Enhanced Continental Weathering Contributed to the Termination of the Middle Miocene Climatic Optimum

Abstract The Middle Miocene Climatic Optimum (MMCO, ca. 17.0 to 14.7 million years (Myr) ago) is a period of global warming that could be relevant to future projections for 2100 AD. However, the mechanism of atmospheric CO 2 removal during this interval, particularly, whether silicate weathering is critically involved, is currently unclear. In this study, a well‐dated silicate weathering record of a red clay section in East Asia during the 19.8–12.8 Myr ago interval was reported, and the silicate weathering intensity from <5 μm fraction samples was used to minimize grain‐size effects when tracing the Miocene weathering history. The results show an increase in the intensity of silicate weathering in East Asia during the MMCO. The reported data and previously published records indicate that continental weathering was enhanced in East Asia and potentially elsewhere during the MMCO, which triggered the termination of the climatic optimum.

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Publication Details

Journal
Geophysical Research Letters
Published
2025-08-28
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1029/2025gl118302
Citations
1
Primary Topic
Geology and Paleoclimatology Research
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
1.30

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article

Enhanced Continental Weathering Contributed to the Termination of the Middle Miocene Climatic Optimum

Xiaoxiao Yang, Qiaowen Zhang, Shangfa Xiong, Y. Zhang et al.
1 citations
Geophysical Research Letters
Geology and Paleoclimatology Research
1.30
article

Enhanced Continental Weathering Contributed to the Termination of the Middle Miocene Climatic Optimum

Xiaoxiao Yang, Qiaowen Zhang, Shangfa Xiong, Y. Zhang, Jingyi Cui, Shiling Yang, Man Zhang, Bin Zhang, Licheng Guo, Jiabin Wu, Wenying Jiang
article en
1 citations

Abstract

Abstract The Middle Miocene Climatic Optimum (MMCO, ca. 17.0 to 14.7 million years (Myr) ago) is a period of global warming that could be relevant to future projections for 2100 AD. However, the mechanism of atmospheric CO 2 removal during this interval, particularly, whether silicate weathering is critically involved, is currently unclear. In this study, a well‐dated silicate weathering record of a red clay section in East Asia during the 19.8–12.8 Myr ago interval was reported, and the silicate weathering intensity from <5 μm fraction samples was used to minimize grain‐size effects when tracing the Miocene weathering history. The results show an increase in the intensity of silicate weathering in East Asia during the MMCO. The reported data and previously published records indicate that continental weathering was enhanced in East Asia and potentially elsewhere during the MMCO, which triggered the termination of the climatic optimum.

Geophysical Research LettersVol. 52(17)
Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN), Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences (CN), Institute of Geology and Geophysics (CN), Anyang Institute of Technology (CN), University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN), Anqing Normal University (CN), Fujian University of Technology (CN)
National Natural Science Foundation of China, Chinese Academy of Sciences, National Key Research and Development Program of China
Openalex Percentile: Top 19%
Geology and Paleoclimatology Research
1.30
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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