A High Arctic perspective on the Late Cretaceous hothouse-to-coolhouse transition: Exploring the links between climate change, carbon cycling, and diatom evolution

• Applicants: Dr. Wolf Dummann; Professor Dr. Jens O. Herrle
• Subject Area: Geology
• Term: since 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 530858085

The worldwide expansion of marine diatoms during the Late Cretaceous closely coincided with a global transition from hothouse to coolhouse climate conditions. Our project tests whether these two processes are related through changes in diatom-driven carbon sequestration. We use a combination of micropaleontological and organic geochemical methods to simultaneously reconstruct diatom assemblage composition, diatom biomass burial fluxes, and quantitative paleotemperatures from sedimentary archives on Banks Island (Northwest Territories, Canada). Our project aims to provide new data on the early evolution of diatoms and High Arctic climate change during the Late Cretaceous, shedding light on the role of biotic evolution in the context of global biogeochemical cycles and long-term climate evolution.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: Canada, USA
• Co-Investigators: Professorin Dr. Janet Rethemeyer; Dr. Volker Wennrich
• Cooperation Partners: Professor Dr. David Harwood; Professorin Dr. Claudia J. Schröder-Adams