The Role of Paleogeography and CO2 in Late Cretaceous Ocean Circulation

Abstract:

Through the Late Cretaceous (100-66 Ma), proxy reconstructions suggest a global cooling trend in concert with changes in ocean circulation. Uncertainty remains about the cause, scale, and importance of these changes in ocean circulation. Here, we explore the role of paleogeography and CO₂ in Late Cretaceous ocean circulation changes using NCAR's CESM model, which comprises CAM4, POP2, CICE4, and CLM4 with dynamic vegetation. Our simulations use detailed paleogeographic reconstructions of the Campanian (83-72 Ma) and Maastrichtian (72-66 Ma) with appropriately lowered solar constants and either 560 or 1120 ppm CO₂. Preliminary model results do not show large differences in global-scale ocean circulation due to changes in paleogeography; both Campanian and Maastrichtian paleogeographies only form deep water in the Southern Ocean under 1120 ppm CO₂. However, these relatively small changes in paleogeography do produce regional differences in ocean temperature of several degrees Celsius, which highlight the need for good sample spatial coverage when making claims about global climate change through the Late Cretaceous. In contrast, simulating a reduction in CO₂ from 1120 to 560 ppm with Maastrichtian paleogeography triggers the formation of deep water in the North Pacific and increases northward ocean heat transport. As a result, the North Pacific warms by ~2°C despite lower CO₂ while the Southern Ocean cools by ~3°C. Globally, neither changes in geography nor a halving of CO₂ can fully explain the more than 4°C cooling proposed by proxy reconstructions across the Late Cretaceous.