RT Journal Article T1 Land surface temperature changes in Northern Iberia since 4000 yr BP, based on δ13Cof speleothems A1 Martín Chivelet, Javier A1 Muñoz García, María Belén A1 Edwards, R. Lawrence A1 Turrero Jiménez, María Jesús A1 Ortega Martínez, Ana Isabel AB The surface temperature changes for the last 4000 years in northern inland Iberia (an area particularlysensitive to climate change) are determined by a high resolution study of carbon stable isotope records ofstalagmites from three caves (Kaite, Cueva del Cobre, and Cueva Mayor) separated several tens of kilometersaway in N Spain. Despite the local conditions of each cave, the isotopic series show a good overall coherence,and resulted to be strongly sensitive to surface temperature changes.The record reflects alternating warmer and colder intervals, always within a temperature range of 1.6 °C. Thetiming and duration of the intervals were provided by 43 230Th–234U (ICP-MS) ages. Main climatic recognizedperiods are: (1) 3950–3000 yr BP: warm period punctuated by cool events around ~3950, 3550 and3250 yr BP; (2) 2850–2500 yr BP cold interval (Iron Age Cold Period); (3) 2500–1650 yr BP moderate warmperiod (Roman Warm Period), with maximum temperatures between 2150 and 1750 yr BP; (4) 1650–1350 yr BP cold interval (Dark Ages Cold Period), with a thermal minimum at ~1500 yr BP; (5) 1350–750 yr BP warm period (Medieval Warm Period) punctuated by two cooler events at ~1250 and ~850 yr BP;(6) 750–100 yr BP cold period (Little Ice Age) with extremes occurring at 600–500 yr BP, 350–300 yr BP, and150–100 yr BP; and (7) the last 150 years, characterized by rapid but no linear warming (Modern Warming).Remarkably, the presented records allow direct comparison of recent warming with former warm intervalssuch as the Roman or the Medieval periods. That comparison reveals the 20th century as the time with highestsurface temperatures of the last 4000 years for the studied area.Spectral analysis of the time series shows consistent climatic cycles of ~400, ~900 and ~1300 yr, comparablewith those recognized in the North Atlantic marine record, the Greenland ice cores, and other terrestrialrecords for the middle–late Holocene, suggesting common climate forcing mechanisms related to changes insolar irradiance and North Atlantic circulation patterns. PB Elsevier SN 0921-8181 YR 2011 FD 2011 LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/43686 UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/43686 LA eng DS Docta Complutense RD 17 abr 2025