NOAA/WDS Paleoclimatology - Guizhouxinv Cave d13C, d18O, Sr/Ca, Mg/Ca, and Lamina Thickness Data from 5866-3655 yrs BP

Significant multi-centennial climate oscillations have been documented in a number of well dated climate records across the Holocene epoch and left various imprints in human cultural history. In this study, we developed speleothem d13C, d18O, trace elements, and lamina thickness records from the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau (YGP). Our high-resolution and precisely dated records show a significant ~550-yr cycle as the dominant pattern of regional temperature and vegetation variations between ~5870 and ~3670 years ago. The phase analyses of the 550-yr cycles among our speleothem records, other Northern Hemisphere climate records, solar activity index, and North Atlantic Meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) variations suggest that this climate cycle has a large spatial extent, and may be causally linked to the AMOC changes through coupled oceanic-atmospheric processes. Additionally, the first cold phase of the ~550-yr cycle in our records coincides with the major cultural development on the YGP at ~5500–5000 years ago, suggesting a critical relationship between climate and prehistorical cultural changes in the region.