Project Details
Projekt
HOlocene Variability in the Arctic gateway (HOVAG)
Subject Area
Palaeontology
Term
from 2007 to 2018
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 42881317
Our study aims at a high-resolution investigation of Holocene climatic developments in the Fram Strait and the Arctic Ocean – an area presently responding rapidly to global warming. We will analyze sediment cores from the West Spitsbergen continental margin and the adjacent Yermak Plateau in centennial to decadal resolution to determine the natural variability of the Atlantic Water inflow to the Arctic Ocean, the position of the sea ice margin, the structure of the water column, and the paleoproductivity. To do this, we will produce several sedimentological, micropaleontological and geochemical proxy data sets from AMS- 14C-dated long sediment cores and cooperate with partners in Norway, Spain, and Canada. Using a global climate model, a regional ocean-sea ice model, and results from the paleoceanographic investigations we will study the influence of variable boundary conditions on the hydrographic structure and ice cover of the Arctic Ocean, the atmospheric transport of heat and moisture, and the freshwater runoff into the Arctic for climatically different time periods. We will also perform sensitivity studies to improve our understanding of the role of past, present and future Arctic oceanographic and climatic variability as well as teleconnections with other ocean basins.
DFG Programme
Priority Programmes
Participating Persons
Professor Dr. Martin Frank; Professor Dr. Gerrit Lohmann
