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IS-BILAT-Mobilitet Norge-USA /Canada

Resolving the Ocean's Role in Rapid Climate Variability

Awarded: NOK 0.33 mill.

This application seeks support for a 12 month research stay for Ulysses Ninnemann at Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO). The goal of the research stay is to transform our ability to characterize the timing and spatial imprint of rapid climate and oc ean changes in the past. Utilizing our unique set of marine sediment archives and analytical capabilities at UoB, I (together with my students and European collaborators) have produced an array of unique marine proxy records from the high latitudes of bo th hemispheres as part of the EU FW7 THOR and Past4Future projects. The emerging records are exceptional for their ability to 1) capture key elements of ocean-climate system never before described or resolved in such detail (e.g. our 2004 and 2008 Scienc e papers) and 2) depict climate-ocean changes on (sub)decadal timescales revealing greater variability during warm times than previously appreciated (e.g. Euler and Ninnemann, Geology 2010). While these records provide novel insights into the timing and mechanics of past climate change in individual regions, they provide neither the spatial coverage nor the temporal constraints necessary in order to truly understand the origins and global evolution of climate change. The main purpose of this stay will b e to collaborate with two groups at LDEO who are doing similar cutting edge work on distinctly different archives and are developing novel approaches to dating that are applicable to our archives as well. Joining and synthesizing the latest techniques and results from both the leading European and U.S. efforts will place the Bergen and LDEO groups in a unique position to advance our understanding of climate-ocean coupling in the past on the timescales, and during the periods, most relevant for improving p redictions of future climate changes. Ultimately, this work will transfer the latest techniques to UoB and will set the stage for future UoB-LDEO collaborations addressing climate change over a range of timescale.

Funding scheme:

IS-BILAT-Mobilitet Norge-USA /Canada