Spatial and temporal distribution of biogenic carbonate and opal in deep-sea sediments from the eastern equatorial Pacific: implications for ocean history since 1.3 Ma
Me. Weber et Ng. Pisias, Spatial and temporal distribution of biogenic carbonate and opal in deep-sea sediments from the eastern equatorial Pacific: implications for ocean history since 1.3 Ma, EARTH PLAN, 174(1-2), 1999, pp. 59-73
High-resolution records of glacial-interglacial variations in biogenic carb
onate, opal, and detritus (derived from non-destructive core log measuremen
ts of density, P-wave velocity and color; r greater than or equal to 0.9) f
rom 15 sediment sites in the eastern equatorial (sampling resolution is sim
ilar to 1 kyr) clear response to eccentricity and precession forcing. For t
he Peru Basin, we generate a high-resolution (21 kyr increment) orbitally-b
ased chronology for the last 1.3 Ma. Spectral analysis indicates that the 1
00 kyr cycle became dominant at roughly 1.2 Ma, 200-300 kyr earlier than re
ported for other paleoclimatic records. The response to orbital forcing is
weaker since the Mid-Brunhes Dissolution Event (at 400 ka). A west-east rec
onstruction of biogenic sedimentation in the Peru Basin (four cores; 91-85
degrees W) distinguishes equatorial and coastal upwelling systems in the we
stern and eastern sites, respectively. A north-south reconstruction perpend
icular to the equatorial upwelling system (11 cores, 11 degrees N-8 degrees
S) shows high carbonate contents (greater than or equal to 50%) between 6
degrees N and 4 degrees S and highly variable opal contents between 2 degre
es N and 4 degrees S. Carbonate cycles B-6, B-8, B-10, B-12, B-14, M-2, and
M-6 are well developed with B-10 (430 ka) as the most prominent cycle. Car
bonate highs during glacials and glacial-interglacial transitions extended
up to 400 km north and south compared to interglacial or interglacial-glaci
al carbonate lows. Our reconstruction thus favors glacial-interglacial expa
nsion and contraction of the equatorial upwelling system rather than shifti
ng north or south. Elevated accumulation rates are documented near the equa
tor from 6 degrees N to 4 degrees S and from 2 degrees N to 4 degrees S for
carbonate and opal, respectively. Accumulation rates are higher during gla
cials and glacial-interglacial transitions in all cores, whereas increased
dissolution is concentrated on Peru Basin sediments close to the carbonate
compensation depth and occurred during interglacials or interglacial-glacia
l transitions. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.