Reduced North Pacific Deep Water formation across the Northern Hemisphere Glaciation

Friso Graaf (), Heather L. Ford, Natalie Burls, Rachel Brown, Chris Brierley, Gavin L. Foster and David Thornalley
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Friso Graaf: Queen Mary University of London
Heather L. Ford: Queen Mary University of London
Natalie Burls: George Mason University
Rachel Brown: Centre Européen de Recherche et d’enseignement des géosciences de l’environnement (CEREGE)
Chris Brierley: University College London
Gavin L. Foster: University of Southampton, National Oceanography Centre Southampton
David Thornalley: University College London

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-9

Abstract: Abstract Today, deep waters do not form in the northern high latitudes of the Pacific Ocean, but this may not have been the case during the Pliocene. Evidence suggests there was a Pacific Meridional Overturning Circulation during the warm Late Pliocene, similar to the modern Atlantic Ocean with a weak halocline in the subpolar North Pacific resulting in North Pacific Deep Water (NPDW) formation. However, much of this evidence comes from proxies that can be biased by changes in local productivity. We present a coupled Mg/Ca-δ18O record from the North Pacific which shows two distinct water masses in the Pliocene North Pacific Ocean, with NPDW colder and fresher than the underlying deeper water. Here, we show a decline in NPDW formation during glacials from 2.7 million years ago, which we suggest demonstrates the strong sensitivity of ocean gateways to sea level and ice volume change in shaping deep water circulation, and thus the climate system.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-58069-x

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