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https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-288
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-288
29 Jan 2025
 | 29 Jan 2025

More modest peak temperatures during the Last Interglacial for both Greenland and Antarctica suggested by multi-model isotope simulations

Louise C. Sime, Rahul Sivankutty, Irene Malmierca-Vallet, Sentia Goursaud Oger, Allegra N. LeGrande, Erin L. McClymont, Agatha de Boer, Alexandre Cauquoin, and Martin Werner

Abstract. The Last Interglacial (LIG) period, approximately 130,000 to 115,000 years ago, represents one of the warmest intervals in the past 800,000 years. Here we simulate water isotopes in precipitation in Antarctica and the Arctic during the LIG, using three isotope-enabled atmosphere-ocean coupled climate models: HadCM3, MPI-ESM-wiso, and GISS-E2.1. These models were run following the Paleoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project, phase 4 (PMIP4) protocol for the LIG at 127 ka (kilo-years ago), supplemented by a 3000-year Heinrich Stadial 11 (H11) experiment run with HadCM3. The long H11 simulation has meltwater from the Northern Hemisphere applied to the North Atlantic which causes large-scale changes in ocean circulation including cooling in the North Atlantic and Arctic and warming in the Southern and Global Ocean. We find that the standard 127 ka simulations do not capture the observed Antarctic warming and sea ice reduction in the Southern Ocean and Antarctic regions, but they capture around half of the warming in the Arctic. The H11 simulations align better with observations: they capture more than 80 % of the warming, sea ice loss, and δ18O changes for both Greenland and Antarctica. Decomposition of seasonal δ18O drivers highlights the dominant role of sea-ice retreat and associated changes in precipitation seasonality in influencing isotopic values in all simulations, alongside a small common response to orbital forcing. We use the H11 and multi-model 127 k simulations together to infer LIG surface air temperature (SAT) changes based on ice core measurements. The peak inferred LIG Greenland SAT increase is +2.89 ± 1.32 K at the NEEM ice core site. This is less than half the previously inferred warming. Peak inferred LIG Antarctic SAT increases are +4.39 ± 1.45 K at EDC, dropping to +1.67 ± 3.67 K at TALDICE. These calculated warming values are from climate effects alone, and do not take account of any ice flow or site elevation related impacts. Coastal sites in Greenland and Antarctica appear to have experienced less warming compared with higher central regions.

Competing interests: At least one of the (co-)authors is a member of the editorial board of Climate of the Past.

Publisher's note: Copernicus Publications remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims made in the text, published maps, institutional affiliations, or any other geographical representation in this paper. While Copernicus Publications makes every effort to include appropriate place names, the final responsibility lies with the authors. Views expressed in the text are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher.
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Journal article(s) based on this preprint

08 Oct 2025
H11 meltwater and standard 127 ka Last Interglacial simulations suggest more modest peak temperatures for both Greenland and Antarctica: a multi-model study of water isotopes
Louise C. Sime, Rahul Sivankutty, Irene Malmierca-Vallet, Sentia Goursaud Oger, Allegra N. LeGrande, Erin L. McClymont, Agatha de Boer, Alexandre Cauquoin, and Martin Werner
Clim. Past, 21, 1725–1753, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-1725-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-1725-2025, 2025
Short summary
Louise C. Sime, Rahul Sivankutty, Irene Malmierca-Vallet, Sentia Goursaud Oger, Allegra N. LeGrande, Erin L. McClymont, Agatha de Boer, Alexandre Cauquoin, and Martin Werner

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-288', Anonymous Referee #1, 02 Feb 2025
  • RC2: 'Reviewer comment on egusphere-2025-288', Jesper Sjolte, 21 Feb 2025

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-288', Anonymous Referee #1, 02 Feb 2025
  • RC2: 'Reviewer comment on egusphere-2025-288', Jesper Sjolte, 21 Feb 2025

Peer review completion

AR: Author's response | RR: Referee report | ED: Editor decision | EF: Editorial file upload
ED: Reconsider after major revisions (18 May 2025) by Qiong Zhang
AR by Louise Sime on behalf of the Authors (22 May 2025)  Author's response   Author's tracked changes   Manuscript 
ED: Referee Nomination & Report Request started (26 May 2025) by Qiong Zhang
RR by Anonymous Referee #1 (13 Jun 2025)
RR by Jesper Sjolte (16 Jun 2025)
ED: Publish as is (21 Jun 2025) by Qiong Zhang
AR by Louise Sime on behalf of the Authors (24 Jun 2025)  Manuscript 

Journal article(s) based on this preprint

08 Oct 2025
H11 meltwater and standard 127 ka Last Interglacial simulations suggest more modest peak temperatures for both Greenland and Antarctica: a multi-model study of water isotopes
Louise C. Sime, Rahul Sivankutty, Irene Malmierca-Vallet, Sentia Goursaud Oger, Allegra N. LeGrande, Erin L. McClymont, Agatha de Boer, Alexandre Cauquoin, and Martin Werner
Clim. Past, 21, 1725–1753, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-1725-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-1725-2025, 2025
Short summary
Louise C. Sime, Rahul Sivankutty, Irene Malmierca-Vallet, Sentia Goursaud Oger, Allegra N. LeGrande, Erin L. McClymont, Agatha de Boer, Alexandre Cauquoin, and Martin Werner
Louise C. Sime, Rahul Sivankutty, Irene Malmierca-Vallet, Sentia Goursaud Oger, Allegra N. LeGrande, Erin L. McClymont, Agatha de Boer, Alexandre Cauquoin, and Martin Werner

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Short summary
We used climate models to study how stable water isotopes in ice cores changed in the Arctic and Antarctica during the warm Last Interglacial (LIG) period. Whilst standard simulations underestimate polar warming, when the effects of ice sheet meltwater from the preceding deglaciation are included, there is a much better match with observations. Findings suggest that previous estimates of LIG Arctic warming were too high. Understanding these past polar changes can help improve future predictions.
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