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Modeling the Atmospheric Circulation and Climatic Conditions over Southern South America During the Late History of the Gondwana Supercontinent

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Gondwana Landscapes in southern South America

Part of the book series: Springer Earth System Sciences ((SPRINGEREARTH))

Abstract

The different processes responsible for climate and atmospheric circulation forcing and their relevance on the general circulation of the Southern South America together with the conditions over Patagonia, for the period of the Gondwana supercontinent, are identified in this chapter. During the history of this supercontinent, the main paleoclimate forcings were as follows: (1) the continental drift that affected latitude, elevation, and topography; (2) changes in the amount of greenhouse gases in the Earth’s atmosphere; and (3) volcanic activity. The paleoatmospheric circulation is analyzed in special sections according to age, Early Triassic to Early Jurassic, Middle to Late Jurassic, and Cretaceous, accordingly with the key changes in the ocean–land distribution and locations of the continents. Different paleoclimatic modeling scenarios through the periods are reviewed and compared with proxy data. From both sources of information, it arises that the opening of the Hispanic Corridor and the formation of the Atlantic Ocean were the chief factors that produced the strong climatic changes registered from the Triassic to the Cretaceous and the remarkable difference with current climate conditions. Other important factors were the variations in the volume of greenhouse gases, especially CO2, which is related to volcanic activity and changes in the heat transport through the oceans. The observed results suggest that strong monsoon conditions dominated this period of the Gondwana supercontinent. However, there are large differences with respect to the impact of the various climatic forcings between model simulations of circulation general conditions in the Cretaceous. An extensive list of references provides detailed and updated information on the topics covered in this chapter.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. DCAO/Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires—CONICET, Guiraldes 2160, Ciudad Universitaria, C1428EGA, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Rosa Hilda Compagnucci

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  1. Rosa Hilda Compagnucci
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Correspondence to Rosa Hilda Compagnucci .

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  1. Laboratorio de Geomorfología y Cuaternario, CADIC-CONICET, Ushuaia, Tierra de Fuego, Argentina

    Jorge Rabassa

  2. School of Earth and Environment, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia

    Cliff Ollier

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Compagnucci, R.H. (2014). Modeling the Atmospheric Circulation and Climatic Conditions over Southern South America During the Late History of the Gondwana Supercontinent. In: Rabassa, J., Ollier, C. (eds) Gondwana Landscapes in southern South America. Springer Earth System Sciences. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7702-6_6

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