CADMIUM CALCIUM AND CARBON-ISOTOPE RECONSTRUCTIONS OF THE GLACIAL NORTHEAST ATLANTIC-OCEAN/

The delta(13)C and Cd measurements from benthic foraminifera from Biog eochemical Ocean Flux Study (BOFS) northeast Atlantic Ocean sediment c ores are presented. The delta(13)C values in glacial foraminifera are consistent with those from elsewhere in the North Atlantic Ocean. For intermediate water (1000 - 2000 m water depth), delta(13)C values were higher at the last glacial maximum than in present North Atlantic Dee p Water (NADW), whereas for deep water (>2000 m) they were lower durin g the glacial maximum. The Cd concentrations of glacial northeast Atla ntic intermediate water were lower than those of present NADW. However , deepwater Cd concentrations increased to values between NADW and pre sent Pacific Deep Water (PDW). The delta(13)C and Cd data are consiste nt and show that the northeast Atlantic Ocean was strongly stratified with C-13 enriched, low Cd intermediate water overlying C-13 depleted, high Cd deep water. The glacial water column comprised two different water masses: deep water, similar in character to present Antarctic Bo ttom Water (AABW), and intermediate water, different in character from both AABW and NADW, and any present intermediate-depth North Atlantic water. The characteristics of glacial intermediate water were, howeve r, similar to present near-surface waters in the North Atlantic, which suggests rapid ventilation of the glacial ocean to depths of up to 20 00 m by cold, nutrient-depleted young surface waters.