Nd isotope systematics on ODP Sites 756 and 762 sediments reveal major volcanic, oceanic and climatic changes in South Indian Ocean over the last 35 Ma

Computer Science

Scientific paper

Rate now

  [ 0.00 ] – not rated yet Voters 0   Comments 0

Details

Scientific paper

We have analyzed the Nd isotopic composition of both ancient seawater and detrital material from long sequences of carbonated oozes of the South Indian Ocean which are ODP Site 756 (Ninety East Ridge (‑ 30°S), 1518 m water depth) and ODP Site 762 (Northwest Australian margin, 1360 m water depth). The measurements indicate that the ɛNd changes in Indian seawater over the last 35 Ma result from changes in the oceanic circulation, large volcanic and continental weathering Nd inputs. This highlights the diverse nature of those controls and their interconnections in a small area of the ocean.These new records combined with those previously obtained at the equatorial ODP Sites 757 and 707 in the Indian Ocean (Gourlan et al., 2008) established that the distribution of intermediate seawater ɛNd was uniform over most of the Indian Ocean from 35 Ma to 10 Ma within a geographical area extending from 40°S to the equator and from ‑ 60°E to 120°E. However, the ɛNd value of Indian Ocean seawater which kept an almost constant value (at about ‑ 7 to ‑ 8) from 35 to 15 Ma rose by 3 ɛNd units from 15 to 10 Ma. This sharp increase has been caused by a radiogenic Nd enrichment of the water mass originating from the Pacific flowing through the Indonesian Passage. Using a two end-members model we calculated that the Nd transported to the Indian Ocean through the Indonesian Pathway was 1.7 times larger at 10 Ma than at 15 Ma.The Nd isotopic composition of ancient seawater and that of the sediment detrital component appear to be strongly correlated for some specific events. A first evidence occurs between 20 and 15 Ma with two positive spikes recorded in both ɛNd signals that are clearly induced by a volcanic crisis of, most likely, the St. Paul hot-spot. A second evidence is the very large ɛNd decrease recorded at ODP Sites 756 and 762 during the past 10 Ma which has never been previously observed. The synchronism between the ɛNd decrease in seawater from 10 to 5 Ma and evidences of desertification in the western part of the nearly Australian continent suggests enhanced weathering inputs in this ocean from this continent as a result of climatic changes.

No associations

LandOfFree

Say what you really think

Search LandOfFree.com for scientists and scientific papers. Rate them and share your experience with other people.

Rating

Nd isotope systematics on ODP Sites 756 and 762 sediments reveal major volcanic, oceanic and climatic changes in South Indian Ocean over the last 35 Ma does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.

If you have personal experience with Nd isotope systematics on ODP Sites 756 and 762 sediments reveal major volcanic, oceanic and climatic changes in South Indian Ocean over the last 35 Ma, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Nd isotope systematics on ODP Sites 756 and 762 sediments reveal major volcanic, oceanic and climatic changes in South Indian Ocean over the last 35 Ma will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

     

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1116375

  Search
All data on this website is collected from public sources. Our data reflects the most accurate information available at the time of publication.