PERICLIMv1.0: a model deriving palaeo-air temperatures from thaw depth in past permafrost regions

0541618 - GFÚ 2022 RIV DE eng J - Journal Article
Uxa, Tomáš - Křížek, M. - Hrbáček, F.
PERICLIMv1.0: a model deriving palaeo-air temperatures from thaw depth in past permafrost regions.
Geoscientific Model Development. Roč. 14, č. 4 (2021), s. 1865-1884. ISSN 1991-959X. E-ISSN 1991-9603
Institutional support: RVO:67985530
Keywords : palaeoclimate reconstruction * permafrost * Quaternary
OECD category: Physical geography
Impact factor: 6.892, year: 2021
Method of publishing: Open access
https://gmd.copernicus.org/articles/14/1865/2021/

Periglacial features, such as various kinds of patterned ground, cryoturbations, frost wedges, solifluction structures, and blockfields, are among the most common relics of cold climate periods, which repetitively occurred throughout the Quaternary. As such, they are widespread archives of past environmental conditions. Climate controls on the development of most periglacial features, however, remain poorly known, and thus empirical palaeo-climate reconstructions based on them have limited validity. This study presents and evaluates a simple new inverse modelling scheme called PERICLIMv1.0 (PERIglacial CLIMate) that derives palaeo-air temperature characteristics related to the palaeo-active-layer thickness, which can be recognized using many relict periglacial features found in past permafrost regions. The evaluation against modern temperature records showed that the model reproduces air temperature characteristics with average errors <= 1.3 degrees C. The past mean annual air temperature modelled experimentally for two sites in the Czech Republic hosting relict cryoturbation structures was between -7.0 +/- 1.9 and -3.2 +/- 1.5 degrees C, which is well in line with earlier reconstructions utilizing various palaeo-archives. These initial results are promising and suggest that the model could become a useful tool for reconstructing Quaternary palaeo-environments across vast areas of mid-latitudes and low latitudes where relict periglacial assemblages frequently occur, but their full potential remains to be exploited.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0319152


Research data: Zenodo