Revising midlatitude summer temperatures back to A.D. 600 based on a wood density network
Abstract
Annually resolved and millennium-long reconstructions of large-scale temperature variability are primarily composed of tree ring width (TRW) chronologies. Changes in ring width, however, have recently been shown to bias the ratio between low- and high-frequency signals. To overcome limitations in capturing the full spectrum of past temperature variability, we present a network of 15 maximum latewood density (MXD) chronologies distributed across the Northern Hemisphere extratropics. Independent subsets of continental-scale records consistently reveal high MXD before 1580 and after 1910, with below average values between these periods. Reconstructed extratropical summer temperatures reflect not only these long-term trends but also distinct cooling pulses after large volcanic eruptions. In contrast to TRW-dominated reconstructions, this MXD-based record indicates a delayed onset of the Little Ice Age by almost two centuries. The reduced memory inherent in MXD is likely responsible for the rapid recovery from volcanic-induced cooling in the fourteenth century and the continuation of warmer temperatures until ~1600.
Citation
Schneider , L , Smerdon , J E , Büntgen , U , Wilson , R J S , Myglan , V S , Kirdyanov , A V & Esper , J 2015 , ' Revising midlatitude summer temperatures back to A.D. 600 based on a wood density network ' , Geophysical Research Letters , vol. 42 , no. 11 , pp. 4556-4562 . https://doi.org/10.1002/2015GL063956
Publication
Geophysical Research Letters
Status
Peer reviewed
ISSN
0094-8276Type
Journal article
Rights
© 2015. American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved. Schneider, L., Smerdon, J. E., Büntgen, U., Wilson, R. J. S., Myglan, V. S., Kirdyanov, A. V., & Esper, J. (2015). Revising midlatitude summer temperatures back to A.D. 600 based on a wood density network. Geophysical Research Letters, 42(11), 4556-4562, doi: 10.1002/2015GL063956. To view the published open abstract, go to http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/2015GL063956
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