Glacier retreat in New Zealand during the Younger Dryas stadial

Abstract

Millennial-scale cold reversals in the high latitudes of both hemispheres interrupted the last transition from full glacial to interglacial climate conditions. The presence of the Younger Dryas stadial (∼12.9 to ∼11.7 kyr ago) is established throughout much of the Northern Hemisphere, but the global timing, nature and extent of the event are not well established. Evidence in mid to low latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere, in particular, has remained perplexing^1,2,3,4,5,6. The debate has in part focused on the behaviour of mountain glaciers in New Zealand, where previous research has found equivocal evidence for the precise timing of increased or reduced ice extent^1,2,3. The interhemispheric behaviour of the climate system during the Younger Dryas thus remains an open question, fundamentally limiting our ability to formulate realistic models of global climate dynamics for this time period. Here we show that New Zealand’s glaciers retreated after ∼13 kyr bp, at the onset of the Younger Dryas, and in general over the subsequent ∼1.5-kyr period. Our evidence is based on detailed landform mapping, a high-precision ¹⁰Be chronology⁷ and reconstruction of former ice extents and snow lines from well-preserved cirque moraines. Our late-glacial glacier chronology matches climatic trends in Antarctica, Southern Ocean behaviour and variations in atmospheric CO₂. The evidence points to a distinct warming of the southern mid-latitude atmosphere during the Younger Dryas and a close coupling between New Zealand’s cryosphere and southern high-latitude climate. These findings support the hypothesis that extensive winter sea ice and curtailed meridional ocean overturning in the North Atlantic led to a strong interhemispheric thermal gradient⁸ during late-glacial times, in turn leading to increased upwelling and CO₂ release from the Southern Ocean⁹, thereby triggering Southern Hemisphere warming during the northern Younger Dryas.