Methodology for Development of a 600-Year Tree-Ring Multi-Element Record for Larch from the Taymir Peninsula, Russia

We developed a long (600-year) dataset for the concentrations of 26 elements in tree rings of larch from the Taymir Peninsula, the northernmost region in the world (ca. 72°N) where trees grow. Tree rings corresponding to the time period from 1300 to 1900 A.D. were studied. Eleven wood strips, each from a different larch tree, were cut into ca. 100 mg samples usually consisting of ten consecutive tree rings (but occasionally five). Between 19 and 40 consecutive samples resulted from each tree, yielding a total of 277 samples. The replication of each time interval ranged from three (for periods 1300-1400 A.D. and 1600-1700 A.D.) to six (for 1450-1600 A.D.). Wood samples were digested with concentrated HNO 3 for measurement of Li, B, Na, Mg, Al, Si, P, Cl, K, Ca, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Rb, Sr, Y, Zr, Nb, Mo, Ag, Cd, Sn, Sb, I, Ba, La, Ce, Nd, W, Au, Pb, Bi, Th, and U using solution Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICPMS). Fourteen elements (V, Co, As, Y, Nb, Mo, Sb, La, Ce, Nd, W, Au, Th, and U) with extremely low concentrations were eliminated from consideration as unreliable. Here we report our sample preparation and measurement procedure, as well as the observed concentrations in tree rings, emphasizing considerations for developing representative and reliable denrodochemical datasets.Нами был получен длительный массив данных (600 лет) концентраций 26 элементов в годичных кольцах лиственницы с полуострова Таймыр, самого северного региона в мире (около 72° с.ш.), где возможен рост деревьев. Изучались годичные кольца, соответствующие промежутку времени с 1300 по 1900 год н.э. Одиннадцать древесных выпилов, по одному для каждой лиственницы, нарезались на образцы массой около 100 мг, которые, как правило, состояли из десяти годичных колец (но в некоторых случаях из пяти). Из каждого дерева было получено от 19 до 40 последовательных образцов, что дало в общей сложности 277 образцов. Повторность для каждого временного интервала варьировала от трех (для периодов 1300-1400 г.н.э. и 1600-1700 г.н.э.) до шести (для периода 1450-1600 г.н.э.). Древесные образцы растворяли в концентрированной HNO 3 для последующего измерения Li, B, Na, Mg, Al, Si, P, Cl, K, Ca, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Rb, Sr, Y, Zr, Nb, Mo, Ag, Cd, Sn, Sb, I, Ba, La, Ce, Nd, W, Au, Pb, Bi, Th и U при помощи масс-спектрометрии с индуктивно связанной плазмой (ICP-MS) для растворов. Четырнадцать элементов (V, Co, As, Y, Nb, Mo, Sb, La, Ce, Nd, W, Au, Th и U) с очень низкими концентрациями были исключены из рассмотрения как недостоверные. В данной статье, основной целью которой являлась отработка методики получения репрезентативных и достоверных дендрохимических данных, приводится использованная нами процедура пробоподготовки и измерений, а также полученные концентрации в годичных кольцах

Air temperature in Novaya Zemlya Archipelago and Vaygach Island from 1832 to 1920 in the light of early instrumental data

In this article, the results of an investigation into the air temperature conditions in Novaya Zemlya Archipelago and Vaygach Island (NZR) from 1832 to 1920, on the basis of all available early instrumental data gathered during exploratory and scientific expeditions, are presented. Traditional analysis based on mean monthly data was supplemented by an approach less popular in the scientific literature, i.e. the additional use of daily data. Moreover, the daily data used were not limited only to mean daily air temperature, but include also maximum daily temperature, minimum daily temperature and diurnal temperature range. Such rich sets of data allowed for more comprehensive and precise recognition of air temperature conditions in the NZR. Based on these kinds of daily data, it was also possible to calculate the number of so-called ‘characteristic days’ (i.e. the number of days with temperatures exceeding specified thresholds) and day-to-day temperature variability and, for the first time, to determine different characteristics of thermal seasons (duration, onset and end dates) according to Baranowski's (1968) proposition. The results were compared with contemporary temperature conditions (1981–2010) to estimate the range of their changes between historical and present times. Analysis reveals that in 1832–1920, the NZR was markedly colder than today in all seasons. Coldest was autumn (on average by ca 5 °C), and least – summer (by 1.6 °C). Mean annual air temperature was colder than today by about 3 °C. The majority of mean monthly air temperatures in historical times lie within two standard deviations from the modern mean. This means that values of air temperature in historical times lie within the range of contemporary air temperature variability. Different air temperature characteristics calculated on the basis of daily data for the NZR for historical/contemporary periods also confirm the occurrence of climate warming between the studied periods

Diverging climate trends in Mongolian taiga forests influence growth and regeneration of Larix sibirica

Central and semiarid north-eastern Asia was subject to twentieth century warming far above the global average. Since forests of this region occur at their drought limit, they are particularly vulnerable to climate change. We studied the regional variations of temperature and precipitation trends and their effects on tree growth and forest regeneration in Mongolia. Tree-ring series from more than 2,300 trees of Siberian larch (Larix sibirica) collected in four regions of Mongolia’s forest zone were analyzed and related to available weather data. Climate trends underlie a remarkable regional variation leading to contrasting responses of tree growth in taiga forests even within the same mountain system. Within a distance of a few hundred kilometers (140–490 km), areas with recently reduced growth and regeneration of larch alternated with regions where these parameters remained constant or even increased. Reduced productivity could be correlated with increasing summer temperatures and decreasing precipitation; improved growth conditions were found at increasing precipitation, but constant summer temperatures. An effect of increasing winter temperatures on tree-ring width or forest regeneration was not detectable. Since declines of productivity and regeneration are more widespread in the Mongolian taiga than the opposite trend, a net loss of forests is likely to occur in the future, as strong increases in temperature and regionally differing changes in precipitation are predicted for the twenty-first century

Multispectral analysis of Northern Hemisphere temperature records over the last five millennia

Aiming to describe spatio-temporal climate variability on decadal-to-centennial time scales and longer, we analyzed a data set of 26 proxy records extending back 1,000–5,000 years; all records chosen were calibrated to yield temperatures. The seven irregularly sampled series in the data set were interpolated to a regular grid by optimized methods and then two advanced spectral methods—namely singular-spectrum analysis (SSA) and the continuous wavelet transform—were applied to individual series to separate significant oscillations from the high noise background. This univariate analysis identified several common periods across many of the 26 proxy records: a millennial trend, as well as oscillations of about 100 and 200 years, and a broad peak in the 40–70-year band. To study common NH oscillations, we then applied Multichannel SSA. Temperature variations on time scales longer than 600 years appear in our analysis as a dominant trend component, which shows climate features consistent with the Medieval Warm Period and the Little Ice Age. Statistically significant NH-wide peaks appear at 330, 250 and 110 years, as well as in a broad 50–80-year band. Strong variability centers in several bands are located around the North Atlantic basin and are in phase opposition between Greenland and Western Europe