Stable Carbon CycleClimate Relationship During the Late Pleistocene

Abstract

A record of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) concentrations measured on the EPICA (European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica) Dome Concordia ice core extends the Vostok CO 2 record back to 650,000 years before the present (yr B.P.). Before 430,000 yr B.P., partial pressure of atmospheric CO 2 lies within the range of 260 and 180 parts per million by volume. This range is almost 30% smaller than that of the last four glacial cycles; however, the apparent sensitivity between deuterium and CO 2 remains stable throughout the six glacial cycles, suggesting that the relationship between CO 2 and Antarctic climate remained rather constant over this interval.

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Affiliated Institutions

• University of Bern CH
• Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique FR
• Institut Pierre-Simon Laplace FR
• Laboratoire de Glaciologie et Géophysique de l’Environnement FR
• Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung DE
• Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement FR
• CEA Paris-Saclay FR
• Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives FR

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