Timing and structure of the 8.2 kyr B.P. event inferred from δ18 O records of stalagmites from China, Oman, and Brazil

Oxygen isotope records of stalagmites from China and Oman reveal a weak summer monsoon event, with a double-plunging struc- ture, that started 8.21 ± 0.02 kyr B.P. An identical but antiphased pattern is also evident in two stalagmite records from eastern Brazil, indicating that the South American Summer Monsoon was intensi- fied during the 8.2 kyr B.P. event. These records demonstrate that the event was of global extent and synchronous within dating errors of \u3c50 years. In comparison with recent model simulations, it is plau- sible that the 8.2 kyr B.P. event can be tied in changes of the Atlan- tic Meridional Overturning Circulation triggered by a glacial lake draining event. This, in turn, affected North Atlantic climate and lati- tudinal position of the Intertropical Convergence Zone, resulting in the observed low-latitude monsoonal precipitation patterns