c gradient between pacific deep and intermediate water masses between 13 6 and 12 7 ma to more vigorous entrainment of pacific central water into the wind driven ocean circulation due to enhanced production of intermediate and deep waters in the southern ocean prominent 100 kyr ventilation cycles after 13 9 ma reveal that the deep pacific remained poorly ventilated during warmer intervals at high eccentricity whereas colder periods low eccentricity were characterized by a more vigorous meridional overturning circulation with enhanced carbonate preservation the long term 13c decline in pacific intermediate and deep water sites between 13 5 and 12 7 ma reflects a global trend probably related to a re adjustment response of the global carbon cycle following the last 400 kyr carbon maximum cm6 of the monterey excursion

pb isotope variations in hydrogenetic fe mn crusts from the izu bonin fore arc abstract fe mn crusts were recovered from the western escarpment of the bonin ridge in the izu bonin fore arc region dive site 824 28 612 n 141 803 e at water depths of c 2900 m using the shinkai 6500 submersible during cruise yk 04 05 major and trace element data and xrd mineralogy indicate that the crusts are hydrogenetic in origin we present profiles of variations in pb isotope composition measured in situ by laser ablation mc icp ms across two of the crusts the isotopic variations are systematic and can be matched up between the two crusts indicating similar growth rates the crust pb isotope composition rules out any local source for pb from within the izu bonin mariana arc system either from hydrothermal activity or through leaching of volcanic detritus input of a globally well mixed volcanic pb component either from aerosols or as an absorbed component on aeolian dust has been proposed as a mechanism to explain the pb isotope composition of central pacific deep water however the izu bonin crusts are displaced to lower 206 pb 204 pb and higher 208 pb 204 pb which requires an additional pb source one possibility is that as water is advected from the south outboard of the luzon ryukyu honshu arc system it is progressively polluted by pb derived by weathering and erosion of these young island arc volcanic systems using a constant co flux model growth rates are estimated at 7 13 mm ma which would suggest that these crusts provide a record of changes in the composition of deep water in the izu bonin fore arc region of the western pacific ocean over the last 4 8 ma over this interval the main feature has been a progressive decrease in 207 pb 206 pb 0 843 to 0 839 and 208 pb 206 pb 2 088 to 2 080 with time the interior parts have compositions similar to those of crusts from the izu bonin fore arc while the rims have compositions similar to crusts from the central western pacific

strontium and neodymium isotopes in hot springs on the east pacific rise and guaymas basin we have determined the concentrations and isotopic compositions of sr and nd in hydrothermal fluids from 21 n east pacific rise and guaymas basin gulf of california the purest solutions analyzed from 21 n exhibit a small range in sr concentration between individual vents from 5 8 to 8 7 ppm close to normal seawater sr concentrations they exhibit a small range in 87 sr 86 sr from e sr 0 13 4 to 17 7 corresponding to e sr 0 18 2 in the pure hydrothermal end member these results indicate extensive but not complete isotopic exchange with sr in the depleted oceanic crust e sr 0 31 8 and suggest that sr concentrations in these solutions are buffered in contrast the concentration and isotopic composition of nd in solutions show large variations between vents the concentration of nd ranges from 20 to 336 pg g 6 100 times seawater nd concentrations the isotopic composition ranges from e nd 0 3 6 similar to pacific seawater to 7 9 many samples show substantial contributions from morb but all have e nd 0 well below morb at this locality e nd 0 9 7 in spite of very large enrichments in nd concentrations while complete isotopic exchange with water rock 2 or exchange with anomalous oceanic crust can explain the sr data the nd data require exchange with a reservoir having e nd 0 pacific seawater low temperature reactions with metalliferous sediments on the ridge flanks may provide such a source both sr and nd in the guaymas basin solution are very different from21 n e sr 0 11 0 and e nd 0 11 4 and are consistent with the fluid exchanging sr and nd with heated sediments having a substantial component of old continental detritus some irregularities in the nd isotopic data reported here indicate that there must be a problem of contamination for some ultra low level trace elements during sample collection and processing which requires further attention using a simple box model the estimates for hydrothermal nd fluxes are compared with fluxes which would be required to maintain the relatively radiogenic value of e nd 0 3 in the pacific against the influx of more negative antarctic waters e nd 0 9 it is shown that the hydrothermal flux of nd from mid ocean ridges falls far short of that necessary to maintain the isotopic balance this indicates that weathered material from volcanic terranes e nd 0 7 is the most reasonable major source of radiogenic nd in the pacific

nd and pb isotopes in atlantic and pacific water masses before and after closure of the panama gateway two nd and pb isotope time series of hydrogenous ferromanganese crusts one from the tehuantepec ridge in the deep eastern equatorial pacific and the other from blake plateau in the shallow northwestern atlantic which cover the past 7 8 m y show no variations coincident with the final closure of the panama gateway estimated as ca 3 5 ma the record of the atlantic crust located in the present day gulf stream shows a shift in isotope composition from ca 8 to 5 ma that is explained by a diminishing supply of pacific water it is argued that the major restriction of water mass exchange through the panama gateway occurred before 5 ma and thus cannot serve as a direct cause of the onset of northern hemisphere glaciation the absence of a significant signature in the isotope records from the pacific crust suggests that the volume of water exchanged with the atlantic through shallow archipelagic straits of the gateway during the 3 4 m y prior to closure was too small to influence the radiogenic isotope composition of pacific deep water

distribution and sources of pre anthropogenic lead isotopes in deep ocean water from fe mn crusts abstract the lead isotope composition of ocean water is not well constrained due to contamination by anthropogenic lead here the global distribution of lead isotopes in deep ocean water is presented as derived from dated ca 100 ka surface layers of hydrogenetic fe mn crusts the results indicate that the radiogenic lead in north atlantic deep water is probably supplied from the continents by river particulates and that lead in pacific deep water is similar to that characteristic of island and continental volcanic arcs despite a short residence time in deep water 80 100 a the isotopes of lead appear to be exceedingly well mixed in the pacific basin there is no evidence for the import of north atlantic deep water derived lead into the pacific ocean nor into the north indian ocean this implies that the short residence time of lead in deep water prohibits advection over such long distances consequently any climate induced changes in deep water flow are not expected to result in major changes in the seawater pb isotope record of the pacific ocean

paleoceanographic conditions on the sao paulo ridge sw atlantic ocean for the past 30 million years inferred from os and pb isotopes of a hydrogenous ferromanganese crust abstract hydrogenous ferromanganese fe mn crusts can provide records of long term environmental changes during the cenozoic to understand the paleoceanographic conditions in the southwestern atlantic ocean we investigated depth profiles of major and trace element concentrations as well as os and pb isotopic compositions in a fe mn crust collected from the southern flank of the sao paulo ridge in the southwestern atlantic major and trace element data plotted on ternary mn fe 10 ni co cu and rare earth element plus yttrium rey discrimination diagrams indicate that the analyzed sample is a typical hydrogenous fe mn crust the obtained 187 os 188 os data were matched to the cenozoic seawater os isotope evolution curve reconstructed from pelagic sediments the result suggests that the fe mn crust has accreted over 30 myr with growth rates of 0 5 3 mm myr although the sample likely grew in two directions during the early stage of its growth we found no evidence of growth hiatus in the sample which may contrast with the growth histories of many pacific fe mn crusts hence the conditions favorable for the accretion of hydrogenous fe mn crusts were likely to have developed on the sao paulo ridge over the past 30 myr the pb isotopic compositions show very limited ranges e g 206 pb 204 pb 18 80 18 85 and are similar to those of pre anthropogenic seawater in the southern ocean as the sao paulo ridge is located near the vema channel which is presently a major path of antarctic bottom water we suggest that a strong northward bottom current has continuously swept detrital and biogenic sediments from the ridge and played a vital role in the fe mn crust formation since 30 ma

correlation of co concentration and growth rate a method for age determination of ferromanganese crusts abstract based on the analysis and comparison of metal content and growth rate determination by the 10be method an empirical law has been developed to calculate the growth rate evaluating after 520 chemical analyses we have shown that the flux of co into ferromanganese seamount crusts has been constant over the entire growth period of all crusts investigated the amount of co supplied per unit of time and seabottom area is nearly constant in the oceanic water column the layered texture of ferromanganese crusts reflects the change of phases and hydrogenetically precipitated amounts as well as their different growth rates the most important indicator revealing the growth rate is the co enrichment of each crust layer the higher the growth rate the lower the co concentration therefore it is possible to recalculate the age and growth rate of each ferromanganese crust layer by g mm ma 1 1 28 co 0 24 based on the intense phosphorite impregnation of the lower part of the ferromanganese crust which has grown within the time period 18 12 ma so called older crust two additional effects have to be taken into account a the intense phosphorite impregnation causing dilution and b the chemical dissolution of the ferromanganese crusts caused by the phosphate rich pore water both reduce the co concentration and the relating co contents co x and co x have thus to be compensated a co x co x m mn co x mn co b b co x co x 1 0 05 p 1 where co x double corrected co concentration of the layer x of the older crust generation co x corrected co concentration of the layer x of the older crust generation concerning the phosphate dilution co x m measured co concentration of the layer x of the older crust generation mn co x mn co ratio measured of the layer x of the older crust generation mn co b mn co ratio measured of the boundary layer between younger and older crust generation and p difference between the apatite fraction of the older crust of the layer x and the average value of the younger crust generation this simple cobalt calculation model makes it possible to recalculate the growth rate and age of each simple layer of ferromanganese crusts

tectonically driven changes in the indian ocean circulation over the last 25 ma neodymium isotope evidence abstract changes in ancient oceanic current patterns have been strongly influenced by plate tectonics particularly by the opening or closing of gateways between different oceans such modifications of oceanic circulation have important consequences on climate we studied the nd seawater isotopic composition of indian and pacific ocean cores using nd isotopes which are good paleo oceanographic tracers we focused on the past 25 ma which are marked by the closure of the indonesian gateway as well as the mediterranean connection we show that a strong westerly oceanic surface current which we refer to the miocene indian ocean equatorial jet miojet linked the eastern and western indian ocean from 14 ma to 3 ma and infer that this major change in oceanic circulation probably induced important variations of global climate

cenozoic changes in atmospheric lead recorded in central pacific ferromanganese crusts the possible sources of pre anthropogenic pb contributed to the world s oceans have been the focus of considerable study the role of eolian dust versus riverine inputs has been of particular interest with better calibration of isotopic records from central pacific ferromanganese crusts using os isotope stratigraphy it now appears that deep water pb isotopic compositions were effectively homogeneous over a distance of 5000 km for the past 80 myr the composition shifted slightly from high 206pb 204pb ratios in the range of 18 87 0 02 before 65 ma to lower values of 18 62 0 02 by 45 ma and then gradually increased again very slightly to the present day ratio of 18 67 0 02 the regional homogeneity provides evidence of a dominant well mixed atmospheric source the most likely candidate for which is volcanic aerosols contributed either directly or as soluble condensates on eolian dust the slight shift in pb isotope composition of deep waters in the central pacific between 65 and 45 ma may be the result of a regional or perhaps global scale change in the sources of volcanic exhalations and volcanic activity caused by an increase in the importance of melting and assimilation of older continental crustal components over the cenozoic

nd isotopic structure of the pacific ocean 70 30 ma and numerical evidence for vigorous ocean circulation and ocean heat transport in a greenhouse world the oceanic meridional overturning circulation moc is a crucial component of the climate system impacting heat and nutrient transport and global carbon cycling past greenhouse climate intervals present a paradox because their weak equator to pole temperature gradients imply a weaker moc yet increased poleward oceanic heat transport appears to be required to maintain these weak gradients to investigate the mode of moc that operated during the early cenozoic we compare new nd isotope data with nd tracer enabled numerical ocean circulation and coupled climate model simulations assimilation of new nd isotope data from south pacific deep sea drilling project and ocean drilling program sites 323 463 596 865 and 869 with previously published data confirm the hypothesized moc characterized by vigorous sinking in the south and north pacific 70 to 30 ma compilation of all pacific nd isotope data indicates vigorous distinct and separate overturning circulations in each basin until 40 ma simulations consistently reproduce south pacific and north pacific deep convection over a broad range of conditions but cases using strong deep ocean vertical mixing produced the best data model match strong mixing potentially resulting from enhanced abyssal tidal dissipation greater interaction of wind driven internal wave activity with submarine plateaus or higher than modern values of the geothermal heat flux enable models to achieve enhanced moc circulation rates with resulting nd isotope distributions consistent with the proxy data the consequent poleward heat transport may resolve the paradox of warmer worlds with reduced temperature gradients

evolution of the west andean escarpment at 18 s n chile during the last 25 ma uplift erosion and collapse through time abstract the geological record of the western andean escarpment warp reveals episodes of uplift erosion volcanism and sedimentation the lithological sequence at 18 s comprises a thick pile of azapa conglomerates 25 19 ma an overlying series of widespread rhyodacitic oxaya ignimbrites up to 900 m thick ca 19 ma which are in turn covered by a series of mafic andesite shield volcanoes between 19 and 12 ma the surface of the oxaya ignimbrites evolved into a large monocline on the western slope of the andes a giant antithetically rotated block oxaya block 80 km 20 km formed on this slope at about 10 12 ma and resulted in an easterly dip and a reversed drainage on the block s surface morphology topography and stratigraphic observations argue for a gravitational cause of this rotation a secondary gravitational collapse 50 km3 extending 25 km to the west occurred on the steep western front of the oxaya block alluvial and fluvial sediments 11 2 7 ma accumulated in a half graben to the east of the tilted block and were later thrust over by the rocks of the escarpment wall indicating further shortening between 8 and 6 ma flatlying upper miocene sediments

lead isotopic record of barremian aptian marine sediments implications for large igneous provinces and the aptian climatic crisis we present initial isotopic ratios of lead for early cretaceous barremian aptian sections from shatsky rise pacific and gorgo a cerbara italy our pb isotopic data track an interval representing oceanic anoxic event oae 1a which is characterized by quasi global deposition of organic carbon rich black shale pb isotopic compositions of sediments from shatsky rise decrease at the end of barremian time from radiogenic continental values to unradiogenic values and subsequently remained less radiogenic until the end of early aptian time we explain the isotopic shift by a significant increase in supply rate of unradiogenic pb most likely due to massive volcanism in contrast the pb isotopic compositions from the italian section which was situated at the western end of tethys are mostly identical to those of upper continental crust showing no significant change in supply rate of unradiogenic pb the discrepancy between two sites is attributed to quiescent deep submarine eruptions of pacific large igneous provinces lips such as the ontong java plateau ojp which severely limited dispersion of pb carrying particles out of the pacific ocean published os isotopic data from the italian section indicate two episodes of massive eruptions of ojp or contemporaneous manihiki and hikurangi plateaus starting from earliest aptian time slightly later than that indicated by the sedimentary pb isotopic record from shatsky rise differences in isotopic variations between pb and os likely reflect differences in their chemical behaviors in the oceans i e pb isotopic compositions would have varied in response to local or regional changes in sediment provenances whereas large scale changes in os inputs are required to explain variations in seawater os isotopic compositions our pb isotopic data together with the published os isotopic record provide new evidence for the eruptive history of ojp together with contemporaneous pacific plateaus and its environmental consequences starting from end barremian time and extending through early aptian time

preferential dissolution of benthic foraminiferal calcite during laboratory reductive cleaning we have investigated the effect of cleaning procedures on eight element ca ratios in three widely used benthic foraminifera species from core top and down core sediments two cleaning techniques were employed 1 comparison between mg cleaning and cd cleaning methods and 2 comparison between the various constituent reagents li ca b ca and sr ca ratios remained unchanged for samples subjected to different treatments but mg ca mn ca zn ca cd ca and u ca were substantially decreased when foraminifera shells were cleaned with reagents containing citrate in contrast no significant decreases in element ca ratios were observed for samples cleaned in n2h4 without citrate indicating that the role of n2h4 was insignificant during reductive cleaning and that citrate is responsible for decreases of mg ca mn ca zn ca cd ca and u ca decreases in these ratios are most likely due to 1 removal of contaminant particles enriched in mg mn zn cd and u and or 2 preferential leaching of caco3 by the formation of stable metal complexes through chelation between citrate and metals heterogeneously distributed in foraminiferal shells due to the negligible effect of n2h4 and preferential dissolution of caco3 during reductive cleaning it is suggested that the reductive cleaning step should be omitted and the mg cleaning method barker et al 2003 could be employed to clean foraminiferal shells for trace element measurements

tectonic and paleoceanographic conditions during the formation of ferromanganese nodules from the northern south china sea based on the high resolution geochemistry mineralogy and isotopes abstract deep water ferromanganese fe mn nodules cumulate trace elements from the underlying sediment pore water and seawater during the concentric mineral layers growth process over millions of years they can record long term tectonic movements and paleoceanographic changes to systematically ascertain paleoceanographic evolution of the deep south china sea scs since the last 3 2 ma we comprehensively investigated microstructure mineralogy geochemical element concentrations as well as sr nd and pb isotopic compositions in the fe mn nodules nearby the dongsha islands in the northern scs results indicate that these deposits were formed in a continental marginal environment by a mixture of diagenetic and hydrogenetic processes overall the studied nodules can be divided into three stages with different microstructures and chemical compositions which indicate different formation environments stage 1a is the innermost and oldest layer with a porous mottled texture and has the lowest mn fe ratio cu ni and zn which implies comparatively high oxidization conditions in contrast the mn mineralogy of stage 2 shows conditions similar to those of buserite formed under less oxidative conditions between stage 1a and 2 stage 1b represents a mixture of stage 1a and 2 and has inhomogeneous growth structures based on the nd and sr isotopic composition of the detrital phases and pb isotopes three potential terrigenous source regions including south china luzon and taiwan that discharge into the northern scs from 3 2 ma to 1 06 ma after 1 06 ma the terrigenous fraction in the fe mn deposits on the northern slope of the scs is a two end members mixture of fluvial input from taiwan islands and eolian dusts from the chinese loess our study indicates that scs bottom water variation occurred at 3 2 ma 2 1 ma and 1 06 ma respectively which could be attributed to global cooling and the influence of luzon arc forearc uplift

effects of phosphatization on the geochemical and mineralogical composition of marine ferromanganese crusts most hydrogenetic ferromanganese crusts in the central pacific consist of two growth generations a phosphatized older growth generation that is impregnated with carbonate fluorapatite cfa and a younger non phosphatized growth generation geochemical and mineralogical investigations of non phosphatized and phosphatized crust layers revealed significant differences that are not simply dilution effects by cfa certain elements are depleted in old crusts compared to young crusts in the order si fe al ti co mn pb others like ni zn cu y and rees rare earth elements are mostly enriched suboxic conditions in the phosphate rich water of the oxygen minimum zone that infiltrated the crusts caused a partial redissolution of crust phases resulting in mobilization of associated elements a partial recrystallization of more stable phases and a secondary input of nutrient type elements the frequent occurrence of todorokite in phosphatized crust layers indicates that mn mobilized from the vernadite crust phase was partially recrystallized as todorokite which is more stable under suboxic conditions incorporating ni cu and zn into the crystal lattice but rejecting co other metals like pb y and rees probably form stable phosphate phases in phosphatized crusts our investigations emphasize that under the influence of phosphatization diagenetic remobilization and reorganization in fe mn crusts took place in contrast to non phosphatized crusts the older phosphatized crust generation no longer represents a complete primary crust precipitate therefore young non phosphatized and old phosphatized crust generations should be considered as two different sample types with respect to geochemical composition mineralogy and evolution we also suggest that most methods for age determination like the 87sr86sr isotopic dating method or co chronometry cannot be used for phosphatized crusts without caution

lead concentrations in the northeast pacific evidence for global anthropogenic perturbations lead concentrations were determined by isotope dilution mass spectrometry in 34 surface and deep water samples collected in the northeast pacific between hawaii and california and off the california coast using a deep water sampler protected against fouling by contamination from the ship and hydrowire measured concentrations lie more than one order of magnitude below previously published open ocean values and they show that in most cases 90 or more of the total lead is in a dissolved form lead concentrations are about 10 fold higher in surface and thermocline waters than in deep waters values drop as low as 1 ng kg 5 pmol kg below 3500 m depth lead profiles thus appear different compared to those of most trace metals which show enrichment in deep waters compared to surface concentrations lead concentrations in surface waters increase from 5 to 15 ng kg 25 to 75 pmol kg along a transect starting from a location 200 km off the california coast and continuing towards the center of the north pacific gyre this increase is congruent with that observed for 210 pb concentrations in the same waters sampled at the same time lead is supplied to the open north pacific largely from the atmosphere at a rate of about 60 ng cm 2 yr which exceeds the prehistoric oceanic output flux of authigenic lead recorded in pelagic sediments about tenfold this excess originates from emissions from smelters and combustion of leaded gasoline overwhelming natural lead inputs that entered the ocean during prehistoric time probably largely through rivers vertical lead concentration profiles below the surface mixed layer are probably not in steady state there concentrations must be increasing in response to the increase of anthropogenic inputs because the estimated lead residence times are more than 20 years in the thermocline and about 80 years in deep waters based on an estimated 10 fold input and concentration increase since the mid eighteenth century in the surface mixed layer in the central northeast pacific it is calculated that the 10 ng kg average concentration between 100 and 900 m is 2 to 5 times larger and the 1 8 ng kg average concentration between 900 and 5000 m depth is about 2 times larger than it was in the mid eighteenth century profiles of lead concentrations in the north atlantic are expected to be shifted generally to larger values by a factor of 2 to 3 compared to those in the north pacific because of the effects of greater industrial lead contamination while lead concentration profiles in the south pacific are expected to be shifted generally to lower values compared to the north pacific by about this same factor because of the effects of lesser industrial lead contamination

closure of the central american isthmus and its effect on deep water formation in the north atlantic modern ocean thermohaline driven circulation influences global climate by transporting heat to high latitudes1 2 and by affecting the exchange of co2 between ocean and atmosphere3 north atlantic deep water nadw plays a key role in this circulation and quaternary climate cycles have been linked to changes in nadw flow4 general circulation model simulations indicate that before closure some 3 4 million years ago of the central american isthmus the narrow strip of land linking north and south america the direct flow of low salinity water from the pacific to the atlantic ocean would have led to a smaller nadw flow5 6 sedimentation patterns7 and nutrient proxies8 11 support these model results by indicating an increase in nadw flow around the time of isthmus closure but these records do not allow changes in different nadw sources to be distinguished and the overall effect of closure on global ocean circulation is poorly known here we present nd pb and sr isotope records preserved by a hydrogenous ferromanganese crust from the nadw flow path in the western north atlantic ocean these records indicate that the isotopic signal associated with nadw strengthened around 3 4 million years ago showing that deep water that formed in the labrador sea made a gradually increasing contribution to nadw flow these data taken together with those from the central pacific ocean12 indicate an increased nadw flow since isthmus closure and suggest that the closure established today s general pattern of ocean circulation

thermohaline circulation crisis and impacts during the mid pleistocene transition the mid pleistocene transition mpt marked a fundamental change in glacial interglacial periodicity when it increased from 41 thousand year to 100 thousand year cycles and developed higher amplitude climate variability without substantial changes in the milankovitch forcing here we document by using nd isotopes a major disruption of the ocean thermohaline circulation thc system during the mpt between marine isotope stages miss 25 and 21 at 950 to 860 thousand years ago which effectively marks the first 100 thousand year cycle including an exceptional weakening through a critical interglacial mis 23 at 900 thousand years ago its recovery into the post mpt 100 thousand year world is characterized by continued weak glacial thc the mpt ocean circulation crisis facilitated the coeval drawdown of atmospheric co2 and high latitude ice sheet growth generating the conditions that stabilized 100 thousand year cycles

mechanisms to explain the platinum concentration in ferromanganese seamount crusts abstract ferromanganese seamount crusts cover large areas of hard substrates of sea floor edifices in the central pacific they can be distinctly enriched in pt and show pt pd ratios which are several orders of magnitude greater than those orders of magnitude greater than those of seawater thirty four selected samples of the younger and the older crust generation were analyzed for mn fe ni co and pt the bulk pt concentration varies between 0 14 and 1 02 ppm and averages to 0 51 0 24 ppm the older generation is generally somewhat richer in pt 0 63 0 25 ppm than the younger one 0 39 0 15 ppm compared to the earth s upper continental crust the ferromanganese material contains about 100 times more pt in the studied depth range between 1100 and 3800 m the pt concentration is controlled by the water depth in addition to the bulk data the distribution of pt and pd is recorded through a complete ferromanganese crust profile the average pd value amounts to 16 2 8 ppb for the younger and 16 4 8 ppb for the older generation two immediate sources may be responsible for the pt concentration in the ferromanganese crusts seawater and cosmic spherules the presented thermodynamic approaches are based on the presumption that the pt tetrachlorocomplex is the prevailing species under seawater conditions precipitation of pt in seawater may take place if this complex is decomposed by reduction of pt 2 to the elemental state on the other hand the mno 2 precipitation is caused by oxidation of dissolved mn 2 ions which are supplied from the oxygen minimum zone a model reaction by combining the two half reactions is formulated assuming a coprecipitation of pt with mno 2 an alternative mechanism to explain pt enrichment in ferromanganese crusts might be surface adsorption of anionic pt tetrachloro complexes onto positively charged amorphous iron hydroxide particles cosmic spherules were discovered in samples of the older ferromanaganese crust generation the spherules are mostly concentrated in the upper part of this crust layer iron meteorites often have pt concentrations up to 20 ppm the relative quantity recovered in the grain size class 0 1 0 4 mm only amounts to 2 10 4 which is significantly too low to explain the pt content of the crust samples however smaller cosmic particles may exist and also contribute to the pt enrichment suggesting that rough crust surfaces are excellent collectors of denser detrital material the maximum pt values observed in the youngest part of the older crust generation may be explained by physical incorporation of cosmic particles

cenozoic history of phosphogenesis recorded in the ferromanganese crusts of central and western pacific seamounts implications for deepwater circulation and phosphorus budgets abstract ages of seamount phosphatization episodes have been revised for 14 mid plate seamounts in the western and central pacific using the most up to date marine sr isotope curve and 87 sr 86 sr data from the literature the new ages provide a composite geologic history of phosphatization consistent with cenozoic climate history phosphatization on mid pacific seamounts took place only between 36 and 12 ma and it peaked at the eocene oligocene e o transition 34 ma the unprecedented appearance of prominent amounts of phosphorites at the e o transition and frequent recurrences of it afterwards suggests that a new mechanism came into play at that time namely the intensification of the advective flow of bottom water which accelerated the phosphorus cycle in contrast the absence of phosphorites younger than 12 ma suggests another fundamental change in process associated with the shift to a dry and cold climate that probably resulted in a decrease in the riverine input of labile phosphorus the drastic decrease in the frequency of hiatuses in ocean floor depositional records also indicates weakened bottom currents as a possible explanation for the absence of seamount phosphorite since 12 ma a phosphorus flux is a critical variable in modeling the response of the earth system to climate forcing in the geologic past thus the changes in phosphorus flux across the e o boundary and around 12 ma justify further study

60 myr records of major elements and pb nd isotopes from hydrogenous ferromanganese crusts reconstruction of seawater paleochemistry we compare the time series of major element geochemical and pb and nd isotopic composition obtained for seven hydrogenous ferromanganese crusts from the atlantic indian and pacific oceans which cover the last 60 myr average crust growth rates and age depth relationships were determined directly for the last about 10 myr using be 10 be 9 profiles in the absence of other information these were extrapolated to the base of the crusts assuming constant growth rates and constant initial be 10 be 9 ratios due to the lack of additional information co contents have also been used previously to estimate growth rates in co rich pacific and atlantic seamount crusts puteanus and halbach 1988 a comparison of be 10 be 9 and co based dating of three co rich crusts supports the validity of this approach and confirms the earlier chronologies derived from extrapolated be 10 be 9 based growth rates back to 60 ma our data show that the flux of co into co poor crusts has been considerably lower the relationship between growth rate and co content for the co poor crusts developed from these data is in good agreement with a previous study of a wider range of marine deposits manheim 1986 the results suggest that the co content provides detailed information on the growth history of ferromanganese crusts particularly prior to 10 12 ma where the be 10 based method is not applicable the distributions of pb and nd isotopes in the deep oceans over the last 60 myr are expected to be controlled by two main factors a variations of oceanic mixing patterns and flow paths of water masses with distinct isotopic signatures related to major paleogeographic changes and b variability of supply rates or provenance of detrital material delivered to the ocean linked to climate change glaciations or major tectonic uplift the major element profiles of crusts in this study show neither systematic features which are common to crusts with similar isotope records nor do they generally show coherent relationships to the isotope records within a single crust consequently any interpretation of time series of major element concentrations of a single crust in terms of paleoceanograghic variations must be considered with caution this is because local processes appear to have dominated over more basin wide paleoceanographic effects in this study co is the only element which shows a relationship to pb and nd isotopes in pacific crusts a possible link to changes of pacific deep water properties associated with an enhanced northward advection of antarctic bottom water from about 14 ma is consistent with the pb but not with the nd isotopic results the self consistent profiles of the pb and nd isotopes suggest that postdepositional diagenetic processes in hydrogenous crusts including phosphatization events have been insignificant for particle reactive elements such as pb be and nd isotope time series of pb and nd show no systematic relationships with major element contents of the crusts which supports their use as tracers of paleo seawater isotopic composition

geochemical characterization of the luochuan loess paleosol sequence china and paleoclimatic implications abstract chemical major and trace element and isotopic sr nd analyses of the luochuan loess paleosol sequence in china were performed in order to examine the following problems 1 potential source heterogeneity 2 element behavior during pedogenesis 3 paleoclimatic implications and 4 the use of loess data to determine the average composition of the upper continental crust new results clearly indicate that rb sr u and ce abundances are severely depleted in paleosols relative to their parental loess the behavior of these elements is strongly controlled by the breakdown of primary minerals such as carbonate sr or by alteration processes in highly oxidizing environments ce and u the pattern of element variations through the upper section of the luochuan sequence mimics the magnetic susceptibility signal both in position and in intensity thus reinforcing the pedogenesic origin of the enhanced magnetic susceptibility in paleosols all loess samples display highly uniform ree patterns except for ce characterized by the upper continental crust ucc ratios la yb n 10 and eu eu 0 66 the paleosol ree patterns are similar to those of the loess with the same lree hree fractionation but they also show distinct and variable negative ce anomalies nd and sr isotopic compositions are rather uniform in both loess and paleosols and do not vary with stratigraphic position nd 10 5 to 9 2 87 sr 86 sr 0 715 to 0 719 the isotopic homogeneity in the luochuan sequence strongly suggests a uniform source region during the entire period of deposition since 800 ka ago to the present several conclusions may be drawn from the present study 1 1 no geochemical distinction can be made between loess layers l1 to l7 the sources and the dust storm trajectories must have been essendally the same for the last 800 ka 2 2 some elements e g ca rb sr u ce are strongly fractionated by pedogenesis between loess and paleosols ce mobility in soils is clearly demonstrated but the process responsible for this leaching is still poorly understood 3 3 systematic variations of element abundances and ratios between loess and paleosols can be used as chemical indicators for pedogenesic intensity and so for paleoclimatic change these chemical indicators serve a function similar to that of oxygen isotopes in deep sea sediments pelagic foraminifera or that of magnetic susceptibility in loess sequences they are different recorders of paleoclimatic change 4 4 the striking uniformity of ree patterns and la th ratios in the luochuan loess and paleosols as well as in loess worldwide is an excellent starting point for estimating the average composition of the upper continental crust

evolution of a deep water ferromanganese nodule in the south china sea in response to pacific deep water circulation and continental weathering during the plio pleistocene abstract the south china sea scs is connected to the west pacific through a deep channel in the luzon strait thus the scs deep water is sensitive to the evolution of pacific ocean circulation which significantly influences the global climate system geochemical data pb isotope and redox sensitive elements data and magnetic data were determined for a fe mn nodule obtained from jiaolong seamount in the central scs these records reflect interactions between changes in ice sheets deep pacific circulation and weathering inputs to the deep scs during the pliocene and quaternary our results show that the scs deep water environment can be divided into three major stages stages 1 3 stage 1 4 8 1 4 ma was characterized by a well oxygenated pacific deep water pdw and lower dust inputs then moderate stable deep water ventilation and greater inputs of asian dust occurred during stage 2 1 4 0 9 ma during stage 3

neodymium budget in the modern ocean and paleo oceanographic implications the oceanic nd budget is calculated using a steady state 10 box model and a compilation of field data this is the first attempt to propose consistent estimates of the nd fluxes entering the ocean as well as indicating possible nd sources and the proportion of nd fluxes exchanged between dissolved and particulate fractions with presently available nd data the best estimates give a total nd influx of 9 x 10 9 g yr which leads to an oceanic nd residence time of 500 years from modeling tests we suggest that the authigenic nd scavenged by particulates is 100 remineralized in the deep ocean the total exchanged nd flux may be as high as 2 x 10 10 g yr the epsilon nd 0 values of the influxes are 22 11 1 and 4 for the north atlantic surface atlantic north pacific and surface indo pacific regions respectively atmospheric and riverine nd fluxes are insufficient to explain the magnitude and regional variability of calculated nd influxes and epsilon nd 0 we propose continental margins as an additional source supplying nd to the ocean using the model calibrated for nd we examine the sensitivity of deep water epsilon nd 0 to variations of nd inputs to the ocean deep water nd concentrations and epsilon nd 0 vary with the changes in nd influxes and their epsilon nd 0 as nd sources to the ocean may change during glacial interglacial periods the epsilon nd 0 shifts recorded in ferromanganese nodules and crusts do not necessarily reflect changes in paleoceanic circulation the effects of continental erosion should be considered in reconstructing patterns of ocean circulation using nd isotopes

plate tectonics radiogenic isotopic tracers and paleoceanography the case of the manganese crusts in the pacific abstract hydrogenous ferromanganese crust deposits on seafloor and volcanic seamounts are archives of past isotopic compositions of the ocean isotopic compositions of long life radiogenic isotopes that are dissolved in the ocean such as nd and pb are mixtures of different erosion products continents volcanics arcs ridges etc transported by oceanic currents or winds isotopic studies on mn crusts are thus potential paleogeographic and paleoceanographic tracers however global paleogeography can drastically evolve over the period of growth of crust as well as the latitude longitude and water depth of the mn crust thus each crust sampled a succession of geographic sites related to its spatial evolution through time for this reason valid information about the past ocean isotopic composition can only be extracted from mn crust under the condition that the successive paleogeographic and paleodepth positions can be reconstructed for each mn crust we followed this approach for six hydrogenous mn crusts from the pacific ocean that have recorded pb and nd isotopic signals for the past 80 myr the evolution of the isotopic data was considered within a proper geodynamical framework that takes into account the paleopositions of the pacific plate and surrounding continents of the hot spots and ridges as well as the paths of the six crusts the differences and similarities between the pb and nd revealed by our analysis emphasize their complementarity as paleoceanographic tracers the nd isotopes are strongly influenced by the exchange between indian and pacific waters specifically by the progressive closure of the indonesian gateway the closed central pacific characteristics are defined from the extrapolation of the isotopic trend this highlights the important role played by erosion of volcanic arcs in the nd isotopic value of seawater our approach also stresses the influence of local volcanic activity ridges or active hot spot for lead isotopes

provenance of dust in the pacific ocean eolian dust preserved in deep sea sediment cores provides a valuable indicator of past atmospheric circulation and continental paleoclimate in order to identify the provenance of eolian dust nd and sr isotopic compositions and rb sr and rare earth element ree concentrations have been determined for the silicate fractions of deep sea sediments from the north and central pacific ocean different regions of the pacific ocean are characterized by distinct air borne inputs producing a large range in end 10 to 1 stsr 86sr 0 705 0 721 la yb 5 15 eun eu 0 6 1 0 and sr nd 4 33 the average nd isotopic composition of pacific deep sea sediments eno 6 is more radiogenic than the average from the atlantic ena 8 in contrast the average 1475m 14and ratio for pacific sediments 0 114 is identical to that of atlantic sediments and to that of global average riverine suspended material the values of ena and 147sm 144nd are positively correlated for the pacific samples but negatively correlated for atlantic samples reflecting a fundamental difference between the dominant components in the end members with radiogenic nd island arc components in the pacific and lree enriched intraplate ocean island components in the atlantic samples from the north central pacific have distinctive unradiogenic end values of 10 87sr 86sr 0 715 high la yb 12 and low eun eu 0 6 and sr nd 3 6 these data are virtually identical to the values for loess from asia and endorse the use of these sediments as indicators of asian paleoclimate and paleowind directions island arc contributions appear to dominate in the northwest pacific resulting in higher end 1 to 1 and lower 87sr 86sr 0 705 and la yb 5 sediments from the eastern pacific tend to have intermediate sr and nd isotopic compositions but regionally variable sr nd and ree patterns they appear to be derived from the west margin of the north and south american continents rather than from asia our results confirm that dust provenance can be constrained by isotopic and geochemical analyses which will facilitate reconstructions of past atmospheric circulation and continental paleoclimate

two major cenozoic episodes of phosphogenesis recorded in equatorial pacific seamount deposits seamount phosphorites have been recognized since the 1950s but this is the first study to provide an in depth exploration of the origin and history of these widespread deposits representative samples from equatorial pacific cretaceous seamounts were analyzed for chemical mineralogical and stable isotope compositions the phosphorites occur in a wide variety of forms but most commonly carbonate fluorapatite cfa replaced middle eocene and older carbonate sediment in a deep water environment 1000 m element ratios distinguish seamount phosphorites from continental margin plateau and insular phosphorites uranium and thorium contents are low and total rare earth element ree contents are generally high ree ratios and shale normalized patterns demonstrate that the rees and host cfa were derived from seawater strontium isotopic compositions compared with inferred cenozoic seawater curves define two major episodes of cenozoic phosphatization late eocene early oligocene 39 34 ma and late oligocene early miocene 27 21 ma three minor events are also indicated the major episodes occurred at times of climate transition the first from a nonglacial to glacial earth and the second from a predominantly glacial to warm earth the paleoceanographic conditions that existed at those times initiated and sustained development of phosphorite by accumulation of dissolved phosphorus in the deep sea during relatively stable climatic conditions when oceanic circulation was sluggish fluctuations in climate sealevel and upwelling that accompanied the climate transitions may have driven cycles of enrichment and depletion of the deep sea phosphorus reservoir as temperature gradients in the oceans increased antarctic glaciation expanded and oceanic circulation and upwelling intensified expansion and intensification of the oxygen minimum zone may have increased the capacity for midwater storage of phosphorus supplied by dynamic upwelling around seamounts however the bottom waters never became anoxic during the phosphogenic episodes fluctuations in the ccd and lysocline co2 fluxes and changes in bottom water circulation and temperatures may have bathed the seamount carbonates in more corrosive waters which coupled with increased supplies of dissolved phosphorus promoted replacement processes the late eocene early oligocene phosphogenic episode recorded in seamount deposits is not matched by large phosphorite deposits in the geologic record whereas the late oligocene early miocene episode and middle miocene event are matched by large deposits distributed globally the seamount phosphorites are exposed at the surface of the seamounts and have been for most of the neogene and oligocene the phosphorites do not show signs of etching that would indicate substantial undersaturation of seawater phosphate with respect to cfa mass balance calculations indicate that about 5 4 19 1012 g of p2o5 are locked up in equatorial pacific seamount phosphorites that amount is equivalent to about 2 7 years of the present annual input from rivers

neodymium isotopic variations in north pacific modern silicate sediment and the insignificance of detrital ree contributions to seawater the neodymium isotopic composition of the silicate fraction of holocene pelagic sediments from the north pacific define two provinces a central north pacific province characterized by unradiogenic and remarkably homogeneous end 10 2 0 5 and a narrow circum pacific marginal province characterized by more radiogenic and variable end 4 2 3 8 the silicate fraction in the central north pacific is exclusively eolian based on prevailing wind patterns meteorological data and neodymium isotopic data the only significant sediment source is chinese loess leaching experiments on chinese loess confirm that leachable nd is isotopically indistinguishable from bulk and residual silicate nd silicates in the circum north pacific marginal province comprise eolian loess volcanic ash and hemipelagic sediments derived from volcanic arcs a compilation of pacific seawater and mn nodule end data shows no clear spatial variation except for a general decrease from surface to deep waters from 3 to 4 and slightly lower end in bottom waters along the western north pacific due to the incursion of antarctic bottom water the relative homogeneity of bottom water end which contrasts sharply with the distinctive variation in sediment end plus the large difference between the average end of bottom waters and the central north pacific eolian silicates 4 vs 10 suggests that any contribution of ree to seawater from eolian materials is insignificant furthermore leaching of ree from eolian particles as they sink though the water column must be insignificant because nd in shallow waters is more radiogenic than nd in deeper waters that there is no contrast in the nd isotopic composition of bottom waters that overlie the central and marginal sediment provinces suggests that the ash and hemipelagic sediments derived from pacific rim volcanic arcs also contribute minimal ree to seawater the elimination of eolian ash and hemipelagic sediments leaves only near shore riverine particulates as a possibly significant particulate source of ree to seawater

convection of north pacific deep water during the early cenozoic the history of deep water formation and abyssal flow is poorly known but important to establish in order to develop a better understanding of changes in oceanic mass heat salt and nutrient transport north atlantic high latitude regions currently are the dominant deep water producers but paleogeographic constraints proxy interpretations and physical models have suggested other modes for the past such as those characterized by high latitude pacific sources subtropical sources or widespread nonlocalized sources here we present new north pacific late cretaceous paleogene nd isotope data from fossil fish debris and detrital silicates combined with results of coupled climate model simulations to test these hypothesized circulation modes the data and model simulations support a circulation mode characterized by high latitude bipolar pacific convection deep convection in the north pacific and likely the south pacific was most intense during the relatively cool portion of the late cretaceous paleocene and waned prior to the peak global warmth of the early eocene ca 52 ma

improving confidence in ferromanganese crust age models a composite geochemical approach abstract accurate age models for marine ferromanganese fe mn crusts are essential to understand paleoceanographic changes and variations in local environmental factors affecting crust growth rate and their lateral continuity however no absolute method exists for dating these deposits beyond the age of 10 myr which requires the combination of a number of approaches here we present a composite age model for a 15 cm thick fe mn crust sample obtained by unique core drilling using a remotely operated vehicle at a water depth of 1130 m on the summit of tropic seamount in the north east atlantic the age model is based on cross validation of laser ablation u pb dating co chronometry and os isotopes these enable robust calibration of the age depth model using the bayesian statistical modelling of markov chain monte carlo mcmc simulations the results show that this fe mn crust commenced growth in the late cretaceous between 73 and 77 ma and grew at a rate between 1 and 24 mm myr averaging 4 mm myr the phosphatised carbonate substrate capping tropic seamount and underlying most of the fe mn crusts yields a u pb age of 84 4 myr and provides the upper age limit for the model less radiogenic excursions of 188os 187os in the vertical profile through the crust permit the identification of key inflection points in the os isotope seawater curve at the eocene oligocene and cretaceous paleogene transitions growth rates estimated from the empirical co chronometer are combined with the age envelope defined by the os data and used to validate the mcmc simulations the model identifies five hiatuses that occurred during the pliocene 2 5 1 9 5 3 1 7 ma early miocene 16 1 27 2 ma oligocene 29 2 32 1 ma eocene 41 2 52 0 6 ma and the late paleocene 55 1 59 1 4 ma a major phosphatisation event affecting the fe mn core can be dated to the late eocene 38 1 2 ma which coincides with a recorded change in the global oceanic system from warm and sluggish circulation to cold and vigorous thermohaline driven meridional overturn at the onset of antarctic glaciation

antarctic climate southern ocean circulation patterns and deep water formation during the eocene we assess early to middle eocene seawater neodymium nd isotope records from seven southern ocean deep sea drill sites to evaluate the role of southern ocean circulation in long term cenozoic climate change our study sites are strategically located on either side of the tasman gateway and are positioned at a range of shallow 500 m to intermediate deep 1000 2500 m paleowater depths unradiogenic seawater nd isotopic compositions reconstructed from fish teeth at intermediate deep indian ocean pelagic sites ocean drilling program odp sites 738 and 757 and deep sea drilling project dsdp site 264 indicate a dominant southern ocean sourced contribution to regional deep waters end t 9 3 1 5 iodp site u1356 off the coast of adelie land a locus of modern day antarctic bottom water production is identified as a site of persistent deep water formation from the early eocene to the oligocene east of the tasman gateway an additional local source of intermediate deep water formation is inferred at odp site 277 in the sw pacific ocean end t 8 7 1 5 antarctic proximal shelf sites odp site 1171 and site u1356 reveal a pronounced erosional event between 49 and 48 ma manifested by 2 end unit negative excursions in seawater chemistry toward the composition of bulk sediments at these sites this erosional event coincides with the termination of peak global warmth following the early eocene climatic optimum and is associated with documented cooling across the study region and increased export of antarctic deep waters highlighting the complexity and importance of southern ocean circulation in the greenhouse climate of the eocene

lead isotope variability of fine grained river sediments in tibetan plateau water catchments implications for geochemical provinces and crustal evolution abstract the crustal structure of the tibetan plateau records the dynamic processes of several terranes that underwent disaggregation aggregation and amalgamation the dynamic evolution of continental crusts is best understood from these three processes however the detailed geochemical province division of the tibetan plateau and the palaeo tectonic affinity or evolution of terranes remains unclear in this paper the acid insoluble fraction of fine grained river sediments from catchments in the whole tibetan plateau was measured for lead isotopes and trace elements this study aims to reveal lead isotopic characteristics to delineate different lead isotope geochemical provinces and to trace and uncover the tectonic affinities of various terranes in the tibetan plateau results show that by weak acid chemical treatment the characteristics of the pb isotopes of fine grained river sediments can be utilized to represent and discriminate geochemical provinces the characteristics of pb isotopes enable the identification of different geochemical provinces and the palaeo affinity of various tectonic units constrained by tectonic evolution the tibetan plateau tectonic units can be divided into the following five pb isotope geochemical provinces 1 qilian terrane 2 northern tibetan plateau geochemical province including eastern kunlun qaidam songpan ganzi and eastern qiangtang terrane 3 northern lhasa terrane 4 southern lhasa terrane and 5 himalaya terrane in relation to the controversy concerning the palaeo affinity of the qilian and songpan ganzi terranes the pb isotopic compositions of fine grained river sediments suggest that they were much more likely separated from the yangtze craton than from the north china craton the characteristics of pb isotopes and trace elements of the eastern kunlun qaidam and eastern qiangtang terrane show some similarities with the songpan ganzi terrane which indicate that they also possibly originated from the disaggregation of the yangtze craton the various partial melting and contamination of the old himalaya continental crust from radiogenic pb isotopes and tethys mantle materials with low radiogenic pb isotopes caused different pb isotopes and trace elemental associations in the southern and northern lhasa terranes these factors also led to the evolution of the two different geochemical provinces

tracing papua new guinea imprint on the central equatorial pacific ocean using neodymium isotopic compositions and rare earth element patterns abstract the nd isotopic composition ic and rare earth patterns of hydrodynamic structures of the equatorial pacific ocean were characterized along 140 w the nd ic of antarctic intermediate water aaiw and of the lower layer of the equatorial undercurrent euc at 140 w 13 c water are much more radiogenic at the equator than at their origin in the south equatorial current 12 s revealing that these water masses have been in contact with the highly radiogenic papua new guinea png slope in both cases only a small fraction less than 9 of the sediment deposited on the png slope is required to be exchanged or dissolved to explain these nd ic variations whereas the hydrographic properties of the same water masses remain unchanged this confirms the usefulness of this tracer to identify pathways of water masses these results emphasize the importance of jets in transporting lithogenic material into the subsurface layers of remote areas where aeolian inputs are particularly weak and corroborate the previous results on fe and al maximum in this area m l wells g k vallis e a silver nature 398 1999 601 604 the nd ic of the upper layer of the euc contrasts strongly to that of the subpycnocline layer indicating that the equatorial upwelling only affects the surface waters and is not effective between 120 and 150 m we calculate that the nd imprint of the png input is likely to vanish from this surface layer as it traverses the basin due to the replacement of upwelled waters by non radiogenic ones

evidence for deep water production in the north pacific ocean during the early cenozoic warm interval the deep ocean circulation is responsible for a significant component of global heat transport in the present mode of circulation deep waters form in the north atlantic and southern oceans where surface water becomes sufficiently cold and dense to sink polar temperatures during the warmest climatic interval of the cenozoic era approximately 65 to 40 million years myr ago were significantly warmer than today and this may have been a consequence of enhanced oceanic heat transport however understanding the relationship between deep ocean circulation and ancient climate is complicated by differences in oceanic gateways which affect where deep waters form and how they circulate here i report records of neodymium isotopes from two cores in the pacific ocean that indicate a shift in deep water production from the southern ocean to the north pacific approximately 65 myr ago the source of deep waters reverted back to the southern ocean 40 myr ago the relative timing of changes in the neodymium and oxygen isotope records indicates that changes in cenozoic deep water circulation patterns were the consequence not the cause of extreme cenozoic warmth

lead isotopes in north pacific deep water implications for past changes in input sources and circulation patterns the sources of non anthropogenic pb in seawater have been the subject of debate here we present pb isotope time series that indicate that the non anthropogenic pb budget of the northernmost pacific ocean has been governed by ocean circulation and riverine inputs which in turn have ultimately been controlled by tectonic processes despite the fact that the investigated locations are situated within the asian dust plume and proximal to extensive arc volcanism eolian contributions have had little impact we have obtained the first high resolution and high precision pb isotope time series of north pacific deep water from two ferromanganese crusts from the gulf of alaska in the ne pacific ocean and from the detroit seamount in the nw pacific ocean both crusts were dated applying 10be 9be ratios and yield continuous time series for the past 13 5 and 9 6 myr respectively lead isotopes show a monotonic evolution in 206pb 204pb from low values in the miocene 18 57 to high values at present day 18 84 in both crusts even though they are separated by more than 3000 km along the aleutian arc the variation exceeds the amplitude found in equatorial pacific deep water records by about three fold there also is a striking similarity in 207pb 204pb and 208pb 204pb ratios of the two crusts indicating the existence of a local circulation cell in the sub polar north pacific where efficient lateral mixing has taken place but only limited exchange in terms of pb with deep water from the equatorial pacific has occurred both crusts display well defined trends with age in pb pb isotope mixing plots which require the involvement of at least four distinct pb sources for north pacific deep water the pb isotope time series reveal that eolian supplies volcanic ash and continent derived loess have only been of minor importance for the dissolved pb budget of marginal sites in the deep north pacific over the past 6 myr the two predominant sources have been young volcanic arcs one located in the northeastern part and one located in the northwestern part of the pacific margin from where material has been eroded and delivered to the ocean most likely via riverine pathways

miocene deepwater oceanography a global synthesis of miocene benthic foraminiferal carbon and oxygen isotopic and faunal abundance data indicates that miocene thermohaline circulation evolved through three regimes corresponding approximately to early middle and late miocene times there is evidence for major qualitative differences between the circulation of the modern ocean and the miocene ocean prior to 11 ma the 13c 12c ratios of the benthic foraminifera cibicidoides are interpreted in terms of water mass aging i e the progressive depletion of dissolved o2 and lowering of 13c values as the result of oxidation of organic matter as water flows further from its sources at the surface of the oceans both isotopic and faunal data indicate that the early miocene regime from 22 to 15 ma was the most different from today s during that interval intermediate and deep waters of both the atlantic and the pacific oceans aged in a northward direction and the intermediate waters of the indian the south atlantic and the south pacific oceans were consistently the youngest in the global ocean we speculate that early miocene global thermohaline circulation may have been strongly influenced by the influx of warm saline water tethyan indian saline water from the tethys into the northern indian ocean the isotopic and faunal data suggest that flow from the tethyan region into the indian ocean diminished or terminated at about 14 ma isotopic and faunal data give no evidence for north atlantic deep water nadw formation prior to about 14 5 ma with the exception of a brief episode in the early miocene from 14 5 to 11 ma nadw formation was weak and circumpolar and antarctic water flooded the deep south atlantic and south pacific as the antarctic ice cap grew from about 10 ma to the end of the miocene thermohaline circulation resembled the modern circulation in many ways in latest miocene time 6 to 5 ma circulation patterns were very similar to today s except that nadw formation was greatly diminished the distribution pattern of siliceous oozes in miocene sediments is consistent with our proposed reconstruction of thermohaline circulation major changes which occurred in circulation during the middle miocene were probably related to the closing of the tethys and may have contributed to rapid middle miocene growth of the antarctic ice cap appendices 1 4 6 and 7 are available withentire article on microfiche order fromamerican geophysical union 2000 floridaavenue n w washington dc 20009 document 88p 002 5 00 payment mustaccompany order

evolution of nd and pb isotopes in central pacific seawater from ferromanganese crusts abstract hydrogenetic ferromanganese crusts incorporate elements from ambient seawater during their growth on seamounts by analysing nd pb and be isotope profiles within crusts it is possible to reconstruct seawater tracer histories depth profiles of 10be 9be ratios in three pacific ferromanganese crusts have been used to obtain growth rates which are between 1 4 and 3 8 mm ma nd and pb isotopes provide intact records of isotopic variations in pacific seawater over the last 20 ma or more there were only small changes in pb isotope composition in the last 20 ma this indicates a constant pb composition for the erosional sources and suggests further that erosional nd inputs may have been uniform too end values vary considerably with time and most probably reflect changes in ocean circulation the end values of the crusts not only vary as a function of age but also as a function of water depth from 25 to 0 ma crust va13 2 from 4 8 km water depth has a similar pattern of end variation to the two shallower crusts from 1 8 and 2 3 km but about 1 0 to 1 5 units more negative this suggests that end stratification in pacific seawater as demonstrated for the present day has been maintained for at least 20 ma each crust shows a decrease in end from 3 5 ma to the present which is interpreted in terms of an increase in the nadw component present in the pacific from 10 to 3 5 ma ago the crusts show an increase in end this suggests a decreasing role for a deep water source with end less than circum pacific sources in this regard the panamanian gateway restriction from 10 ma with final closure at 3 5 ma may have played an important role in reducing access of atlantic derived nd to the pacific

temporal changes in the lead isotopic composition of red clays comparison with ferromanganese crust records abstract a record of changes in pb and sr isotopic composition of two cores dsdp 86 576a and ll44 gpc3 from the red clay region of the central north pacific has been determined for the past 60 65 million years the isotope records of the eolian silicate fraction of the red clays reflect the change in source area as the core sites migrated under different wind systems the sr isotope compositions of eolian silicate material are consistent with asian loess and north american arc volcanism that has been recognized from mineralogical studies the silicate bound eolian pb isotopic compositions similarly reflect asian loess and arc volcanism the isotope records of three ferromanganese crusts from similar locations in the central pacific are similar to the eolian component of red clays but offset to less radiogenic values this may be due to two mechanisms 1 pb that can be removed from eolian material by seawater is much less radiogenic or less likely 2 hydrothermal pb can be transported further away from venting sites through particle exchange with seawater despite hydrothermal venting acting as a net sink of oceanic pb the temporal changes in pb isotopes in the ferromanganese crusts bulk red clays and eolian silicates are similar although offset from each other suggesting that eolian deposition is an important source of pb to seawater and to ferromanganese crusts this contrasts with the atlantic and southern ocean where more intense deep water flow leads to isotopic gradients in femn crusts that do not reflect surface water conditions immediately above the crust a mechanism is proposed which accounts for pacific deepwater pb being isotopically influenced by eolian deposition

the geochemical balance of the rare earth elements and neodymium isotopes in the oceans profiles of ree concentrations and neodymium isotope measurements in the western indian ocean are consistent with published data from the other major oceans ree concentrations show a strong hydrographic control the influence of intermediate water masses is particularly significant surface water concentrations vary with salinity paniculate rees are less than 5 of dissolved concentration except for ce where up to 20 of total rees are present as 0 4 m particles in contrast to dissolved profiles concentration profiles of paniculate rees including ce all increase with depth ree concentrations correlate with silica over all but the deepest waters although in detail correlations are complex the neodymium isotopic composition of indian ocean seawater avg nd 0 8 3 is intermediate between that for the atlantic and pacific oceans comparison of ree data from the major oceans shows that the hrees behave more like si than do the lrees sm nd ratios are near constant for all oceans whereas ernd ratios vary between the atlantic indian and pacific oceans the fractionation of the rees in surface seawaters can be explained by fractionation factors relative to silica from 0 12 for la to 0 05 for er use of a seven box model shows that the interoceanic variations in neodymium isotopic compositions and nd concentrations cannot be reconciled unless particle water exchange is invoked the degree of exchange required is consistent with particle residence times of 1 10 yr

nd and sr isotopic characteristics of chinese deserts implications for the provenances of asian dust silicate nd sr isotopes of the fine grained fractions of the 10 major deserts and sandy lands in north china and the loess in chinese loess plateau were systematically investigated wide ranges in nd sr isotopic compositions have been observed the results of the 7 0 b the deserts on the northern margin of tibetan plateau with end 0 ranging from 11 9 to 7 4 and c the deserts on the ordos plateau with the lowest end 0 11 5 the distribution of the threes isotopic regions is controlled by the tectonic setting in north china which implies that the materials of the deserts are derived from the locally eroded rocks from the surrounding mountains and the nd sr isotopic signatures of these deserts could be quit stable over the past million years on the sub tectonic time scales if there is any desert at those times the nd sr isotopic compositions of the loess are mostly close to those of the deserts in isotopic region b suggesting that the main source regions of the last glacial loess in the chinese loess plateau are badain jaran desert tengger desert and qaidam desert also the comparison between the nd sr isotopes of the 5 lm silicate fractions of the deserts and the ancient dust falls in the north pacific and greenland show that the asian end members of these dust falls are derived most from the deserts in the isotopic region b and less from those in the isotopic region c

chemical composition and crystal structure of merrillite from the suizhou meteorite merrillite ideally ca9namg po4 7 is an important accessory phosphate mineral in many different groups of meteorites including martian meteorites and a major carrier of rare earth elements ree in lunar rocks by means of electron microprobe analysis single crystal x ray diffraction and raman spectroscopy we present the first structure determination of merrillite with a nearly ideal chemical composition ca9 00na0 98 mg0 95fe0 06 1 01 p1 00o4 7 from the suizhou meteorite a shock metamorphosed l6 chondrite suizhou merrillite is trigonal with space group r 3 c and unit cell parameters a 10 3444 3 c 37 0182 11 a and v 3430 5 2 a3 its crystal structure refined to r 1 0 032 is characterized by a structural unit consisting of a mg fe po4 6 16 complex anion that forms a bracelet and pinwheel arrangement such structural units are linked by interstitial complexes with a formula of ca9na po4 16 which differs from that of ca9 po3 oh 16 ca9 po3f 16 ca9 ca0 5 0 5 po4 16 or ca9 xree x na1 x x po4 16 in terrestrial whitlockite terrestrial extraterrestrial bobdownsite meteoritic ca rich merrillite or lunar ree rich merrillite respectively the suizhou merrillite is found to transform to tuite at high pressures pointing to the likelihood of finding ree bearing tuite on the moon as a result of shock events on ree merrillite

cenozoic marine geochemistry of thallium deduced from isotopic studies of ferromanganese crusts and pelagic sediments cenozoic records of tl isotope compositions recorded by ferromanganese fe mn crusts have been obtained such records are of interest because recent growth surfaces of fe mn crusts display a nearly constant tl isotope fractionation relative to seawater the time series data are complemented by results for bulk samples and leachates of various marine sediments oxic pelagic sediments and anoxic marine deposits can be distinguished by their tl isotope compositions both pelagic clays and biogenic oozes are typically characterized by 205tl greater than 2 5 whereas anoxic sediments have 205tl of less than 1 5 205tl is the deviation of the 205tl 203tl isotope ratio of a sample from nist srm 997 tl in parts per 104 leaching experiments indicate that the high 205tl values of oxic sediments probably reflect authigenic fe mn oxyhydroxides time resolved tl isotope compositions were obtained from six fe mn crusts from the atlantic indian and pacific oceans and a number of observations indicate that these records were not biased by diagenetic alteration over the last 25 myr the data do not show isotopic variations that significantly exceed the range of tl isotope compositions observed for surface layers of fe mn crusts distributed globally 205tl 12 8 1 2 this indicates that variations in deep ocean temperature were not recorded by tl isotopes the results most likely reflect a constant tl isotope composition for seawater the growth layers of three fe mn crusts that are older than 25 ma show a systematic increase of 205tl with decreasing age from about 6 at 60 50 ma to about 12 at 25 ma these trends are thought to be due to variations in the tl isotope composition of seawater which requires that the oceans of the early cenozoic either had smaller output fluxes or received larger input fluxes of tl with low 205tl larger inputs of isotopically light tl may have been supplied by benthic fluxes from reducing sediments rivers and or volcanic emanations alternatively the tl isotope trends may reflect the increasing importance of tl fluxes to altered ocean crust through time

comparative geochemistry of four ferromanganese crusts from the pacific ocean and significance for the use of ni isotopes as paleoceanographic tracers abstract ferromanganese fe mn crusts are potential archive of the ni isotope composition of seawater through time in this study we aim at 1 understanding ni isotope fractionation mechanisms and metal enrichment processes in fe mn deposits 2 addressing global vs local control of ni isotope composition of these deposits two fe mn crusts from the north pacific ocean apuupuu seamount hawaii and two fe mn crusts from the south pacific ocean near rurutu island austral archipelago of french polynesia were characterized for their elemental geochemistry and ni isotope composition geochemical analyses were performed at millimeter intervals in order to provide time resolved record of ni isotopes chronology and growth rates were determined using cosmogenic 10be isotope abundances the results show that despite different growth rates textures and geochemical patterns fe mn crusts from both north and south pacific oceans have fairly homogenous ni isotope compositions over the last 17 ma yielding average 60 58ni values of 1 79 0 21 2sd n 31 and 1 73 0 21 2sd n 21 respectively in one crust sample however layers directly in contact with the altered substrate show anomalously light 60 58ni values down to 0 25 0 05 2se together with rejuvenated 10be 9be ratios correlating with elevated ni mn ratios such patterns are best explained by protracted fluid rock interactions leading to alteration of mn phases after crust formation isotopically light ni would be the result of ni isotope fractionation during adsorption rather than the contribution of external ni sources e g hydrothermal sources having light ni isotope compositions the combination of our results with previously published data on fe mn crusts indicates that the average ni isotope composition in deep waters has not changed through the cenozoic 70 ma we propose that ni isotope variations in fe mn crusts may not only record variations of ni sources to the oceans but also post depositional processes depending on the growth history and geological settings of fe mn crusts

eolian inputs of lead to the north pacific we evaluate the importance of natural eolian pb to the dissolved oceanic pb budget by measuring the isotopic composition of pb in 35 holocene and late quaternary sediment samples from the north pacific and in 10 samples of chinese loess when the pacific is divided into sediments provinces based on published end and sedimentological data pb from the central north pacific tends to be the most radiogenic and homogeneous due to the dominance of eolian chinese loess lead from the marginal north pacific and the sparsely sampled regions south of 5 n are less radiogenic and more variable owing to hemipelagic inputs from various volcanic arcs and older continental crust located around the pacific rim 208pb 204pb ratios provide the most distinctive provenance information due to the relatively high ratios in chinese loess the chinese loess samples come from 3 localities and span up to 2 myr of time acetic acid leachate bulk loess and loess silicate fractions were analyzed separately leachate pb is considerably less radiogenic than silicate pb the isotopic composition of the silicate component closely matches the sediment data from the central north pacific confirming the dominance of eolian loess in this region we divided up a suite of published hydrogenous pb isotope data from the pacific ocean according to their locations within the three independently defined sediment provinces these data define three distinct fields differentiated primarily by their 206pb 204pb ratios which increase going from the central to southern to marginal provinces this relationship with sediment province strongly suggests that natural eolian and probably hemipelagic inputs significantly impact the seawater pb budget direct support for the dominance of eolian chinese loess in the central north pacific dissolved pb budget comes from the close match between loess leachate pb and the central province hydrogenous pb data eolian inputs are likely to dominate local seawater pb budgets only where eolian pb fluxes are high relative to hemipelagic pb fluxes and where the flux of pb carried by deep water advection is low

world map of nd isotopes in sea floor ferromanganese deposits the nd isotopic compositions of hydrogenous ferromanganese encrustations and nodules largely reflect those of the overlying seawater integrated over the few millions of years over which they grow available nd isotope data on ocean floor hydrogenous deposits suggest control by nd from particulates blown from the continents and released by volcanic activity associated with subduction zones and midocean ridges the regional nd isotope variations display a marked similarity to the broad patterns of present day deep ocean circulation suggesting that the particulates that are the sources of oceanic nd travel along with water masses despite rapid 10 100 ka perturbations during glacial periods the long term patterns of water mass movements and oceanic fluxes of particulates have remained essentially stable over the last few million years

accretion rate of extraterrestrial matter iridium deposited 33 to 67 million years ago iridium measured in 149 samples of a continuous 9 meter section of pacific abyssal clay covering the time span 33 to 67 million years ago shows a well defined peak only at the cretaceous tertiary boundary in the rest of the section iridium ranges from a minimum concentration near 0 35 nanograms per gram in the paleocene to a maximum near 1 7 in the eocene between 63 and 33 million years ago the mean iridium accumulation rate is approximately 13 nanograms per square centimeter per million years correction for terrestrial iridium leads to an extraterrestrial flux of9 3 nanograms of iridium per square centimeter per million years and an estimated annual global influx of 78 billion grams of chondritic matter consistent with recent estimates of the influx of dust meteorites and crater producing bodies with masses ranging from 10 13 to 1018 grams combining the recent flux of objects ranging in mass from 106 to 107 grams with the flux of 1014 to 1015 gram objects indicates that the number of objects is equal to 0 54 divided by the radius in kilometers to the 2 1 power periodic comet showers should increase the cometary iridium flux by a factor of 200 to 600 on a time scale of 1 to 3 million years the predicted iridium maxima more than 30 times background are not present in the intervals associated with the cretaceous tertiary boundary or the tektiteproducing late eocene events

north atlantic deep water export to the southern ocean over the past 14 myr evidence from nd and pb isotopes in ferromanganese crusts the intensity of north atlantic deep water nadw production has been one of the most important parameters controlling the global thermohaline ocean circulation system and climate here we present a new approach to reconstruct the overall strength of nadw export from the north atlantic to the southern ocean over the past 14 myr applying the deep water nd and pb isotope composition as recorded by ferromanganese crusts and nodules we present the first long term nd and pb isotope time series for deep southern ocean water masses which are compared with previously published time series for nadw from the nw atlantic ocean these data suggest a continuous and strong export of nadw or a precursor of it into the southern ocean between 14 and 3 ma an increasing difference in nd and pb isotope compositions between the nw atlantic and the southern ocean over the past 3 myr gives evidence for a progressive overall reduction of nadw export since the onset of northern hemisphere glaciation nhg the nd isotope data allow us to assess at least semiquantitatively that the amount of this reduction has been in the range between 14 and 37 depending on location

cobalt in ferromanganese crusts as a monitor of hydrothermal discharge on the pacific sea floor ferromanganese oxide crusts which accumulate on unsedimented surfaces in the open ocean1 6 derive most of their metal content from dissolved and particulate matter in ambient bottom water7 8 in proportions modified by the variable scavenging efficiency of the oxide phase for susceptible ions9 they differ in this respect from abyssal nodules much of whose metals are remobilized from host sediments here we present maps of cobalt concentration and inferred accumulation rate of ferromanganese crusts from the pacific ocean we propose that depletion of cobalt in pacific crusts measures the location and intensity of submarine hydrothermal discharge use of the cobalt chronometer an algorithm inversely relating cobalt content and crust growth rate permits mapping of the accumulation rate of ferromanganese crusts with only indirect recourse to radioactivity based dating methods these maps show that crusts in hydrothermal areas grow from two to more than four orders of magnitude faster than in the central pacific ocean cobalt enriched crusts are found where water masses are most isolated from continental coastal and hydrothermal sources of metals now and in the past this relationship can resolve the problem of cobalt enrichment in crusts without recourse to hypotheses invoking special cobalt sources or enrichment mechanisms

onset of asian desertification by 22 myr ago inferred from loess deposits in china the initial desertification in the asian interior is thought to be one of the most prominent climate changes in the northern hemisphere during the cenozoic era1 2 3 4 but the dating of this transition is uncertain partly because desert sediments are usually scattered discontinuous and difficult to date here we report nearly continuous aeolian deposits covering the interval from 22 to 6 2 million years ago on the basis of palaeomagnetic measurements and fossil evidence a total of 231 visually definable aeolian layers occur as brownish loesses interbedded with reddish soils this new evidence indicates that large source areas of aeolian dust and energetic winter monsoon winds to transport the material must have existed in the interior of asia by the early miocene epoch at least 14 million years earlier than previously thought3 5 regional tectonic changes and ongoing global cooling are probable causes of these changes in aridity and circulation in asia

resolving eolian volcanogenic and authigenic components in pelagic sediment from the pacific ocean abstract we measured major and trace element concentrations in the operationally defined chemically extracted residual aluminosilicate component of sediment from ocean drilling program sites 1215 and 1256 in the central and eastern equatorial pacific ocean and found that this residual component contains volcanogenic and authigenic aluminosilicates in addition to inferred eolian material while the residual component younger than 20 ma from the central pacific odp site 1215 is similar compositionally to upper continental crust and suggests an increase in the delivery of asian dust material since 20 ma the residual in sediment older than 20 ma indicates significant amounts of volcanogenic and authigenic materials volcanogenic debris comprises as much as 40 of the residual between 23 40 ma which coincides with the mid tertiary ignimbrite flare up that occurred in much of western north america the residual component extracted from the 50 ma biogenic sediment reflects authigenic signatures seawater like negative cerium anomalies and elevated fe si ratios the previously interpreted increase in an andesitic detrital source in north pacific locations may instead be authigenic material presenting significant challenges for many paleoclimate proxies additionally in the eastern pacific odp site 1256 the residual component contains 70 of volcanogenic material most likely originating from central america and also includes refractory barite the ability to separately identify eolian volcanogenic and authigenic materials in the aluminosilicate component of pelagic sediment allows resolution respectively of the climatic geologic and chemical processes contributing to the paleoceanographic archive in this critical oceanic region

submarine hydrothermal venting related to volcanism in the lesser antilles evidence from ferromanganese precipitates 1 radiogenic isotope compositions sr nd pb hf and os of sediment hosted seafloor ferromanganese crusts and sediments incrusted with ferromanganese oxyhydroxides from the lesser antilles island arc were measured to distinguish between hydrogenous seawater derived and hydrothermal metal sources the ages of the precipitates range between recent last few thousand years and a few 100 kyr as deduced from 10be and co concentrations evidence from the presence of bladed todorokite and nontronite together with the major element and ree composition suggests that a significant proportion of these sediment hosted precipitates formed at relatively low temperatures from a mixture of seawater and hydrothermal fluids associated with island arc volcanism the radiogenic isotope compositions of all metals mentioned above except pb show large differences in hydrothermal versus hydrogenous contributions over space and time in contrast to precipitates of high temperature fluids which mainly scavenge their ree contents from seawater the crusts of this study show 143nd 144nd of up to 0 512817 nd 3 5 this is close to the signature of the nearby island arc rocks and far above the expected local seawater ratio of 0 51209 nd 10 7 these crusts also show high 176hf 177hf up to 0 283102 low 87sr 86sr up to 0 7069 and low 187os 188os up to 0 16 compared with local seawater as expected from hydrothermal island arc derived metal contributions in contrast the pb isotope signatures of the crusts cannot be explained by mixing between seawater and hydrothermal sources it is suggested that pb was either removed from the ascending fluids within the sediment column before they reached seawater or the temperatures were too low to leach significant amounts of pb from the rocks or sediments external sources such as saharan dust particulate inputs from the orinoco river or even incongruent release of pb isotopes from the island arc rock derived particles must have contributed to the observed pb isotope variability our results suggest that submarine hydrothermalism originating from intraoceanic island arc volcanism creates distinct geochemical environments for the dispersion of hydrothermal fluids and may be an important mechanism to supply metals of hydrothermal origin to seawater

seawater nd isotope variation in the western pacific ocean since 80 ma odp 807 ontong java plateau abstract this study reports neodymium isotopic end variability at a time resolution of 0 5 to 3 ma since the late cretaceous as recorded in a marine sedimentary core from the western pacific odp 807 3 36 n 156 3 e ontong java plateau our core is mainly fine grained and composed of continuous sequences of nannofossil oozes the end measured in the carbonate fraction was used as a proxy of end of seawater of the western pacific on a long term our results indicate a general increase in end of seawater by 4 5 end units from the late cretaceous end 6 to modern times end 1 7 this pattern was related to the emergence of the west pacific margin and the progressive isolation of the pacific ocean from the other oceanic basins resulting in its progressive shift to more radiogenic values through the cenozoic this long term pattern is in accordance with previously published fe mn crusts data from the same study area nonetheless by being at higher time resolution our data records additional sharp and pseudo cyclic variations 7 11 ma periods superimposed on this long term pattern from 40 ma to modern times these oscillations might reflect the alternating dominance of the two main deep water masses npdw and ucdw bathing our study area in the same core we also measured the end in the detrital fraction in order to trace back the local terrigenous inputs the terrigenous record shows a significant variability up to 12 end units this was linked to the emergence of the west pacific subduction zone 50 ma ago causing a higher input of radiogenic isotopes in conclusion the large variability observed in both seawater and detrital end records most probably result from a major tectonic and oceanic circulation reorganization of the pacific ocean