Coastal sea surface temperature change in the East China Sea during the late Holocene

Abstract

Coastal sea surface temperatures were reconstructed using alkenone analyses on sediment core T08 collected from the Min-Zhe coastal mud area by gravity corer in 2011. The alkenone simplified U^K' 37 index has been widely recognised as one of the reliable ways for quantitative SST reconstruction. Sea surface temperatures were calculated using U^K' 37 for studying past coastal sea surface temperature change over the East China Sea during the Late Holocene. Results found span over the last 2300 years, and largely show a warm period. The alkenone U^K' 37—sea surface temperatures range from 28.15℃to 23.87℃. There are also noticeable cooling events recorded in the T08 core. Warm and cool periods show an apparent link to East Asia Monsoonal activities. During cooler periods, the East Asian winter monsoon strengthened as the East Asia summer monsoon weakened, and vice versa. However, spatial patterns could not be uncovered in this study as only one site was studied. More sites would need to be investigate in order to reveal more detailed spatial patterns of this region.