Articles | Volume 18, issue 4
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-961-2022
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-961-2022
Research article
 | 
02 May 2022
Research article |  | 02 May 2022

Pliocene evolution of the tropical Atlantic thermocline depth

Carolien M. H. van der Weijst, Josse Winkelhorst, Wesley de Nooijer, Anna von der Heydt, Gert-Jan Reichart, Francesca Sangiorgi, and Appy Sluijs

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Cited articles

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A hypothesized link between Pliocene (5.3–2.5 million years ago) global climate and tropical thermocline depth is currently only backed up by data from the Pacific Ocean. In our paper, we present temperature, salinity, and thermocline records from the tropical Atlantic Ocean. Surprisingly, the Pliocene thermocline evolution was remarkably different in the Atlantic and Pacific. We need to reevaluate the mechanisms that drive thermocline depth, and how these are tied to global climate change.
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