ForCenS-LGM: a dataset of planktonic foraminifera species assemblage composition for the Last Glacial Maximum.

Species assemblage composition of marine microfossils offers the possibility to investigate ecological and climatological change on time scales inaccessible using conventional observations. Planktonic foraminifera - calcareous zooplankton - have an excellent fossil record and are used extensively in palaeoecology and palaeoceanography. During the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; 19,000 - 23,000 years ago), the climate was in a radically different state.

Effects of Biofilms and Particle Physical Properties on the Rising and Settling Velocities of Microplastic Fibers and Sheets.

Vertical dynamics of microplastics (MPs) in the water column are complex and not fully understood due to the diversity of environmental MPs and the impact of weathering and biofouling on their dynamical properties. In this study, we investigate the effects of the particle properties and biofilm on the vertical (settling or rising) velocity of microplastic sheets and fibers under laboratory conditions. The experiments focus on three types of MPs (polyester PES fibers, polyethylene terephthalate PET sheets, and polypropylene PP sheets) of nine sizes and two degrees of biological colonization.

Consistently dated Atlantic sediment cores over the last 40 thousand years.

Rapid changes in ocean circulation and climate have been observed in marine-sediment and ice cores over the last glacial period and deglaciation, highlighting the non-linear character of the climate system and underlining the possibility of rapid climate shifts in response to anthropogenic greenhouse gas forcing. To date, these rapid changes in climate and ocean circulation are still not fully explained. One obstacle hindering progress in our understanding of the interactions between past ocean circulation and climate changes is the difficulty of accurately dating marine cores.

A two-million-year-long hydroclimatic context for hominin evolution in southeastern Africa.

The past two million years of eastern African climate variability is currently poorly constrained, despite interest in understanding its assumed role in early human evolution. Rare palaeoclimate records from northeastern Africa suggest progressively drier conditions or a stable hydroclimate. By contrast, records from Lake Malawi in tropical southeastern Africa reveal a trend of a progressively wetter climate over the past 1.

Agulhas leakage as a key process in the modes of Quaternary climate changes.

Heat and salt transfer from the Indian Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean (Agulhas leakage) has an important effect on the global thermohaline circulation and climate. The lack of long transfer record prevents elucidation of its role on climate changes throughout the Quaternary. Here, we present a 1,350-ka accumulation rate record of the planktic foraminiferal species Globorotalia menardii.