The large-scale evolution of neodymium isotopic composition in the global modern and Holocene ocean revealed from seawater data and other records

International audienceThe large-scale evolution of neodymium isotopic composition in the global modern and Holocene ocean revealed from seawater data and other records. Kazuyo Tachikawa and project members Neodymium isotopic compositions (143 Nd/ 144 Nd or ε Nd) have been used as a tracer of water masses and lithogenic inputs to the ocean. To further evaluate the faithfulness of this tracer, we have updated a global seawater ε Nd database and combined it with hydrography parameters (temperature, salinity, nutrients and oxygen concentrations), carbon isotopic ratio and radiocarbon of dissolved inorganic carbon. Archive ε Nd data are compiled for leachates, foraminiferal tests, deep-sea corals and fish teeth/debris from the Holocene period. At water depths ≥ 1500m, property-property plots show clear correlations between seawater ε Nd and the other variables, suggesting that large-scale water mass mixing is a primary control of deepwater ε Nd distribution. At ≥ 200m, basin-scale seawater T-S-ε Nd diagrams demonstrate the isotopic evolution of different water masses. Seawater and archive ε Nd values are compared using property-property plots and T-S-ε Nd diagrams. Archive values generally agree with corresponding seawater values although they tend to be at the upper limit in the Pacific. Both positive and negative offsets exist in the northern North Atlantic. Applying multiple regression analysis to deep (≥ 1500m) seawater data, we established empirical equations that predict the main, large-scale, deepwater ε Nd trends from hydrography parameters. Large offsets from the predicted values are interpreted as a sign of significant local/regional influence. Dominant continental influence on seawater and archive ε Nd is observed mainly within 1,000 km from the continents. Generally, seawater and archive ε Nd values form gradual latitudinal trend in the Atlantic and Pacific at depths ≥ 600m, consistent with the idea that Nd isotopes help distinguish between northern/southern sourced water contributions at intermediate and deep water depths