Tropical Pacific Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum Isotope and Mg/Ca Data

Paleoceanography data from NOAA NCEI contains isotope and Mg/Ca ratio measurements for the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum event, approximately 55 million years before present. The dataset documents conditions in the North Pacific Ocean during this ancient period of rapid global warming. It is archived by the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information under its World Data Service for Paleoclimatology.

Use Cases

• Reconstructing ancient sea surface temperatures by calibrating Mg/Ca ratios from foraminifera.
• Analyzing carbon cycle perturbations by correlating stable isotope data (e.g., δ¹⁸O, δ¹³C) across the PETM interval.
• Modeling ocean chemistry changes in the North Pacific Ocean using paired Mg/Ca and isotope time series.
• Investigating the rate and magnitude of the PETM warming event by analyzing high-resolution geochemical proxy records.

Strengths

• Focuses on a well-defined, globally significant climatic event (the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum).
• Provides paired geochemical proxy measurements (isotopes and Mg/Ca ratios) for multi-variable analysis.

Limitations

• Specific temporal coverage, sample count, and geographic coordinates are unavailable in the provided description.
• Data likely represents a specific core site or region, limiting broad spatial conclusions about the entire Tropical Pacific.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) World Data Service for Paleoclimatology.

Collection Method

null

Time Range

Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, ~55 million years before present.

Freshness

null

Geography

North Pacific Ocean.