Low-latitude hydroclimate changes related to paleomagnetic variations during the Holocene in coastal southern China

Abstract

The variations in precipitation have displayed a complex pattern in different regions since the mid-to-late-Holocene. Cloud formation processes may have a significant impact on precipitation, especially during the tropical marine processes and summer monsoon which convey abundant water vapor to coastal southern China and inland areas. Here, we use two 7500 year sedimentary records from the Pearl River Delta and the closed Maar Lake, respectively, in coastal southern China to reconstruct the mid-to-late-Holocene humidity variability and explore its possible relationship with cloud cover modulated by the Earth’s magnetic fields (EMF). Our proxy records document an apparent increase in wetness in coastal southern China between 3.0 and 1.8 kyr BP. This apparent increase in humidity appears to be consistent with the lower virtual axial dipole moments and, in turn, with a lower EMF. This correlation suggests that the EMF might have been superimposed on the weakened monsoon to regulate the mid-to-late-Holocene hydroclimate in coastal southern China through the medium of galactic cosmic rays, aerosols, and cloud cover. However, further investigations are needed to verify this interaction.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

hydroclimate variations / Earth’s magnetic field / coastal southern China / the Holocene epoch

References

[1] Abrajevitch A, Kodama K (2011). Diagenetic sensitivity of paleoenvironmental proxies: a rock magnetic study of Australian continental margin sediments.Geochem Geophys Geosyst, 12(5): Q05Z24

[2] Blaauw M, Christen J (2011). Flexible paleoclimate age-depth models using an autoregressive gamma process.Bayesian Anal, 6(3): 457–474

[3] Cai Y, Tan L, Cheng H, An Z, Edwards R L, Kelly M J, Kong X, Wang X (2010). The variation of summer monsoon precipitation in central China since the last deglaciation.Earth Planet Sci Lett, 291(1–4): 21–31

[4] Campuzano S A, De Santis A, Pavón-Carrasco F J, Osete M L, Qamili E (2018). New perspectives in the study of the Earth’s magnetic field and climate connection: the use of transfer entropy.PLoS One, 13(11): e0207270

[5] Carslaw K S, Harrison R G, Kirkby J (2002). Cosmic rays, clouds, and climate.Science, 298(5599): 1732–1737

[6] Channell J E T, Vigliotti L (2019). The role of geomagnetic field intensity in Late Quaternary evolution of humans and large mammals.Rev Geophys, 57(3): 709–738

[7] Constable C, Korte M, Panovska S (2016). Persistent high paleosecular variation activity in southern hemisphere for at least 10000 years.Earth Planet Sci Lett, 453: 78–86

[8] Conroy J L, Overpeck J T, Cole J E, Shanahan T M, Steinitz-Kannan M (2008). Holocene changes in eastern tropical Pacific climate inferred from a Galápagos lake sediment record.Quat Sci Rev, 27(11–12): 1166–1180

[9] Cooper A, Turney C S M, Palmer J, Hogg A, McGlone M, Wilmshurst J, Lorrey A M, Heaton T J, Russell J M, McCracken K, Anet J G, Rozanov E, Friedel M, Suter I, Peter T, Muscheler R, Adolphi F, Dosseto A, Faith J T, Fenwick P, Fogwill C J, Hughen K, Lipson M, Liu J, Nowaczyk N, Rainsley E, Bronk Ramsey C, Sebastianelli P, Souilmi Y, Stevenson J, Thomas Z, Tobler R, Zech R (2021). A global environmental crisis 42000 years ago.Science, 371(6531): 811–818

[10] Courtillot V, Gallet Y, Le Mouël J L, Fluteau F, Genevey A (2007). Are there connections between the Earth’s magnetic field and climate?.Earth Planet Sci Lett, 253(3–4): 328–339

[11] Dergachev V A, Dmitriev P B, Raspopov O M, Jungner H (2007). Cosmic ray flux variations, modulated by the solar and terrestrial magnetic fields, and climate changes. Part 2: the time interval from ∼10000 to ∼100000 years ago.Geomagn Aeron, 47(1): 109–117

[12] Duan Z, Liu Q, Yang X, Gao X, Su Y (2014). Magnetism of the Huguangyan Maar Lake sediments, Southeast China and its paleoenvironmental implications.Palaeogeogr Palaeoclimatol Palaeoecol, 395: 158–167

[13] Gallet Y, Genevey A, Fluteau F (2005). Does Earth’s magnetic field secular variation control centennial climate change?.Earth Planet Sci Lett, 236(1–2): 339–347

[14] Hao Z, Zheng J, Zhang X, Liu H, Li M, Ge Q (2016). Spatial patterns of precipitation anomalies in eastern China during centennial cold and warm periods of the past 2000 years.Int J Climatol, 36(1): 467–475

[15] Harris I, Osborn T J, Jones P, Lister D (2020). Version 4 of the CRU TS monthly high-resolution gridded multivariate climate dataset.Sci Data, 7(1): 109

[16] Harrison R J, Feinberg J M (2008). FORCinel: an improved algorithm for calculating first-order reversal curve distributions using locally weighted regression smoothing.Geochem Geophys Geosyst, 9(5): Q05016

[17] Haug G H, Hughen K A, Sigman D M, Peterson L C, Röhl U (2001). Southward migration of the intertropical convergence zone through the Holocene.Science, 293(5533): 1304–1308

[18] Hu C, Henderson G M, Huang J, Xie S, Sun Y, Johnson K R (2008). Quantification of Holocene Asian monsoon rainfall from spatially separated cave records.Earth Planet Sci Lett, 266(3–4): 221–232

[19] Hyland E G, Sheldon N D, Van der Voo R, Badgley C, Abrajevitch A (2015). A new paleoprecipitation proxy based on soil magnetic properties: implications for expanding paleoclimate reconstructions.Geol Soc Am Bull, 127(7–8): 975–981

[20] Jalihal C, Srinivasan J, Chakraborty A (2019). Modulation of Indian monsoon by water vapor and cloud feedback over the past 22,000 years.Nat Commun, 10(1): 5701

[21] Ji J F, Chen J, Balsam W, Lu H Y, Sun Y B, Xu H F (2004). High resolution hematite/goethite records from Chinese loess sequences for the last glacial-interglacial cycle: rapid climatic response of the East Asian Monsoon to the tropical Pacific.Geophys Res Lett, 31(3): L03207

[22] Jiang Y, Yang X Q, Liu X, Qian Y, Zhang K, Wang M, Li F, Wang Y, Lu Z (2020). Impacts of wildfire aerosols on global energy budget and climate: the role of climate feedbacks.J Clim, 33(8): 3351–3366

[23] Kalnay E, Kanamitsu M, Kistler R, Collins W, Deaven D, Gandin L, Iredell M, Saha S, White G, Woollen J, Zhu Y, Leetmaa A, Reynolds R, Chelliah M, Ebisuzaki W, Higgins W, Janowiak J, Mo K C, Ropelewski C, Wang J, Jenne R, Joseph D (1996). The NCEP/NCAR 40-year reanalysis project.Bull Am Meteorol Soc, 77(3): 437–472

[24] Kanamitsu M, Ebisuzaki W, Woollen J, Yang S K, Hnilo J J, Fiorino M, Potter G L (2002). NCEP–DOE AMIP-II reanalysis (R-2).Bull Am Meteorol Soc, 83(11): 1631–1644

[25] Kathayat G, Cheng H, Sinha A, Spötl C, Edwards R L, Zhang H, Li X, Yi L, Ning Y, Cai Y, Lui W L, Breitenbach S F (2016). Indian monsoon variability on millennial-orbital timescales.Sci Rep, 6(1): 24374

[26] Kerton A K (2009). Climate change and the Earth’s magnetic poles, a possible connection.Energy Environ, 20(1): 75–83

[27] Kirkby J (2007). Cosmic rays and climate.Surv Geophys, 28(5–6): 333–375

[28] Kirkby J, Duplissy J, Sengupta K, Frege C, Gordon H, Williamson C, Heinritzi M, Simon M, Yan C, Almeida J, Tröstl J, Nieminen T, Ortega I K, Wagner R, Adamov A, Amorim A, Bernhammer A K, Bianchi F, Breitenlechner M, Brilke S, Chen X, Craven J, Dias A, Ehrhart S, Flagan R C, Franchin A, Fuchs C, Guida R, Hakala J, Hoyle C R, Jokinen T, Junninen H, Kangasluoma J, Kim J, Krapf M, Kürten A, Laaksonen A, Lehtipalo K, Makhmutov V, Mathot S, Molteni U, Onnela A, Peräkylä O, Piel F, Petäjä T, Praplan A P, Pringle K, Rap A, Richards N A, Riipinen I, Rissanen M P, Rondo L, Sarnela N, Schobesberger S, Scott C E, Seinfeld J H, Sipilä M, Steiner G, Stozhkov Y, Stratmann F, Tomé A, Virtanen A, Vogel A L, Wagner A C, Wagner P E, Weingartner E, Wimmer D, Winkler P M, Ye P, Zhang X, Hansel A, Dommen J, Donahue N M, Worsnop D R, Baltensperger U, Kulmala M, Carslaw K S, Curtius J (2016). Ion-induced nucleation of pure biogenic particles.Nature, 533(7604): 521–526

[29] Knudsen M F, Riisager P (2009). Is there a link between Earth’s magnetic field and low-latitude precipitation?.Geology, 37(1): 71–74

[30] Korte M, Donadini F, Constable C G (2009). Geomagnetic field for 0–3 ka: 2. A new series of time-varying global models.Geochem Geophys Geosyst, 10(6): Q06008

[31] Laskar J, Fienga A, Gastineau M, Manche H (2011). La2010: a new orbital solution for the long-term motion of the Earth.Astron Astrophys, 532: A89

[32] Li Z, Niu F, Fan J, Liu Y, Rosenfeld D, Ding Y (2011). Long-term impacts of aerosols on the vertical development of clouds and precipitation.Nat Geosci, 4(12): 888–894

[33] Liu Q, Gu Z, Liu J, You H, Lü H, Chu G, Qi X, Negendank J, Mingram J, Schettler G (2005). Bulk organic carbon isotopic record of Huguangyan maar lake, southeastern China and its paleoclimatic and paleoenvironmental significance since 62 ka BP.Marine Geol & Quater Geol, 25(2): 115–126

[34] Liu Y, Fang C, Li Q, Song H, Ta W, Zhao G, Sun C (2019). Tree-ring δ¹⁸O based PDSI reconstruction in the Mt. Tianmu region since 1618 AD and its connection to the East Asian summer monsoon.Ecol Indic, 104: 636–647

[35] Long X, Ji J, Balsam W (2011). Rainfall-dependent transformations of iron oxides in a tropical saprolite transect of Hainan Island, South China: spectral and magnetic measurements.J Geophys Res, 116(F3): F03015

[36] Luo R, Liu Y, Zhu Q, Tang Y, Shao T (2021). Effects of aerosols on cloud and precipitation in East-Asian drylands.Int J Climatol, 41(9): 4603–4618

[37] Nilsson A, Holme R, Korte M, Suttie N, Hill M (2014). Reconstructing Holocene geomagnetic field variation: new methods, models and implications.Geophys J Int, 198(1): 229–248

[38] Pierce J R (2017). Cosmic rays, aerosols, clouds, and climate: recent findings from the CLOUD experiment.J Geophys Res Atmos, 122(15): 8051–8055

[39] Pierce J R, Adams P J (2007). Efficiency of cloud condensation nuclei formation from ultrafine particles.Atmos Chem Phys, 7(5): 1367–1379

[40] Robinson S G, Sahota J T S, Oldfield F (2000). Early diagenesis in North Atlantic abyssal plain sediments characterized by rock-magnetic and geochemical indices.Mar Geol, 163(1–4): 77–107

[41] Robock A, Outten S (2018). Volcanoes: Role in Climate. In: Reference Module in Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences 10.1016/B978-0-12-409548-9.11423-X

[42] Sato Y, Goto D, Michibata T, Suzuki K, Takemura T, Tomita H, Nakajima T (2018). Aerosol effects on cloud water amounts were successfully simulated by a global cloud-system resolving model.Nat Commun, 9(1): 985

[43] Scheinost A C (1998). Use and limitations of second-derivative diffuse reflectance spectroscopy in the visible to near-infrared range to identify and quantify fe oxide minerals in soils.Clays Clay Miner, 46(5): 528–536

[44] Schneider U, Becker A, Finger P, Meyer-Christoffer A, Ziese M (2018). GPCC full data monthly product version 2018 at 0.5°: monthly land-surface precipitation from rain-gauges built on GTS-based and historical data. 10.5676/DWD_GPCC/FD_M_V2018_050

[45] Schwertmann U (1988). Occurrence and formation of iron oxides in various pedoenvironments. In: Iron in Soils and Clay Minerals (pp. 267–308). New York Springer

[46] Southon J, Kashgarian M, Fontugne M, Metivier B, Yim W W-S (2002). Marine reservoir corrections for the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia.Radiocarbon, 44(1): 167–180

[47] Stenchikov G (2021). The role of volcanic activity in climate and global changes. In: Letcher T M, ed. Climate Change (3rd Ed). Elsevier, 607–643

[48] Stuiver M, Reimer P J, Reimer R W (2020). CALIB 7.1 [WWW program] Avaible at CALIB website.

[49] Svensmark H, Enghoff M B, Shaviv N J, Svensmark J (2017). Increased ionization supports growth of aerosols into cloud condensation nuclei.Nat Commun, 8(1): 2199

[50] Svensmark J, Enghoff M B, Shaviv N J, Svensmark H (2016). The response of clouds and aerosols to cosmic ray decreases.J Geophys Res Space Phys, 121(9): 8152–8181

[51] Tan L C, Cai Y J, Cheng H, Edwards L R, Gao Y L, Xu H, Zhang H, An Z (2018). Centennial- to decadal-scale monsoon precipitation variations in the upper Hanjiang River region, China over the past 6650 years.Earth Planet Sci Let, 482: 580–590

[52] Torrent J, Barrón V (2008). Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy. In: Ulery A L, Richard Drees L, eds. Methods of Soil Analysis Part 5—Mineralogical Methods. Soil Sci Soc America, 367–385

[53] Wang Q, Yang X, Anderson N J, Dong X (2016). Direct versus indirect climate controls on Holocene diatom assemblages in a sub-tropical deep, alpine lake (Lugu Hu, Yunnan, SW China).Quat Res, 86(1): 1–12

[54] Wang Y, Cheng H, Edwards R L, He Y, Kong X, An Z, Wu J, Kelly M J, Dykoski C A, Li X (2005). The Holocene Asian monsoon: links to solar changes and North Atlantic climate.Science, 308(5723): 854–857

[55] Williamson C J, Kupc A, Axisa D, Bilsback K R, Bui T, Campuzano-Jost P, Dollner M, Froyd K D, Hodshire A L, Jimenez J L, Kodros J K, Luo G, Murphy D M, Nault B A, Ray E A, Weinzierl B, Wilson J C, Yu F, Yu P, Pierce J R, Brock C A (2019). A large source of cloud condensation nuclei from new particle formation in the tropics.Nature, 574(7778): 399–403

[56] Wu X, Zhang Z, Xu X, Shen J (2012). Asian summer monsoonal variations during the Holocene revealed by Huguangyan maar lake sediment record. Palaeogeogr Palaeoclimatol Palaeoecol, 323–325(15): 13–21 10.1016/j.palaeo.2012.01.020

[57] Xie S, Evershed R P, Huang X, Zhu Z, Pancost R D, Meyers P A, Gong L, Hu C, Huang J, Zhang S, Gu Y, Zhu J (2013). Concordant monsoon-driven postglacial hydrological changes in peat and stalagmite records and their impacts on prehistoric cultures in central China.Geology, 41(8): 827–830

[58] Xu H, Goldsmith Y, Lan J, Tan L, Wang X, Zhou X, Cheng J, Lang Y, Liu C (2020). Juxtaposition of western Pacific subtropical high on Asian Summer Monsoon shapes subtropical East Asian precipitation.Geophys Res Let, 47(3): e2019GL084705

[59] Yan H, Sun L, Wang Y, Huang W, Qiu S, Yang C (2011). A record of the Southern Oscillation Index for the past 2000 years from precipitation proxies.Nat Geosci, 4(9): 611–614

[60] Yang X, Su Z, Yang J, Huang W (2012). Magnetic fabrics of maar lake sediments in tropical southern China record hydrodynamic process.Quater Sci, 32(4): 795–802

[61] Yang X, Wei G, Yang J, Jia G, Huang C, Xie L, Huang W, Argyrios K (2014). Paleoenvironmental shifts and precipitation variations recorded in tropical maar lake sediments during the Holocene in Southern China.The Holocene, 24(10): 1216–1225

[62] Zhang E L, Zhao C, Xue B, Liu Z H, Yu Z C, Chen R, Shen J (2017). Millennial-scale hydroclimate variations in southwest China linked to tropical Indian Ocean since the Last Glacial Maximum.Geology, 45(5): 435–438

[63] Zhang H, Cheng H, Sinha A, Spötl C, Cai Y, Liu B, Kathayat G, Li H, Tian Y, Li Y, Zhao J, Sha L, Lu J, Meng B, Niu X, Dong X, Liang Z, Zong B, Ning Y, Lan J, Edwards R L (2021). Collapse of the Liangzhu and other Neolithic cultures in the lower Yangtze region in response to climate change.Sci Adv, 7(48): eabi9275

[64] Zhang J, Lu H, Jia J, Shen C, Wang S, Chu G, Wang L, Cui A, Liu J, Wu N, Li F (2020a). Seasonal drought events in tropical East Asia over the last 60,000 y.Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 117(49): 30988–30992

[65] Zhang P, Cheng H, Edwards R L, Chen F, Wang Y, Yang X, Liu J, Tan M, Wang X, Liu J, An C, Dai Z, Zhou J, Zhang D, Jia J, Jin L, Johnson K R (2008). A test of climate, sun, and culture relationships from an 1810-year Chinese cave record.Science, 322(5903): 940–942

[66] Zhang T, Yang X, Chen Q, Toney J L, Zhou Q, Gao H (2020b). Humidity variations spanning the ‘Little Ice Age’ from an upland lake in southwestern China.The Holocene, 30(2): 289–299

[67] Zhang W, Yan H, Liu C, Cheng P, Li J, Lu F, Ma X, Dodson J, Heijnis H, Zhou W, An Z (2018). Hydrological changes in Shuangchi Lake, Hainan Island, tropical China, during the Little Ice Age.Quater Intern, 487: 54–60

[68] Zhang Y G, Ji J F, Balsam W L, Liu L W, Chen J (2007). High resolution hematite and goethite records from ODP 1143, South China Sea: co-evolution of monsoonal precipitation and El Niño over the past 600000 years.Earth Planet Sci Let, 264(1–2): 136–150

[69] Zhu Z, Feinberg J M, Xie S, Bourne M D, Huang C, Hu C, Cheng H (2017). Holocene ENSO-related cyclic storms recorded by magnetic minerals in speleothems of central China.Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 114(5): 852–857

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

Higher Education Press