NOAA/WDS Paleoclimatology - Palmer Deep, Antarctica Holocene TEX86 Sea Surface Temperature Data

A detailed TEX86 sea surface temperature record is presented from a well-dated hemipelagic sedimentary sequence drilled in Palmer Deep, on the western Antarctic Peninsula continental margin (ODP Hole 1098B; 1010 m). To test the regional utility of the TEX86 proxy, surface sediment samples with paired CTD casts were acquired and results show the promise of TEX86 in this region. Down core TEX86-derived temperatures at Site 1098 range between 0 and 6°C during the Holocene (0-12 ky). A long-term Holocene cooling of ~3°C is suggested and is punctuated by millennial scale temperature variability. The TEX86 temperature record from Palmer Deep is consistent with temperature trends recorded in west Antarctic ice cores and southeast Pacific marine sediments. This observation is consistent with hypotheses that favor atmospheric (via the Southern Hemisphere westerly winds), not thermohaline, control over the hydrography of Palmer Deep.