Abstract
The mid-Piacenzian (Pliocene) climate represents the most geologically
recent interval of long-term average warmth, relative to the last
million years, sharing similarities with the climate projected for the
end of the 21st century. Therefore, this period has been studied by both
geoscientists and climate modelers for many years. A better
understanding of regional late Pliocene conditions can provide insight
into potential climate change impacts, enabling more informed policy
decisions for mitigation and adaptation. Previous work comparing climate
model results with geologic data highlighted key regional and dynamic
situations where there was discord between mean annual SST estimates
generated by climate model simulations and paleoenvironmental
reconstructions. One key area identified was the mid- to high-latitude
North Atlantic. Here, we present a comparison between alkenone-based
North Atlantic PRISM4 (Pliocene Research, Interpretation and Synoptic
Mapping Project, Phase 4) mean annual SST estimates and an ensemble of
ten climate model simulations produced as part of PlioMIP2 (Pliocene
Model Intercomparison Project, Phase 2). Our latest research
demonstrates that improved experimental design incorporating temporal
refinement of the paleoenvironmental reconstruction, and inclusion of
new PRISM4 boundary condition data sets, significantly reduces discord
between data and models.