Glacial/interglacial sea surface temperature changes in the Southwest Pacific ocean over the past 360 ka

The phase relationship between climate parameters during terminations gives insight into deglaciation mechanisms. By combining foraminiferal Mg/Ca and alkenone thermometers with planktonic and benthic foraminiferal δ18O, we determined the phase relationship between local sea surface temperature (SST) and global seawater δ18O changes in the Coral Sea in the Southwestern Pacific over the last 360 ka. The onset of the SST warming preceded the seawater δ18O change by several ka for Termination I, II and III. During Termination I, the SST warming started at 20 ka BP, earlier than atmospheric CO2 rise suggesting that the greenhouse effect was not the main trigger of this early warming. Compilation of 14C-dated SST records from the whole Pacific during Termination I reveals that the onset of the warming is generally earlier in the Southern and the tropical Pacific than in the North Pacific. This spatio-temporal warming pattern suggests linkage between the southern ocean and tropical Pacific. The early tropical warming could provide heat and moisture to the northern high latitudes, modifying radiative balance and precipitation over ice sheets at the onset of deglaciation.