@misc{10481/109776,
year = {2026},
month = {1},
url = {https://hdl.handle.net/10481/109776},
abstract = {In this study, we combine analyses of benthic foraminiferal assemblages, grain-size distributions, and elemental composition (X-ray fluorescence) with geochemical measurements of foraminiferal coatings (U/Mnfc) and stable oxygen isotopes (δ18O) from sediment core NDT_22_2016 (432 m water depth) to reconstruct oceanographic variability over the past ∼18 kyr. Our findings reveal a significant influx of shelf-derived benthic foraminiferal assemblages during Heinrich Stadial 1 (HS1), which we attribute to enhanced melting of Northern Apennines glaciers, particularly during HS1b (∼17-16 kyr). These observations support the occurrence of warm summers despite the overall regional cooling linked to HS1. At the same time, micropaleontological and geochemical data record an abrupt decline in mid-depth oxygen conditions, potentially reflecting HS1-driven changes in the properties of intermediate waters originating from the eastern Mediterranean Sea. During the formation of Sapropel 1 (S1) in the eastern basin, the presence of well-oxygenated waters and the formation of a sandy condensed layer are interpreted to reflect intense sediment winnowing associated with episodes of dense shelf-water formation in the study region. We argue that these conditions may have facilitated the development of a western-sourced intermediate water mass, which would have occupied the pathway of weakened eastern-sourced Mediterranean waters during S1 deposition. We further propose that the modern Mediterranean circulation pattern was established at ∼6 kyr, marked by notable changes in both sedimentary and benthic ecosystem records. Lastly, a significant shift in sediment supply over the last ∼2 kyr is linked to pronounced anthropogenic impacts.},
organization = {Agencia Estatal de Investigación (Spain) (683237), (PID2022-138010OB-I00)},
organization = {Generalitat de Catalunya 2021 SGR 01195, ICREA-Academia Award},
organization = {UB (Facultat de Ciències de la Terra, Dept. de Dinàmica de la Terra i de l’Oceà)},
organization = {Sapienza Università di Roma (Department of Earth Sciences)},
organization = {Junta de Andalucía RNM-190},
organization = {UK Research and Innovation Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/X02623X/1)},
publisher = {Elsevier},
keywords = {Mediterranean},
keywords = {Paleoceanography},
keywords = {Paleoclimatology},
title = {Deglacial and Holocene variability of intermediate water masses in the Ligurian Sea based on a multi-proxy approach},
doi = {10.1016/j.quascirev.2026.109800},
author = {Selvaggi, Mar and Cacho, Isabel and Pérez Asensio, José Noel and Evangelinos, Dimitris and Martinelli, Pierluigi and Bronzo, Laura and Català, Albert and Pena, Leopoldo D. and Frigola, Jaime and Gennari, Rocco and Bonomo, Sergio and Cascella, Antonio and Lirer, Fabrizio and Di Bella, Letizia},
}