Ocean surface currents function of wind duration, intensity, and fetch; Coriolis effects; continental position; water density and salinity

Climatic changes: a matter of periodicity; interaction of atmosphere, ocean and land – Short cycle changes: North Atlantic Oscillatio n

Short term oscillations: Arctic Oscillation

Longer scale oscillations: El Nino Southern Oscillation – Neutral phase below

“Warm phase”

Sea surface temperatures (SST) and ENSO

La Nina conditions

More long-term oscillations: Pacific decadal oscillation (PDO)

Multidecadal oscillation: Atlantic multidecadal oscillation

Importance of deep ocean curents: The Global Conveyor Belt of Walter Broecker

About 12,000 ybp, sudden drop in temperature, some re- advance of ice sheets in North America – Younger Dryas period

At same time, icebergs dropped boulders in North America- Heinrich events

Heinrich events now thought to be due to drainage patterns from North America – glacial Lake Agassiz – Theorized shutdown of thermohaline circulation, drop in temperature of North America and Europe

Paleoclimatology and paleobiogeography how do we study paleobiogeography? – Use of tree cores – Use of pollen cores

Ice cores and climate determination

Measuring changes from millions of years ago – Changes in climate over millions of years

Influence of continental position – theory of plate tectonics – Example of North and South America – isthmus of Panama

Disruption of Pacific-Atlantic connection; formation of Gulf Stream to flow to the northeast

THEY THAT GO DOWN TO THE SEA IN SHIPS, that do business in great waters; These see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep. For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof. They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits' end. Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still. Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven. Psalms, 107:23-30, KJV