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The duration and magnitude of Cretaceous cool events Evidence from the northern high latitudes Vickers, Madeleine; Price, Gregory; Jerrett, Rhodri; Sutton, Paul; Watkinson, Matthew; FitzPatrick, Meriel Published in: Geological Society of America Bulletin DOI: 10.1130/B35074.1 Publication date: 2019 Document version Version created as part of publication process; publisher's layout; not normally made publicly available Citation for published version (APA): Vickers, M., Price, G., Jerrett, R., Sutton, P., Watkinson, M., & FitzPatrick, M. (2019). The duration and magnitude of Cretaceous cool events: Evidence from the northern high latitudes. Geological Society of America Bulletin, 131(11-12), 1979-1994. https://doi.org/10.1130/B35074.1 Download date: 09. okt.. 2020 Vickers-35074.1 1st pages / 1 of 16 The duration and magnitude of Cretaceous cool events The duration and magnitude of Cretaceous cool events: Evidence from the northern high latitudes Madeleine L. Vickers1,†, Gregory D. Price2,†, Rhodri M. Jerrett3, Paul Sutton2, Matthew P. Watkinson2, and Meriel FitzPatrick2 1Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management, Københavns Universitet, Øster Voldgade 10, 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark 2Centre for Research in Earth Sciences, School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Plymouth University, Drake Circus, Plymouth PL4 8AA, UK 3School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK ABSTRACT extend to the early Albian, in both hemi- 2004). A consequence of increased organic spheres, corroborating other proxy evidence carbon burial is removal of CO2 from the The Early Cretaceous (145–100 Ma) was for late Aptian cooling. The glendonites from atmosphere and the onset of cooling, typically characterized by long-term greenhouse cli- Svalbard suggest that Cretaceous cold epi- coinciding with peak δ13C values, and followed mates, with a reduced equatorial to polar sodes were characterized with high latitude by an interval waning of δ13C values (e.g., Lini temperature gradient, although an increas- (>60°N) shallow water temperatures that are et al., 1992). The magnitude of warming and ingly large body of evidence suggests that consistent with the existence of a small north- cooling is still debated, as the various climate this period was punctuated by episodic ern polar ice cap at this time. proxies do not necessarily agree with model global “cold snaps.” Understanding climate predictions, or each other, particularly with dynamics during this high-atmospheric CO2 INTRODUCTION respect to polar climates (Bice et al., 2003; period of Earth’s history may have signifi- Jenkyns et al., 2004; Littler et al., 2011; Price cant impact on how we understand climatic The Early Cretaceous was characterized by and Passey, 2013). Furthermore, there is on- feedbacks and predict future global climate high atmospheric CO2 levels, and a long-term going debate as to whether temperatures were changes under an anthropogenically-driven greenhouse climate (e.g., Wang et al., 2014 and ever low enough for small polar ice-caps to high-pCO2 atmosphere. This study utilizes references therein). Significantly lower than develop, with possible glacial or ice-rafted facies analysis to constrain the paleobathym- modern pole-to-equator temperature gradients sediments being reported from the high, and etry of Lower Cretaceous glendonites— are suggested by various paleothermometers even mid latitudes (e.g., Frakes et al., 1995; a pseudomorph after ikaite, a mineral that (e.g., Littler et al., 2011; Price and Passey, 2013), Rodríguez-López et al., 2016). Understanding forms naturally at 7 °C or lower—from two but these are not always reproduced in climate the climate dynamics of this high-pCO2 paleo-high-latitude (60–70°N) sites in Sval- models (e.g., Fluteau et al., 2007; Hunter et Earth, and getting agreement between proxy bard, Arctic Norway, to infer global climatic al., 2013). However, many studies suggest evidence and general circulation model (GCM) changes during the Early Cretaceous. The that short episodes of cooling punctuated this simulations, is important for predicting future original ikaite formed in the offshore transi- greenhouse trend (e.g., by marked changes climate change using GCM simulations. tion zone of a shallow marine shelf at water in floral and faunal assemblages; changes in Additional evidence for cooling includes depths of <100 m, suggesting mean annual stable oxygen record of marine calcifiers; widespread glendonite (pseudomorphs after water temperatures of ≤7 °C at these depths sharp falls in sea level, Pucéat et al., 2003; Erba marine sedimentary ikaite) occurrence in paleo- at 60–70°N. We correlate glendonite-bearing and Tremolada, 2004; Harland et al., 2007; high latitude sediments (Fig. 1; Nagy, 1970; horizons from Lower Cretaceous successions McArthur et al., 2007; Mutterlose et al., 2009; Kemper, 1987; De Lurio and Frakes, 1999; around the globe using carbon isotope stra- Maurer et al., 2013; McAnena et al., 2013; Maher et al., 2004; Price and Nunn, 2010; tigraphy, in conjunction with the pre-existing Price and Passey, 2013; Bodin et al., 2015), Herrle et al., 2015; Vickers et al., 2016; Grasby biostratigraphic framework, in order to in- often reflected in perturbations in the stable et al., 2017; Rogov et al., 2017). Glendonites fer northern hemispheric to global climatic carbon isotopic record (e.g., Menegatti et al., are regarded as cold-water indicators as their cooling. A distinct interval of glendonites 1998; Weissert and Erba, 2004; McArthur et precursor mineral, ikaite, generally requires in the Northern Hemisphere, from sites al., 2007; Bodin et al., 2015; Price et al., 2016). temperatures below 7 °C to grow in natural, >60°N, spans the late Berriasian to earliest Cretaceous positive carbon-isotope excursions marine sedimentary settings (e.g., Suess et al., Barremian (at least 8.6 m.y.), significantly have been linked directly with episodes of 1982; Bischoff et al., 1993; Buchardt et al., prolonging the duration of the previously increased organic carbon burial whereby 2001; Swainson and Hammond, 2001; Greinert hypothesized Valanginian cold snap (associ- the leaching of nutrients on coastal lowlands and Derkachev, 2004; Zhou et al., 2015). ated with the “Weissert Event”). Widespread during a rise in sea-level, possibly triggered While laboratory experiments have produced glendonites occur again in late Aptian and by globally warmer temperatures, resulted in ikaite at higher temperatures (e.g., Purgstaller increased ocean fertilization and productivity et al., 2017; Stockmann et al., 2018), these †[email protected], [email protected]. (e.g., Erba et al., 2004; Weissert and Erba, experiments do not represent the chemical GSA Bulletin; Month/Month 2019; v. 131; no. X/X; p. 1–16; https://doi.org/10.1130/B35074.1; 7 figures; 2 tables; Data Repository item 2019166. ; published online XX Month 2016. For permission to copy, contact [email protected] Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 1XX, no. XX/XX 1 © 2019 Geological Society of America Vickers-35074.1 1st pages / 2 of 16 Vickers et al. A B 16°E 32°E 4 1 2 60°N 3 80°N 5 Nordaustlandet 30°N tic n Te la Spitsbergenn t t A hys C Tropical Hiorthhamn 0° 78°N Isf. Long. Adventpoynten Festningen DH-1 borehole Moskus 30°S -laguna 60 km 60°S 7 Platåberget Longyearbyen 6 N Isdamme Sukkertoppen 2 km n Figure 1. (A) Early Cretaceous paleogeography for the Northern Hemisphere, reproduced from Boucot et al. (2013). Locations of Lower Cretaceous glendonite-bearing sites marked: (1) Queen Elizabeth Islands (Kemper and Schmitz, 1975; Kemper and Schmitz, 1981; Kem- per, 1987; Lippert, 2004; Herrle et al., 2015; Grasby et al., 2017); (2) Svalbard archipelago, Norway (this study); (3) Northern Russia (Rogov et al., 2017); (4) Canning River, Alaska, USA (van der Kolk et al., 2011); (5) Kilen, North Greenland (Hovikoski et al., 2018); (6) Eromanga Basin, Australia (Frakes et al., 1995; De Lurio and Frakes, 1999); (7) South Shetland Islands (Rogov et al., 2017). (B) Map of Svalbard, from Vickers et al. (2018). (C) Map of area around Longyearbyen, reproduced from toposvalbard.npolar.no. Airport Road sec- tion indicated as red line. Long.—Longyearbyen; Isf.—Isfjorden. conditions found in natural sedimentary marine the opening of the Atlantic in the Cenozoic disconformity between the marine and deltaic ikaite-bearing settings (e.g., fig. 8, p. 140 of (Harland et al., 1984). Thus, Svalbard, along sediments across the whole of Svalbard is Purgstaller et al., 2017). A traditionally poor with the Canadian Arctic and parts of Russia, debated (e.g., Grøsfjeld, 1992). During the estimation of the paleobathymetries at which were among the highest northerly landmasses late Barremian to early Aptian, these delta documented glendonites formed, and a lack of (Fig. 1). From the Berriasian to Hauterivian, plain environments dominated sedimentation high-resolution age constraints for glendonite- sedimentation on Svalbard was characterized on Spitsbergen, which supported vegetated bearing horizons which inhibits their supra- by deposition of mud and subordinate sand in swamps and ornithopod dinosaurs (Lapparent, regional correlation, diminish the paleoclimatic an offshore marine shelf setting (Rurikfjellet 1962; Hurum et al., 2006; Hurum et al., 2016). significance of these cold-water proxies. Formation; Harland and Kelly, 1997; Johnsen Regional relative sea-level rise in the Aptian Therefore, this study sets out to constrain the et al.,

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