南海北部陆坡大洋钻探计划(ODP)1144站的高速堆积体为高分辨率的古环境研究提供了良好的材料。通过分析1144站陆源碎屑的粒径分布,高分辨率地(200a)研究了中更新世气候转型期(0.78~1.0Ma)东亚夏季风演变在南海北部的记录。结果显示,陆源碎屑的粒径比值(3.5~8.2/μm)/(9~23/μm)可以作为东亚夏季风演化的替代指标,高值代表强盛的夏季风。这个比值指示了夏季风在920ka时突然增强,表明中更新世转型以夏季风突然增强为起点,此后夏季风处于不断加强和减弱的循环状态,说明了中更新世气候转型是一个渐变的过程。东亚夏季风演化的强弱与北半球夏季日射量基本呈线性关系,显示东亚季风演化的天文驱动机制。频谱分析发现,夏季风演化存在3.3ka和1.2ka左右的千年尺度周期,且在转型前后千年尺度周期也发生变化,说明中更新世的气候转型不仅表现在轨道尺度的气候周期变化上,也体现在千年尺度气候波动的特征变化上。
High accumulation-rate sediments at Ocean slope of the South China Sea provide unique materials Drilling Program (ODP) Site 1144 in the northern for a high-resolution study on paleoenvironment. A high-resolution (200 a) record of the East Asian summer monsoon evolution in the northern South China Sea during the Mid-Pleistocene Transition (0.78-1.0 Ma) was revealed by grain size analysis of terrigenous clast at Site 1144. The result indicates that the terrigenous grain-size ratio of 3.5-8.2μm/9-23μm can be used as a proxy of the evolution of the East Asia summer monsoon, with relatively high values presenting strengthened summer monsoon. The ratio increased rapidly at 920 ka, indicating the beginning of the Mid-Pleistocene Transition with an association of the enhanced summer monsoon. Since then, the sum- mer monsoon strengthened and weakened seasonally, showing a gradual change process of the Mid-Pleistocene Transition. The increase of East Asian summer monsoon intensity correlated well to the enhancement of the Northern Hemisphere insolation, demonstrating the orbital forcing of the East Asian monsoon evolution. The spectral analysis of terrigenous grain-size ratio (3.5-8.2μm)/(9-23μm) reveals millennialscale climate fluctuations at intervals of 3. 3 and 1.2 ka. The millennial-scale periods varied from preto posto920 ka, suggesting that the Mid-Pleistocene Transition behaved not only on orbital scale climate changes, but also on millennial-scale climate fluctuations.