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Extreme winds and waves in the aftermath of a Neoproterozoic glaciation

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  • Philip A. Allen

    (ETH-Zürich)

  • Paul F. Hoffman

    (Harvard University
    Planetary Sciences, Harvard University)

Abstract

The most severe excursions in the Earth's climatic history are thought to be associated with Proterozoic glaciations. According to the ‘Snowball Earth’ hypothesis, the Marinoan glaciation, which ended about 635 million years ago, involved global or nearly global ice cover. At the termination of this glacial period, rapid melting of continental ice sheets must have caused a large rise in sea level. Here we show that sediments deposited during this sea level rise contain remarkable structures that we interpret as giant wave ripples. These structures occur at homologous stratigraphic levels in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Namibia and Svalbard. Our hydrodynamic analysis of these structures suggests maximum wave periods of 21 to 30 seconds, significantly longer than those typical for today's oceans. The reconstructed wave conditions could only have been generated under sustained high wind velocities exceeding 20 metres per second in fetch-unlimited ocean basins. We propose that these extraordinary wind and wave conditions were characteristic of the climatic transit, and provide observational targets for atmospheric circulation models.

Suggested Citation

  • Philip A. Allen & Paul F. Hoffman, 2005. "Extreme winds and waves in the aftermath of a Neoproterozoic glaciation," Nature, Nature, vol. 433(7022), pages 123-127, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:433:y:2005:i:7022:d:10.1038_nature03176
    DOI: 10.1038/nature03176
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    Cited by:

    1. Lennart Ramme & Tatiana Ilyina & Jochem Marotzke, 2024. "Moderate greenhouse climate and rapid carbonate formation after Marinoan snowball Earth," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-11, December.

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