ALBERT

Description: A high-resolution sedimentary sequence recovered from the Tagus prodelta has been studied with the objective to reconstruct multi-decadal to centennial-scale climate variability on the western Iberian Margin and to discuss the observations in a wider oceanographic and climatic context. Between ca. 100 BC and AD 400 the foraminiferal fauna and high abundance of Globorotalia inflata indicate advection of subtropical waters via the Azores Current and the winter-time warm Portugal Coastal Current. Between ca. AD 400 and 1350, encompassing the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA), enhanced upwelling is indicated by the planktonic foraminiferal fauna, in particular by the high abundance of upwelling indicator species Globigerina bulloides. Relatively light d18O values and high sea surface temperature (SST) (reconstructed from foraminiferal assemblages) point to upwelling of subtropical Eastern North Atlantic Central Water. Between ca. AD 1350 and 1750, i.e. most of the Little Ice Age, relatively heavy d18O values and low reconstructed SST, as well as high abundances of Neogloboquadrina incompta, indicate the advection of cold subpolar waters to the area and a southward deflection of the subpolar front in the North Atlantic, as well as changes in the mode of the North Atlantic Oscillation. In addition, the assemblage composition together with the other proxy data reveals less upwelling and stronger river input than during the MCA. Stronger Azores Current influence on the Iberian Margin and strong anthropogenic effect on the climate after AD 1750 is indicated by the foraminiferal fauna. The foraminiferal assemblage shows a significant change in surface water conditions at ca. AD 1900, including enhanced river runoff, a rapid increase in temperature and increased influence of the Azores Current. The Tagus record displays a high degree of similarity to other North Atlantic records, indicating that the site is influenced by atmospheric-oceanic processes operating throughout the North Atlantic, as well as by local changes.

Description: Sea Surface Temperature (SST), river discharge and biological productivity have been reconstructed from a multi-proxy study of a high-temporal-resolution sedimentary sequence recovered from the Tagus deposition center off Lisbon (Portugal) for the last 2000 years. SST shows 2 °C variability on a century scale that allows the identification of the Medieval Warm Period (MWP) and the Little Ice Age (LIA). High Iron (Fe) and fine-sediment deposition accompanied by high n-alkane concentrations and presence of freshwater diatoms during the LIA (1300-1900 AD) (Science 292 (2001) 662) suggest augmented river discharge, whereas higher total-alkenone concentrations point to increased river-induced productivity. During the MWP (550-1300 AD) (Science 292 (2001) 662) larger mean-grain size and low values of magnetic susceptibility, and concentrations of Fe, n-alkanes, and n-alcohols are interpreted to reflect decreased runoff. At the same time, increased benthic and planktonic foraminifera abundances and presence of upwelling related diatoms point to increased oceanic productivity. On the basis of the excellent match found between the negative phases of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) index and the intensified Tagus River discharge observed for the last century, it is hypothesized that the increased influx of terrigenous material during the LIA reflects a negative NAO-like state or the occurrence of frequent extreme NAO minima. During the milder few centuries of the MWP, stronger coastal upwelling conditions are attributed to a persistent, positive NAO-like state or the frequent occurrence of extreme NAO maxima. The peak in magnetic susceptibility, centered at 90 cm composite core depth (ccd), is interpreted as the result of the well-known 1755 AD Lisbon earthquake. The Lisbon earthquake and accompanying tsunami are estimated to have caused the loss of 39 cm of sediment (355 years of record-most of the LIA) and the instantaneous deposition of a 19-cm sediment bed.