IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v15y2024i1d10.1038_s41467-024-45894-9.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Reconciling ice core CO2 and land-use change following New World-Old World contact

Author

Listed:
  • Amy C. F. King

    (British Antarctic Survey)

  • Thomas K. Bauska

    (British Antarctic Survey)

  • Edward. J. Brook

    (Oregon State University)

  • Mike Kalk

    (Oregon State University)

  • Christoph Nehrbass-Ahles

    (University of Cambridge
    National Physical Laboratory)

  • Eric. W. Wolff

    (University of Cambridge)

  • Ivo Strawson

    (British Antarctic Survey
    University of Cambridge)

  • Rachael H. Rhodes

    (University of Cambridge)

  • Matthew B. Osman

    (University of Cambridge)

Abstract

Ice core records of carbon dioxide (CO2) throughout the last 2000 years provide context for the unprecedented anthropogenic rise in atmospheric CO2 and insights into global carbon cycle dynamics. Yet the atmospheric history of CO2 remains uncertain in some time intervals. Here we present measurements of CO2 and methane (CH4) in the Skytrain ice core from 1450 to 1700 CE. Results suggest a sudden decrease in CO2 around 1610 CE in one widely used record may be an artefact of a small number of anomalously low values. Our analysis supports a more gradual decrease in CO2 of 0.5 ppm per decade from 1516 to 1670 CE, with an inferred land carbon sink of 2.6 PgC per decade. This corroborates modelled scenarios of large-scale reorganisation of land use in the Americas following New World-Old World contact, whereas a rapid decrease in CO2 at 1610 CE is incompatible with even the most extreme land-use change scenarios.

Suggested Citation

  • Amy C. F. King & Thomas K. Bauska & Edward. J. Brook & Mike Kalk & Christoph Nehrbass-Ahles & Eric. W. Wolff & Ivo Strawson & Rachael H. Rhodes & Matthew B. Osman, 2024. "Reconciling ice core CO2 and land-use change following New World-Old World contact," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-9, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:15:y:2024:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-024-45894-9
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45894-9
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-45894-9
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/s41467-024-45894-9?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:15:y:2024:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-024-45894-9. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.