4 High latitude paleoceanographic discoveries from Scientific Ocean Drilling (IODP, ODP, DSDP)
Scientific Ocean Drilling has retrieved thousands of meters of sediment cores from the high latitude oceans. This session provides the opportunity to present the results of work to understand Cenozoic climate and oceanographic changes.
Sunday, 22 March 2026
8:00 AM - 12:00 PM
CCC, Room 27
An 18,000 year SST Record from the Gulf of Maine Based on Alkenone Paleothermometry
Paper number: 4-2
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 8:25 AM – 8:45 AM
Authors
-
Abigail Cermak Presenting AuthorLamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, NY
-
William D'AndreaLamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, NY
-
Katherine AllenSchool of Earth and Climate Sciences, ORONO, ME
Abstract
The Gulf of Maine (GOM) is influenced by two major water masses: the warm, saline Gulf Stream from the southwest, and the cold, fresher Labrador and Nova Scotia Currents from the northeast, which flow through the Gulf of St. Lawrence and across the Scotian Shelf before entering the GOM. While the GOM is affected by changing ocean circulation, it is also sensitive to direct atmospheric heating as demonstrated by modern sea surface temperature (SST) data. In 2021, a 6 m long Giant Gravity Core was collected on cruise EN669 from Franklin Basin (41.80° N, 68.42° W, 214 m water depth) in the eastern GOM. Here we report a 17.5 kyr SST reconstruction based on alkenone paleothermometry from core EN669-GGC40. Alkenones are lipids produced in the photic zone by haptophyte algae. Their degree of polyunsaturation (UK37) records SST at the time of biosynthesis. We developed a UK37-based SST record from the GOM to examine oceanographic changes in the western Atlantic during the deglacial and the Holocene, and to look for evidence for Laurentide Ice Sheet meltwater events during the deglacial. Surprisingly, the highest alkenone-inferred SSTs occurred during the deglacial period (between 12-17.5 ka), an interval with several multicentennial-scale fluctuations. The early to mid Holocene shows little SST variability, followed by a distinct cooling trend from ca. 4.7 ka to present. The record reveals that SSTs in the GOM responded strongly to known climate events of the deglacial period, including Heinrich Stadial 1, the Bolling-Allerod, and the Younger Dryas. Increased abundance of tetraunsaturated alkenones between 14.0-13.0 ka and 11.7-10.6 ka suggest incursions of low-salinity water, presumably from the Labrador Current, into the GOM during these time intervals. We interpret these to reflect the routing of large LIS meltwater events southward along the US eastern seaboard, a process proposed by previous studies (Condron and Windsor, 2012; Hill & Condron, 2014).
Condron, A., & Winsor, P. (2012). Meltwater routing and the Younger Dryas. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 109(49), 19928–19933.
Hill, J. C., & Condron, A. (2014). Subtropical iceberg scours and meltwater routing in the deglacial western North Atlantic. Nature Geoscience, 7(11), 806–810.
Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 58, No. 2
doi: 10.1130/abs/2026NE-411155
© Copyright 2026 The Geological Society of America (GSA), all rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted to the author(s) of this abstract to reproduce and distribute it freely, for noncommercial purposes. Permission is hereby granted to any individual scientist to download a single copy of this electronic file and reproduce up to 20 paper copies for noncommercial purposes advancing science and education, including classroom use, providing all reproductions include the complete content shown here, including the author information. All other forms of reproduction and/or transmittal are prohibited without written permission from GSA Copyright Permissions.