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National Academy of Sciences, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 38(114), p. 10035-10040, 2017

DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1705595114

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Synchronous volcanic eruptions and abrupt climate change ∼17.7 ka plausibly linked by stratospheric ozone depletion

Journal article published in 2017 by Joseph R. McConnell, Andrea Burke ORCID, Nelia W. Dunbar, Peter Köhler, Jennie L. Thomas, Monica M. Arienzo ORCID, Nathan J. Chellman, Olivia J. Maselli, Michael Sigl, Jess F. Adkins, Daniel Baggenstos, John F. Burkhart, Edward J. Brook, Christo Buizert, Jihong Cole-Dai and other authors.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

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Abstract

Significance Cold and dry glacial-state climate conditions persisted in the Southern Hemisphere until approximately 17.7 ka, when paleoclimate records show a largely unexplained sharp, nearly synchronous acceleration in deglaciation. Detailed measurements in Antarctic ice cores document exactly at that time a unique, ∼192-y series of massive halogen-rich volcanic eruptions geochemically attributed to Mount Takahe in West Antarctica. Rather than a coincidence, we postulate that halogen-catalyzed stratospheric ozone depletion over Antarctica triggered large-scale atmospheric circulation and hydroclimate changes similar to the modern Antarctic ozone hole, explaining the synchronicity and abruptness of accelerated Southern Hemisphere deglaciation.