Articles | Volume 20, issue 9
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-1989-2024
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-1989-2024
Research article
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12 Sep 2024
Research article | Highlight paper |  | 12 Sep 2024

Can we reliably reconstruct the mid-Pliocene Warm Period with sparse data and uncertain models?

James D. Annan, Julia C. Hargreaves, Thorsten Mauritsen, Erin McClymont, and Sze Ling Ho

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Cited articles

Annan, J. D., Hargreaves, J. C., Mauritsen, T., McClymont, E., and Ho, S. L.: Code for “Can we reliably reconstruct the mid-Pliocene Warm Period with sparse data and uncertain models?”, Zenodo [data set] and [code], https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8289863, 2024. a
Annan, J. D. and Hargreaves, J. C.: A new global reconstruction of temperature changes at the Last Glacial Maximum, Clim. Past, 9, 367–376, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-9-367-2013, 2013. a, b
Annan, J. D., Hargreaves, J. C., and Mauritsen, T.: A new global surface temperature reconstruction for the Last Glacial Maximum, Clim. Past, 18, 1883–1896, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-1883-2022, 2022. a, b
Bragg, F. J.: Understanding The Climate Of The Mid-Piacenzian Warm Period, PhD Thesis, Bristol University, https://bris.on.worldcat.org/search/detail/931572647?queryString=bragg climate mid-piacenzian&clusterResults=true&groupVariantRecords=false (last access: 1 September 2024), 2014. a
Dekens, P. S., Ravelo, A. C., McCarthy, M. D., and Edwards, C. A.: A 5 million year comparison of Mg / Ca and alkenone paleothermometers: 5 MA COMPARISONS OF Mg / Ca AND ALKENONE SSTS, Geochem. Geophy. Geosy., 9, Q10001, https://doi.org/10.1029/2007GC001931, 2008. a
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Co-editor-in-chief
This study presents an interesting attempt to reconstruct global surface temperature by combining sparse SST proxy data and PlioMIP2 simulations using a state-of-the-art data assimilation framework. The work highlights the potential of this method for providing key insights into past warming patterns, and will serve as a good starting point for future investigations.
Short summary
We have created a new global surface temperature reconstruction of the climate of the mid-Pliocene Warm Period, representing the period roughly 3.2 million years before the present day. We estimate that the globally averaged mean temperature was around 3.9 °C warmer than it was in pre-industrial times, but there is significant uncertainty in this value.
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