Arctic Oscillation signature in a Red Sea coral

• Published in: Geophysical research letters Vol. 28; no. 15; pp. 2959 - 2962
• Main Authors: Rimbu, Norel, Lohmann, Gerrit, Felis, Thomas, Pätzold, Jürgen
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01-08-2001; American Geophysical Union
• Subjects: Anthozoa; Climatology. Bioclimatology. Climate change; Earth, ocean, space; Exact sciences and technology; External geophysics; Meteorology; Scleractinia; Northern Hemisphere; Red Sea; PN, Arctic Ocean; ISW, Red Sea; Teleconnection; Atmospheric circulation; Sea surface; Winter; Coral; Time series; Arctic oscillation; Surface temperature; Oxygen isotopes
• ISSN: 0094-8276; 1944-8007
• DOI: 10.1029/2001GL013083

We show that the winter time series of the Ras Umm Sidd coral oxygen isotope record from the northern Red Sea (approximately 28°N) is linked to the Arctic Oscillation phenomenon, the Northern Hemisphere's dominant mode of atmospheric variability. Until now, the detection of this mode, which is most prominent in winter, in proxy climate records was difficult due to the lack of a clear seasonality in most paleoclimatic archives. The results suggest that northern Red Sea corals can provide information about the low‐frequency variability of the Northern Hemisphere winter circulation during the pre‐instrumental period.