The Medieval Warm Period and Little Ice Age in the Daihai Area, North China

Rb/Sr ratio, CaCO\-3 content, organic carbon (C\-\{org\}) concentration, magnetic susceptibility and clay mineralogy of 4.0 m sediments samples recovered from Daihai Lake, northern China, are presented in the paper. Weathering and paleoclimatic change history during the last 2300 years is reconstructed in terms of the variations of Rb/Sr ratios in the sediment sequence, including the Little Ice Age and Medieval Warm Period. Our results suggest that the evolution processes of weathering and paleoclimate can be rebuilt in terms of the variations of Rb/Sr ratios in the lake sediment sequence, in combination with magnetic susceptibility, C\-\{org\}, \{CaCO\-3\} contents and clay mineralogy.

Interannual Climate Variability Change during the Medieval Climate Anomaly and Little Ice Age in PMIP3 Last Millennium Simulations

In this study, we analyzed numerical experiments undertaken by 10 climate models participating in PMIP3（Paleoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project Phase 3） to examine the changes in interannual temperature variability and coefficient of variation（CV） of interannual precipitation in the warm period of the Medieval Climate Anomaly（MCA） and the cold period of the Little Ice Age（LIA）. With respect to the past millennium period, the MCA temperature variability decreases by 2.0% on average over the globe, and most of the decreases occur in low latitudes. In the LIA, temperature variability increases by a global average of 0.6%, which occurs primarily in the high latitudes of Eurasia and the western Pacific. For the CV of interannual precipitation, regional-scale changes are more significant than changes at the global scale, with a pattern of increased（decreased） CV in the midlatitudes of Eurasia and the northwestern Pacific in the MCA（LIA）. The CV change ranges from-7.0% to 4.3%（from -6.3% to 5.4%）, with a global average of -0.5%（-0.07%） in the MCA（LIA）.Also, the variability changes are considerably larger in December–January–February with respect to both temperature and precipitation.

Accumulation and geochemical evidence for the Little Ice Age episode in eastern Antarctica

Data on accumulation and concentration of chemical compounds recorded in an essentially unexplored area(Dome Argus)of the Indian Ocean sector of eastern Antarctica during the past 2,680 years(680 B.C. to 1999 A.D.) are presented. During the first 1, 700 years(680 B. C. to 1000 A. D.), the accumulation data shows a slightly decreasing trend, while chemical ions appear to be stable, representing a stable climatic condition. An intensive increasing trend of the accumulation occurred during the 12^(th) to 14^(th) century. The period from 15^(th) to 19^(th) century was characterized by a rapid reducing accumulation and concentrations of volatile compounds suffering post-depositional loss linked to sparse precipitation amount,which was temporally consistent with the Little Ice Age(LIA) episode. Comparison between observed accumulation rates with other eastern Antarctic ice cores show a consistent decreasing trend during LIA, while sea salt and dust-originated ions increased due to sea ice extent and intensified atmospheric transportation. Distribution of volcanic originated sulfate over the Antarctic continent show a significant change during the 15^(th) century, coincident with the onset of the LIA. These results are important for the assessment of Antarctic continent mass balance and associated interpretation of the Dome A deep ice core records.

On the recovery from the Little Ice Age

A number of published papers and openly available data on sea level changes, glacier retreat, freezing/break-up dates of rivers, sea ice retreat, tree-ring observations, ice cores and changes of the cosmic-ray intensity, from the year 1000 to the present, are studied to examine how the Earth has recovered from the Little Ice Age (LIA). We learn that the recovery from the LIA has proceeded continuously, roughly in a linear manner, from 1800-1850 to the present. The rate of the recovery in terms of temperature is about 0.5°C/100 years and thus it has important implications for understanding the present global warming. It is suggested on the basis of a much longer period covering that the Earth is still in the process of recovery from the LIA;there is no sign to indicate the end of the recovery before 1900. Cosmic-ray intensity data show that solar activity was related to both the LIA and its recovery. The multi-decadal oscillation of a period of 50 to 60 years was superposed on the linear change;it peaked in 1940 and 2000, causing the halting of warming temporarily after 2000. These changes are natural changes, and in order to determine the contribution of the manmade greenhouse effect, there is an urgent need to identify them correctly and accurately and remove

The Approaching New Grand Solar Minimum and Little Ice Age Climate Conditions

By about 2030-2040, the Sun will experience a new grand solar minimum. This is evident from multiple studies of quite different characteristics: the phasing of sunspot cycles, the cyclic observations of North Atlantic behaviour over the past millennium, the cyclic pattern of cosmogenic radionuclides in natural terrestrial archives, the motions of the Sun with respect to the centre of mass, the planetary spin-orbit coupling, the planetary conjunction history and the general planetary-solar-terrestrial interaction. During the previous grand solar minima—i.e. the Sporer Minimum (ca 1440-1460), the Maunder Minimum (ca 1687-1703) and the Dalton Minimum (ca 1809-1821)—the climatic conditions deteriorated into Little Ice Age periods.

THE LITTLE ICE AGE OF THE NORTHWEST REGION,CHINA

The Little Ice Age began in the early 15 the century and ended in 16 the century in the northwest region of China. In the Northern Hemisphere, the age of the Little Ice Age postponed form north to south, form west to east, and moist region to drought. Judged by the data the Little Ice Age of the Northwest China is later than the eastern China and Europe. The climate of the Little Ice Age in northwest China was cold-wet. In northwest China, as compared with the Little Ice Age, the recently annual temperature have raised about 1-1.3℃, the precipitation have reduced 50-78 mm, the evaporation have increased 7%, the glacier area have reduced about 21-46%, and the runoff have reduced about 14% in the river which the meltwater supply proportion is less than 10%. To sum up, since the Little Ice Age the warm-dry tendency of climatic variation is quite obviously in northwest China. If it goes on like this, its influence will be more severe to the river which meltwater proportion is more than 50%.

Climate Disasters and Climate Variation of Little Ice Age in East Asia

In this paper, climate variation is reconstructed on the basis of the chronicles of weather disasters in Japan and China. There remain many rainstorm records in southern coast of Japan, and south-eastern coast of China. Both in Japan and China, many rainstorm disasters appeared in summer. But, they usually appeared one or two months later in Japan. The period of frequent windstorm damage occurrence in Little Ice Age differs among Japan and China, and it was caused by the change of atmospheric circulation. Cool summer period appeared around 1705, 1740, 1765, 1785, 1830, and 1845. It was generally cool before 1855, but it became warm after 1855. It corresponds with the sudden retreat of glaciers of European Alps.

Aeolian activity in the southern Gurbantunggut Desert of China during the last 900 years

The mineral dust emitted from Central Asia has a significant influence on the global climate system.However,the history and mechanisms of aeolian activity in Central Asia remain unclear,due to the lack of well-dated records of aeolian activity and the intense wind erosion in some of the dust source areas(e.g.,deserts).Here,we present the records of aeolian activity from a sedimentary sequence in the southern Gurbantunggut Desert of China using grain size analysis and optically stimulated luminescence(OSL)dating,based on field sampling in 2019.Specifically,we used eight OSL dates to construct chronological frameworks and applied the end-member(EM)analysis for the grain size data to extract the information of aeolian activity in the southern Gurbantunggut Desert during the last 900 a.The results show that the grain size dataset can be subdivided into three EMs(EM1,EM2,and EM3).The primary modal sizes of these EMs(EM1,EM2,and EM3)are 126.00,178.00,and 283.00μm,respectively.EM1 represents a mixture of the suspension components and saltation dust,while EM2 and EM3 show saltation dust transported over a shorter distance via strengthened near-surface winds,which can be used to trace aeolian activity.Combined with the OSL chronology,our results demonstrate that during the last 900 a,more intensive and frequent aeolian activity occurred during 450-100 a BP(Before Present)(i.e.,the Little Ice Age(LIA)),which was reflected by a higher proportion of the coarse-grained components(EM2+EM3).Aeolian activity decreased during 900-450 a BP(i.e.,the Medieval Warm Period(MWP))and 100 a BP-present(i.e.,the Current Warm Period(CWP)).Intensified aeolian activity was associated with the strengthening of the Siberian High and cooling events at high northern latitudes.We propose that the Siberian High,under the influence of temperature changes at high northern latitudes,controlled the frequency and intensity of aeolian activity in Central Asia.Cooling at high northern latitudes would have significantly enhanced the Siberian High,causing its position to shift southward.Subsequently,the incursion of cold air masses from high northern latitudes resulted in stronger wind regimes and increased dust emissions from the southern Gurbantunggut Desert.It is possible that aeolian activity may be weakened in Central Asia under future global warming scenarios,but the impact of human activities on this region must also be considered.

Humid Little Ice Age in arid central Asia documented by Bosten Lake, Xinjiang, China

Short sediment cores retrieved from Bosten Lake, the largest inland freshwater lake in China, were used to explore humidity and precipitation variations in arid central Asia during the past millennium. The chronology of the cores was established using 137Cs, 210Pb and AMS 14C dating re- sults. Multi-proxy high-resolution analysis, including pollen ratios of Artemisia and Chenopodiaceae (A/C), carbonate content and grain size, indicates that the climate during the past millennium can be divided into three stages: a dry climate between 1000―1500 AD, a humid climate during the Little Ice Age (LIA) (c. 1500―1900 AD), and a warm dry period after 1900 AD. On centennial timescales, the climate change in northwestern China during the past 1000 years is characterized by oscillations between warm-dry and cold-humid climate conditions. All the proxies changed significantly and indi- cate increased precipitation during the LIA, including increased pollen A/C ratios and pollen concen- trations, decreased carbonate content and increased grain size. The humid period during the LIA re- corded by the Bosten Lake sediments is representative of arid central Asia and is supported by nu- merous records from other sites. During the LIA, the water runoff into the Keriya River and Tarim River in the Tarim Basin increased, while the ice accumulation in the Guliya ice core increased. Additionally, the lake levels of the Aral and Caspian Sea also rose, while tree-ring analysis indicates that precipita- tion increased. We hypothesize that both the lower temperature within China and the negative anomalies of North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) during this period may have contributed to the humid climate within this area during LIA.

CLIMATIC CHANGE SINCE LITTLE ICE AGE RECORDED BY DUNDE ICE CAP

The climatic change since the Little Ice Age recorded in the Dunde Ice Cap is presentedin this paper. There have been three cold periods and three warm periods since 1400AD.Among them, the coldest one was in the 17th century. Many evidences verified the three coldand warm variations recorded in the Dundc Ice Cap. But it was found from the comparison between the Dunde Icc Cap climatic record and thewinter temperature record in Shanghai that there was a temporal dfference in climatic changebetween East China and West China. The general trend is that the cooling and warmingprocesses in West China were earlier than that in East China. In the Dunde Ice Cap, it isnow in an anomalous warm period, while it is not as warm as in Dunde Ice Cap recordaccording to the winter temperature in Shanghai. In addition to the possible cause of temporaldifference in climatic change between West China and East China, another possible cause isthat the greenhouse effect of CO_2 may already be recognizable in the Dunde Ice Cap arealocated in Western China in land of the middle latitude.

Weak chemical weathering during the Little Ice Age recorded by lake sediments

Low magnetic susceptibility, low Sr content and hence high Rb/Sr ratio in the lake sediment sequence indicate a weak chemical weathering process under arid and cold climate of the Little Ice Age in a single closed lake watershed. According to different geochemical behavior between rubidium and strontium in earth surface processes, variation of Rb/Sr ratios in the lake sediment sequence can be used as an effective geochemical proxy with definite climatic significance of chemical weathering in watershed. Unlike chemical weathering process in tropic zone and modern temperate-humid climate, concordant changes in both Sr content and magnetic susceptibility with δ18O values of Dunde ice core suggest that the weak chemical weathering was controlled by air temperature during the Little Ice Age maximum. After the Little Ice Age, chemical weathering intensity was controlled also gradually by precipitation with increasing in temperature.

Tree ring-dated fluctuation history of Midui glacier since the Little Ice Age in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau

Fluctuation history of Midui glacier in the southeastern Tibet since the Little Ice Age(LIA) was reconstructed by the dating of lateral and terminal moraines using tree rings.Four conversions of glacier advance/stabilization to retreat were identified at around 1767,1875,1924 and 1964.The glacier reached its LIA maximum position at 1767.The fluctuations are consistent with those of other glaciers from the Tibetan Plateau,the Rockies and the Alps,suggesting high spatial coherency of glacier fluctuations in the Northern Hemisphere.Comparison with the summer temperature reconstruction in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau indicated that the Midui glacier fluctuation may be related to temperature variation on the centennial timescale.On the decadal scale,the fluctuation could correspond to cold/warm variation with an 8-year lag on average.

LITTLE ICE AGE IN CHINA

A great deal of evidence indicates that the earth climate experienced a severity of cold in between the 16th and the 19th century, which is called the Little Ice Age. Zhu Ke-zhen proved first that it occurred also in China. But the timing of the severe cold period was not concurrent fully with that in other regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Zhang Jia-cheng

Multi-scale analysis on last millennium climate variations in Greenland by its ice core oxygen isotope

The empirical mode decomposition method is used for analyzing the paleoclimate proxy δ18O from Greenland GISP2 ice core.The results show that millennium climate change trends in Greenland record the Medieval Warm Period (MWP) from 860AD-1350AD lasting for about 490 years,and the Little Ice Age (LIA) from 1350AD-1920AD lasting about 570 years.During these events,sub cooling-warming variations occurred.Its multi-scale oscillations changed with quasi-period of 3-year,6.5-year,12-year,24-year,49-year,96-year,213-year and 468-year,and are not only affected by ENSO but also by solar activity.The oscillation of intrinsic mode function IMF7,IMF8 and their tendency obviously appear in 1350AD which is considered as the key stage of transformation between MWP and LIA.The results give more detailed changes and their stages of millennium climate change in high latitude areas of the Northern Hemisphere.

Evolution of permafrost in Northeast Chinasince the Late Pleistocene

In Northeast China, permafrost advanced and retreated several times under the influences of fluctuating paleo-climatesand paleo-environments since the Late Pleistocene. During the last 60 years, many new data were obtained and studies wereconducted on the evolution of permafrost in Northeast China, but so far no systematic summary and review have been made.Based on sedimentary sequences, remains of past permafrost, paleo-flora and -fauna records, and dating data, permafrostevolution since the Late Pleistocene has been analyzed and reconstructed in this paper. Paleo-temperatures reconstructedfrom the remains of past permafrost and those from paleo-flora and -fauna are compared, and thus the southern limitof permafrost （SLP） in each climate period is inferred by the relationship of the permafrost distribution and the meanannual air/ground temperatures （MAAT/MAGT）. Thus, the evolutionary history of permafrost is here divided into fivestages： （1） the Late Pleistocene （Last Glaciation, or LG） （65 to 10–8.5 ka）, the Last Glaciation Maximum （LGM, 21–13 ka）in particular, the coldest period in the latest history with a cooling of about 6~10 °C, characterized by extensive occurrencesof glaciation, flourishing Mammathas-Coelodonta Faunal Complex （MCFC）, widespread aeolian deposits, and significantsea level lowering, and permafrost greatly expanded southwards almost to the coastal plains （37°N–41°N）; （2） the HoloceneMegathermal Period （HMP, 8.5–7.0 to 4.0–3.0 ka）, 3~5 °C warmer than today, permafrost retreated to about 52°N; （3） theLate Holocene Cold Period （Neoglaciation） （4.0–3.0 to 1.0–0.5 ka）, a cooling of 1~3 °C, some earlier thawed permafrost wasrefrozen or attached, and the SLP invaded southwards to 46°N; （4） the Little Ice Age （LIA, 500 to 100–150 a）, the latestcold period with significant permafrost expansion; and （5） climate warming since the last century, during which NortheastChina has undergone extensive permafrost degradation. The frequent and substantial expansions and retreats of permafrosthave greatly impacted cold-region environments in Northeast China. North of the SLP during the HMP, or in the presentcontinuous permafrost zone, the existing permafrost was largely formed during the LG and was later overlapped by thepermafrost formed in the Neoglaciation. To the south, it was formed in the Neoglaciation. However, many aspects ofpermafrost evolution still await further investigations, such as data integration, numerical reconstruction, and merging ofChinese permafrost history with those of bordering regions as well as collaboration with related disciplines. Of these, studies on the evolution and degradation of permafrost during the past 150 years and its hydrological, ecological, and environmentalimpacts should be prioritized.

Glacier variations and rising temperature in the Mt.Kenya since the Last Glacial Maximum

High-resolution imagery can be used to reconstruct former glacier boundaries through the identification of glacial erosional and sedimentary geomorphology. We employed moraine mapping and the accumulation–area ratio method(AAR), in conjunction with Landsat, Google Earth, and SRTM imagery, to reconstruct glacier boundaries and equilibrium-line altitudes(ELAs) for Mt. Kenya in the Last Glacial Maximum(LGM), the Little Ice Age(LIA), and at present. Our results show that the areas of Lewis Glacier and the Tyndall-I glacier system were 0.678 km^2 and 0.390 km^2, respectively, during the maximum of LIA. Those mean that the both glaciers have shrunken by 87.0% and 88.7%, respectively since the LIA. Area change ratios for each glacier were significantly larger in the period of 2000 through 2015 than the former periods, indicating that glacier recession has accelerated. Continuous ice loss in this region has been driven by rising temperature and fluctuating precipitation. Linear regression data for Lewis glacier show that mass balance sensitivity to dry season temperature was –315 mm w.e./℃, whereas the sensitivity to dry season precipitation was 5.2 mm w.e./mm. Our data also show that the ELA on the western slope of Mt. Kenya rose by 716-816 m from the LGM to the modern era, corresponding to that temperature rose by 5.2℃-6.5℃.

Coastal environment of the past millennium recorded by a coastal dune in Fujian,China

Coastal dune is a common aeolian geomorphology in a sandy coast,which records the evolution process of the aeolian landscape system and reflects the complex interaction among land surface,atmosphere and ocean.Coast is a sensitive area to global climate change.Restricted by chronology,most previous researches in China focused only on the cause of formation of coastal dunes.In recent years,the development of optically stimulated luminescence （OSL） dating provides a good method and acts as a carrier for coastal dunes to paleoclimate and paleoenvironmental studies.In this study,we selected an aeolian dune at the Anshan archaeological site,Fujian,China as the research object based on field observations.For determining their sedimentary stages and the primary influencing factors,we used the OSL dating method to construct a chronological framework for the aeolian dune.In addition,the sizes of grains were analyzed for identifying factors influencing the winter monsoon during the Medieval Warm Period （MWP） and the Little Ice Age （LIA） in this area.The results showed that the deposition of the aeolian dune was closely related to variations in the winter monsoon intensity.The changes of the winter monsoon were similar to the tendency of the East Asian winter monsoon,although there were several sub-fluctuations.From an overall perspective,the winter monsoon was strengthened during the MWP （1050–1300） .The results of a power spectrum analysis showed that the intensity of the East Asian winter monsoon is correlated with sunspot activity.

Historical Course Follows Climate Change: Patterns of the Northern Hemisphere — From Peoples’ Migration until the Industrial Revolution (3^rd-18^thCentury)

This paper relates to the statement that the so-called “Little Ice Age” (RCC 6: 1.350-1.800 A.D.) represents—besides the 8k-Event (8.200-8.000 yr cal. B.P.)—the fastest and strongest onset in Holocene History [1]. Its intention focuses on the correlation of interplaying natural processes (i.e. solar energy variation, aerosols, oceanic currents, volcanism as part of plate tectonics, heat flow) with social/political evidence through the time-span of Peoples’ Migration until Industrial Revolution (3rd-18th Century). The time-span comprises the cool/wet/respectively dry climate phase of the P.M. (260-550), a Climate Optimum (600-1.100 A.D.) owning a final Thermal Maximum (1.100-1.260 A.D.) and the “little Ice Age” (1.350-1.800 A.D.), the latter intercalated by the Spörer Minimum (1.460-1.550 A.D.) and the Maunder Minimum (1.650-1.720 A.D.). Thereby, an average temperature difference of 1.0°C - 2.0°C seems sufficient for incising climatic/cultural consequences [2]. It has become obvious that a Climate Optimum primarily provides constructive life conditions;however with a problematic final as the following “Effect-Chain” tells: balanced agricultural/cultural population growth → rich harvests → satisfying nourishment → health, encouragement → overpopulation under favorable materialistic conditions → increasing stress → lack of food, high prices → revolts → migration. In contrast, cool/wet/resp. dry conditions originate destructive/depressive conditions (see Peoples’ Migration) which initiate the following “Effect Chain”: bad agricultural conditions → poor/no harvesting → famine → disease, growing death rate → social, political revolts, wars → human cruelties with psychic/religious background (inquisition, witch-combustion → general chaos (30 yr-war) → death, migration (maritime endeavors, colonization). Furthermore, it should be stressed that volcanic aerosols play besides the solar influx variation—an important role on climate/cultural change [3]. However, the effects of oceanic currents’ heat flow of Mid-Oceanic Ridges and Hot Spots, as well as Earth-Magnetism and Sun/Earth Geometry are poorly understood in this context (Example: Iceland as hot spot situated on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge having been working since 40 Ma). The Chapter-introducing citations play a challenging role in regard to Science Criticism and touch the so-called 95% Confidence line (accepted realm of causal interrelation and according recommendation to Society [4]).

Absence of the Impact of the Flux of Cosmic Rays and the Cloud Cover on the Energy Balance of the Earth

The energy of solar radiation absorbed by the Earth,as well as the thermal radiation of the Earth’s surface,which is released to the space through the atmospheric transparency window,depends on variations of the area of the cloud cover.Svensmark et al.suggest that the increase in the area of the cloud cover in the lower atmosphere,presumably caused by an increase in the flux of galactic cosmic rays during the quasi-bicentennial minimum of solar activity,results only in an increase in the fraction of the solar radiation reflected back to the space and weakens the flux of the solar radiation that reached the Earth surface.It is suggested,without any corresponding calculations of the variations of the average annual energy balance of the EarthЕ,that the consequences will include only a deficit of the solar energy absorbed by the Earth and a cooling of the climate up to the onset of the Little Ice Age.These suggestions ignore simultaneous impact of the opposite aspects of the increase in the area of the cloud cover on the climate warming.The latter will result from a decrease in the power of thermal radiation of the Earth’s surface released to the space,and also in the power of the solar radiation reflected from the Earth’s surface,due to the increase in their absorption and reflection back to the surface.A substantial strengthening in the greenhouse effect and the narrowing of the atmospheric transparency window will also occur.Here,we estimate the impact of all aspects of possible long-term 2%growth of the cloud cover area in the lower atmosphere byЕ.We found that an increase in the cloud cover area in the lower atmosphere will result simultaneously both in the decrease and in the increase in the temperature,which will virtually compensate each other,while the energy balance of the Earth E before and after the increase in the cloud cover area by 2%will stay essentially the same:E1-E0≈0.

Palaeo-sea-ice changes on the North Icelandic shelf during the last millennium:Evidence from diatom records

A high resolution record of sea-ice concentration on the North Icelandic shelf during the last millennium has been reconstructed using a diatom-based sea-ice transfer function. The reconstructed sea-ice record for the top of sediment core MD99–2275 exhibits a slightly increasing trend over the last 1000 years. Prior to AD 1300 sea-ice abundance was generally below the mean value, suggesting the strong influence of warm waters from the Irminger Current during the Medieval Warm Period. A marked increase of sea-ice concentration indicates an abrupt change to colder conditions after AD 1300, corresponding to the onset of the Little Ice Age. The agreement between the reconstructed sea-ice concentration and IP25 data obtained from the same core, as well as with historical records of Icelandic sea ice, suggests that diatoms may provide a valuable tool for future quantitative reconstructions of past sea-ice variability. In addition, agreement between changes in the reconstructed sea-ice record and variations in the abundance of the major diatom components indicates that sea-ice conditions on the North Icelandic shelf are generally strongly influenced by changes in the strength of two different water masses, the cold Polar water periodically derived from the East Greenland Current and the warm Irminger Current derived from the North Atlantic Current. Our proxy evidence also indicates that variations in solar activity have a considerable impact on ocean dynamics, which in turn affects sea-ice abundance.