Two-step closure of the Miocene Indian Ocean Gateway to the Mediterranean
- PMID:31222018
- PMCID: PMC6586870
- DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-45308-7
Two-step closure of the Miocene Indian Ocean Gateway to the Mediterranean
Abstract
The Tethys Ocean was compartmentalized into the Mediterranean Sea and Indian Ocean during the early Miocene, yet the exact nature and timing of this disconnection are not well understood. Here we present two new neodymium isotope records from isolated carbonate platforms on both sides of the closing seaway, Malta (outcrop sampling) and the Maldives (IODP Site U1468), to constrain the evolution of past water mass exchange between the present day Mediterranean Sea and Indian Ocean via the Mesopotamian Seaway. Combining these data with box modeling results indicates that water mass exchange was reduced by ~90% in a first step at ca. 20 Ma. The terminal closure of the seaway then coincided with the sea level drop caused by the onset of permanent glaciation of Antarctica at ca. 13.8 Ma. The termination of meridional water mass exchange through the Tethyan Seaway resulted in a global reorganization of currents, paved the way to the development of upwelling in the Arabian Sea and possibly led to a strengthening of South Asian Monsoon.
Conflict of interest statement
The authors declare no competing interests.
Figures



References
- Hotinski RM, Toggweiler JR. Impact of a Tethyan circumglobal passage on ocean heat transport and “equable” climates . Paleoceanography. 2003;18:n/a-n/a. doi: 10.1029/2001PA000730. - DOI
- Li L, Keller G. Variability in Late Cretaceous climate and deep waters: evidence from stable isotopes. Mar. Geol. 1999;161:171–190. doi: 10.1016/S0025-3227(99)00078-X. - DOI
- Barron EJ, Peterson WH. The Cenozoic ocean circulation based on ocean General Circulation Model results. Palaeogeogr. Palaeoclimatol. Palaeoecol. 1991;83:1–28. doi: 10.1016/0031-0182(91)90073-Z. - DOI
- Huber M, Sloan LC. Heat transport, deep waters, and thermal gradients: Coupled simulation of an Eocene greenhouse climate. Geophys. Res. Lett. 2001;28:3481–3484. doi: 10.1029/2001GL012943. - DOI
- Hamon N, Sepulchre P, Lefebvre V, Ramstein G. The role of eastern tethys seaway closure in the middle miocene climatic transition (ca. 14 Ma) Clim. Past. 2013;9:2687–2702. doi: 10.5194/cp-9-2687-2013. - DOI
Publication types
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Molecular Biology Databases
Miscellaneous
