North Atlantic Oscillation recorded in carbonate δ18O signature from Lagunillo del Tejo (Spain)

2016

Abstract Oxygen (δ18O) and carbon (δ13C) isotope compositions of authigenic carbonates measured in Lagunillo del Tejo sediment document precipitation variability during the last millennium in the Iberian Range. Modern water samples show that Lagunillo δ18O and δD plot below the Global Meteoric Water Line (GMWL). Sediment samples show a covariant trend between carbonate δ18O and δ13C, indicating that the precipitation/evaporation ratio has largely controlled the isotopic composition of this lake. This covariant trend is used to extract information about past lake level changes. Humid periods occurred around AD 1300–1450, AD 1620–1775 and AD 1950–1980, while the driest periods were concentrat…