Advancing chronologies for Last Interglacial sequences

Abstract

Studies of the Last Interglacial (ca. 129 to 116 ka BP) provide an opportunity to study the impact of high-latitude warm temperatures on the Earth system. To build an accurate spatio-temporal picture of climate and environmental variability during the Last Interglacial, building robust chronologies, through which the patchwork of terrestrial, marine, and ice core archives can be correlated, is paramount. In this review, we briefly evaluate the most common approaches used to date climate and environmental archives from the Last Interglacial, as well as the chronostratigraphic tools available for direct correlation between sequences, with a focus on terrestrial archives. We then present a case study on the use of pollen biostratigraphy for correlating sequences in NW Europe, highlighting its strength as a local correlation tool, and the challenges this approach presents in comparing sequences to global records of climate and environmental change. A move towards consistently dated sequences will improve our understanding of environmental responses to Last Interglacial climate variability across different elements of the global climate system and the rates at which different elements of the climate system respond to changes in global temperatures.