Middle Miocene ice sheet expansion in the Arctic: Views from the Barents Sea

Abstract

Revised core data from Ocean Drilling Program (ODP Leg 151, Hole 909C) and preglacial paleorelief and bathymetric reconstructions in the Barents Sea and the Arctic gateway region indicate that large-scale glaciations were already developed in the northern Barents Sea during the Middle Miocene Climate Transition (MMCT), ∼15 - 14 million years ago. Our findings show that subsequent to an ice-free period during the Miocene Climate Optimum (MCO, ∼17 - 15 Ma), glacially eroded materials from the uplifted northern Barents Sea were transported by iceberg flotillas toward the Fram Strait. The simultaneous opening of the North Atlantic-Arctic gateway provided pathways for iceberg transport from the north. The expansive ice growth is probably induced by both large-scale changes in ocean circulation due to enhanced flow of Atlantic water into the Arctic Ocean during opening of the gateway and concurrent global cooling during the MMCT. © Copyright 2008 by the American Geophysical Union.