Paleo Data Search

The impact of volcanic and solar forcings on multi-decadal climate change during the Holocene remains unclear. Here, we analysed the stable isotopes of fluid inclusions in a stalagmite to investigate hydroclimate responses to the forcings in the Northwest Pacific region. Our stalagmite data, covering the active volcanism period in the mid-Holocene, showed that the start of large volcanic eruption clusters tends to coincide with an onset or an ongoing cooling phase. The impact of one of the largest volcanic eruptions during the Holocene, likely at Kikai caldera, is recorded as an amplified multi-decadal scale variation, including a noticeable cold-wet climate anomaly. Excluding this anomalous period, the solar forcing record negatively correlated with stalagmite-derived precipitation but not with stalagmite-derived temperature. Our data suggest that clusters of volcanic activity during the mid-Holocene likely contribute to climate change at multi-decadal scale via a teleconnection between the Northwest Pacific and the North Atlantic regions.