Ice age at the Middle–Late Jurassic transition?

• Published in: Earth and planetary science letters Vol. 213; no. 3-4; pp. 205 - 220
• Main Authors: Dromart, G., Garcia, J.-P., Picard, S., Atrops, F., Lécuyer, C., Sheppard, S.M.F.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 25.08.2003
• Subjects: Brackish; Freshwater; Marine
• ISSN: 0012-821X
• DOI: 10.1016/S0012-821X(03)00287-5

A detailed record of sea surface temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere based on migration of marine invertebrate fauna (ammonites) and isotopic thermometry ( delta super(18)O values of shark tooth enamel) indicates a severe cooling at the Middle-Late Jurassic transition (MLJT), about 160 Ma ago. The magnitude of refrigeration (1-3 degree C for lower middle latitudes) and its coincidence in time with an abrupt global-scale fall of sea level documented through sequence stratigraphy are both suggestive of continental ice formation at this time. Ice sheets may have developed over the high-latitude mountainous regions of Far-East Russia. The drastic cooling just post-dated the Middle-Late Callovian widespread deposition of organic-rich marine sediments (e.g. northwestern Europe, Central Atlantic, and Arabian Peninsula). This thermal deterioration can thus be ascribed to a downdraw in atmospheric CO sub(2) via enhanced organic carbon burial which acted as a negative feedback effect (i.e. the inverse greenhouse effect). The glacial episode of the MLJT climaxed in the Late Callovian, lasted about 2.6 Myr, and had a pronounced asymmetrical pattern composed of an abrupt ( similar to 0.8 Myr) temperature fall opposed to a long-term ( similar to 1.8 Myr), stepwise recovery. The glacial conditions at the MLJT reveal that atmospheric CO sub(2) levels could have dropped temporarily to values lower than 500 ppmv during Mesozoic times.