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Knowledge about timing, amplitude and spatial gradients of Holocene environmental variability in the CircumBaltic region is key to understand its responses to ongoing climate change. Based on a multi-dating and proxy approach, we reconstruct changes in productivity from TOC contents in sediments of Lake Kälksjön (KKJ) in west-central Sweden spanning the last 9612 (+255/-144) years. An exception is the period from AD 1878 until today, in which sedimentation was dominated by anthropogenic lake level lowering and land use. In-lake productivity was higher during periods of warmer winters with shortened ice cover and prolonged growing seasons. A multi-millennial increase in productivity throughout the last ~9600 years is associated with progressively warmer winters in north-western Europe, likely triggered by the coinciding increase in Northern Hemisphere winter insolation. Decadal to centennial periods of higher productivity in KKJ correspond to warmer winters during a more positive North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) polarity, as reconstructed for the last 5200 years. In consequence, we assume our decadal to centennial productivity record from KKJ sediments for the complete ~9600 years to provide a qualitative record of NAO polarity. A shift towards higher productivity variability at ~5450 cal. a BP is hypothesized to reflect a reinforcement of NAO-like atmospheric circulation variability, possibly driven by more vigorous changes in North Atlantic deep water formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several climate events have been reported from the Early Holocene superepoch, the best known of these being the Preboreal oscillation (PBO). It is still unclear how the PBO and the number of climate events observed in Greenland ice cores and European terrestrial records are related to one another. This is mainly due to uncertainties in the chronologies of the records. Here, we present new high resolution 10Be concentration data from the varved Meerfelder Maar sediment record in Germany, spanning the period 11310-11000 years BP. These new data allow us to synchronize this well-studied record as well as Greenland ice-core records to the IntCal13 time-scale via radionuclide wiggle-matching. In doing so, we show that the climate oscillations identified in Greenland and Europe between 11450 and 11000 years BP were not synchronous but terminated and began, respectively, with the onset of a grand solar minimum. A similar spatial anomaly pattern is found in a number of modeling studies on solar forcing of climate in the North Atlantic region. We further postulate that freshwater delivery to the North Atlantic would have had the potential to amplify solar forcing through a slowdown of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) reinforcing surface air temperature anomalies in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the relationship between the variability in the frequency of River Ammer floods (southern Germany) and temperature/precipitation extremes over Europe using observational River Ammer discharge data back to 1926 and the 5500-year-long flood layer record from varved Lake Ammersee sediments. We show that observed River Ammer flood frequency variability is not only related with local extreme precipitation, but also with large-scale temperature extreme anomalies. Less (more) extreme high temperatures over central and western (northeastern) Europe are recorded during periods of increased River Ammer flood frequency. We argue that changing radiative forcing due to cloudiness anomaly patterns associated with River Ammer floods induce these extreme temperature anomalies. Consistent patterns are obtained using observed discharge and proxy flood layer frequency data. Furthermore, a higher frequency of observed River Ammer floods and flood layers is associated with enhanced blocking activity over northeastern Europe. A blocking high over this region increases the probability of wave breaking and associated heavy precipitation over western Europe. A similar blocking pattern is associated with periods of reduced solar activity. Consequently, solar modulated changes in blocking frequency over northeastern Europe could explain the connection between River Ammer floods and solar activity, as also identified in previous studies. We argue that multi-decadal to millennial flood frequency variations in the Mid- to Late Holocene flood layer record from Lake Ammersee characterizes also the extreme temperatures in northeastern Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Time-scale uncertainties between paleoclimate reconstructions often inhibit studying the exact timing, spatial expression and driving mechanisms of climate variations. Detecting and aligning the globally common cosmogenic radionuclide production signal via a curve fitting method provides a tool for the quasi-continuous synchronization of paleoclimate archives. In this study, we apply this approach to synchronize 10Be records from varved sediments of Lakes Tiefer See and Czechowskie covering the Maunder-, Homeric- and 5500 a BP grand solar minima with 14C production rates inferred from the IntCal13 calibration curve. Our analyses indicate best fits with 14C production rates when the 10Be records from Lake Tiefer See were shifted for 8 (-12/+4) (Maunder Minimum), 31 (-16/+12) (Homeric Minimum) and 86 (-22/+18) years (5500 a BP grand solar minimum) towards the past. The best fit between the Lake Czechowskie 10Be record for the 5500 a BP grand solar minimum and 14C production was obtained when the 10Be time-series was shifted 29 (-8/+7) years towards present. No significant fits were detected between the Lake Czechowskie 10Be records for the Maunder- and Homeric Minima and 14C production, likely due intensified in-lake sediment resuspension since about 2800 a BP, transporting old 10Be to the coring location. Our results provide a proof of concept for facilitating 10Be in varved lake sediments as novel synchronization tool required for investigating leads and lags of proxy responses to climate variability. However, they also point to some limitations of 10Be in these archives mainly connected to in-lake sediment resuspension processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]