Climate of the Past www.clim-past.net 1814-9324 1814-9332 4 3 2008 10.5194/cp-4-153-2008 http://www.clim-past.net/4/153/2008/ http://www.clim-past.net/4/153/2008/cp-4-153-2008.html http://www.clim-past.net/4/153/2008/cp-4-153-2008.pdf 153 174 2008-08-18 A major reorganization of Asian climate by the early Miocene Z. T. Guo ztguo@mail.iggcas.ac.cn B. Sun Z. S. Zhang S. Z. Peng G. Q. Xiao J. Y. Ge Q. Z. Hao Y. S. Qiao M. Y. Liang J. F. Liu Q. Z. Yin J. J. Wei Key Laboratory of Cenozoic Geology and Environment, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 9825, Beijing, 100029, China Shandong Institute and Laboratory of Geological Sciences, Jinan, 250013, China Nansen-Zhu International Research Center, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100029, China State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 17, Xian, 710075, China The global climate system experienced a series of drastic changes during the Cenozoic. In Asia, these include the climate transformation from a zonal pattern to a <i>monsoon-dominated pattern</i>, the disappearance of typical subtropical aridity, and the onset of <i>inland deserts</i>. Despite major advances in the last two decades in characterizing and understanding these climate phenomena, disagreements persist relative to the timing, behaviors and underlying causes. <br><br> This paper addresses these issues mainly based on two lines of evidence. First, we compiled newly collected data from geological indicators of the Cenozoic environment in China as paleoenvironmental maps of ten intervals. In confirming the earlier observation that a zonal climate pattern was transformed into a monsoonal one, the maps within the Miocene indicate that this change was achieved by the early Miocene, roughly consistent with the onset of loess deposition in China. Although a monsoon-like regime would have existed in the Eocene, it was restricted to tropical-subtropical regions. The latitudinal oscillations of the climate zones during the Paleogene are likely attributable to the imbalance in evolution of polar ice-sheets between the two hemispheres. <br><br> Secondly, we examine the relevant depositional and soil forming processes of the Miocene loess-soil sequences to determine the circulation characteristics with emphasis on the early Miocene. Continuous eolian deposition in the middle reaches of the Yellow River since the early Miocene firmly indicates the formation of inland deserts, which have been constantly maintained during the past 22 Ma. Grain-size gradients between loess sections indicate northerly dust-carrying winds from northern sources, a clear indication of an Asian winter monsoon system. Meanwhile, well-developed Luvisols show evidence that moisture from the oceans reached northern China. This evidence shows the coexistence of two kinds of circulations, one from the ocean carrying moisture and another from the inland deserts transporting dust. The formation of the early Miocene paleosols resulted from interactive soil forming and dust deposition processes in these two seasonally alternating monsoonal circulations. The much stronger development of the early Miocene soils compared to those in the Quaternary loess indicates that summer monsoons were either significantly stronger, more persistent through the year, or both. <br><br> These lines of evidence indicate a joint change in circulation and inland aridity by the early Miocene and suggest a dynamic linkage of them. Our recent sensitivity tests with a general circulation model, along with relevant geological data, suggest that the onset of these contrasting wet/dry responses, as well as the change from the "planetary" subtropical aridity pattern to the "inland" aridity pattern, resulted from the combined effects of Tibetan uplift and withdrawal of the Paratethys seaway in central Asia, as suggested by earlier experiments. The spreading of South China Sea also helped to enhance the south-north contrast of humidity. The Miocene loess record provides a vital insight that these tectonic factors had evolved by the early Miocene to a threshold sufficient to cause this major climate reorganization in Asia. Abe, M., Kitoh, A., and Yasunari, T.: An evolution of the Asian summer monsoon associated with mountain uplift - Simulation with the MRI atmosphere-ocean coupled GCM, J. Meteorol. Soc. Jpn., 81, 909–933, 2003. Aitchison, J. C., Ali, J. R., and Davis, A. M.: When and where did India and Asia collide? J. Geophys. Res., 112, B05426, doi:1029/2006JB004706, 2007. Akhmet'ev, M. A., Aleksandrova, G. N., Amon, E. O., Beniamovskii, V. N., Bugrova, E. M., Vasil'eva, O. N., Glezer, Z. I., Zhelezko, V. I., Zaporozhets, N. I., Kozlova, G. E., Nikolaeva, I. A., Oreshkina, T. V., Panova, L. A., Radionova, E. P., Strel'nikova, N. I., and Yakovleva, A. I.: Biostratigraphy of the marine Paleogene in the West Siberian plate, Stratigr. Geol. Correl., 9, 132–158, 2001. Akhmet'ev, M. and Beniamovski, V.: The Paleocene and Eocene in the Russian Part of West Eurasia. Stratigr. Geol. Correl., 14, 49–72, 2006. An, Z. S., Liu, T. S., Lu, Y. C., Porter, S. C., Kukla, G., Wu, X. H., and Hua, Y.: The long-term paleomonsoon variation recorded by the loess-paleosol sequence in Central China, Quatern. Int., 7, 91–96, 1990. An, Z. S., Kutzbach, J. E., Prell, W. L., and Porter, S. C.: Evolution of Asian monsoons and phased uplift of the Himalaya-Tibetan plateau since Late Miocene times, Nature, 411, 62–66, 2001. Berger, G. W.: Luminescence chronology of late Pleistocene loess-paleosol and tephra sequences near Fairbanks, Alaska, Quaternary Res., 60, 70–83, 2003. Briais, A., Patriat, P., and Tapponnier, P.: Updated interpretation of magnetic-anomalies and sea-floor spreading stages in the South China Sea-implications for the Tertiary tectonics of Southeast-Asia, J. Geophys. Res., 98, 6299–6328, 1993. Cande, S. C. and Kent, D. V.: Revised calibration of the geomagnetic polarity timescale for the Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic, J. Geophys. Res., 100, 6093–6095, 1995. Cao, S. G. and He, Y. R.: Vertisols, in: Chinese Soil Taxonomy, edited by: Gong, Z. T., Science Press, Beijing, 261–323, 1999. Chase, T. N., Knaff, J. A., Pielke, R. A., and Kalnay, E.: Changes in global monsoon circulations since 1950, Natural Hazards, 29, 229–254, 2003. Chen, J., An, Z. S., Liu, L. W., Ji, J. F., Yang, J. D., and Chen, Y.: Variations in chemical compositions of the eolian dust in Chinese Loess Plateau over the past 2.5~Ma and chemical weathering in the Asian inland, Sci. China Ser. D, 44, 403–413, 2001. Chen, L. X., Zhu, Q. G., Luo, H. B., He, J. H., Dong, M., and Feng, Z. Q.: Monsoons Over East Asia (in Chinese), Meteorol. Publ., Beijing, 362 pp., 1991. China Geological Survery. Chinese 1 500 000 Geological Map Database 1.0, 2001. Chinese Stratum Thesaurus Editorial Board. Tertiary Stratum Thesaurus, 1999. Chung, S. L., Hua, C., Lee, T. Y., Zhang, Y. Q., Xie, Y. W., Li, X. H., Wang, K. L., and Wang, P. L.: Dischronous uplift of the Tibetan Plateau starting 40~Myr ago, Nature, 394, 769–773, 1998. Clark, M. K., House, M. A., Royden, L. H., Whipple, K. X., Burchfiel, B. C., Zhang, X. B., and Tang, W.: Late Cenozoic uplift of southeastern Tibet, Geology, 33, 525–528, 2005. Clift, P. D.: Controls on the erosion of Cenozoic Asia and the flux of clastic sediment to the ocean, Earth and Planet. Sci. Lett., 241, 571–580, 2006. Coleman, M. and Hodges, K.: Evidence for Tibetan plateau uplift before 14 Myr ago from a new minimum age for east-west extension, Nature, 374, 49–52, 1995. Corrigan, J. D. and Crowley, K. D.: Unroofing of the Himalayas-a view from apatite fission-track analysis of Bengal Fan sediments, Geophys. Res. Lett., 19, 2345–2348, 1992. Cox, P. M., Harris, P. P., Huntingford, C., Betts, R.A., Collins, M., Jones, C.D., Jupp, T.E., Marengo, J.A., and Nobre, C.A.: Increasing risk of Amazonian drought due to decreasing aerosol pollution. Nature, 453, 212–215, 2008. Cremaschi, M., Fedoroff, N., Guerreschi, A., Huxtable, J., Colombi, N., Castelletti, L., and Maspero, A.: Sedimentary and pedological processes in the Upper Pleistocene loess of northern Italy, The Bagaggera sequence, Quatern. Int., 5, 23–38, 1990. DeCelles, P. G., Quade, J., Kapp, P., Fan, M. J., Dettman, D. L., and Ding, L.: High and dry in central Tibet during the Late Oligocene, Earth and Planet. Sci. Lett., 253, 389–401, 2007. Derry, L. A. and France-Lanord, C.: Neogene growth of the sedimentary organic carbon reservoir, Paleoceanography, 11, 267–275, 1996. Dercourt, J., Ricou, L. E., and Vrielinck, B.: Atlas Tethys Paleoenvironmental Maps, Gauthier-Villars, Paris, 307 pp., 1993. Ding, G. Y., Chen, J., Tian, Q. J., Shen, X. H., Xing, C. Q., and Wei, K. B.: Active faults and magnitudes of left-lateral displacement along the northern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, Tectonophysics, 380, 243–260, 2004. Ding, L. and Zhong, D. L.: Metamorphic characteristics and geotectonic implications of the high-pressure granulites from Namjagbarwa, eastern Tibet, Sci. China Ser. D, 42, 491–505, 1999. Ding, Z. L., Yu, Z. W., Rutter, N. W., and Liu, T. S.: Towards an orbital time-scale for Chinese loess deposits, Quaternary Sci. Rev., 13, 39–70, 1994. Ding, Z. L., Liu, T. S., Rutter, N. W., Yu, Z. W., Guo, Z. T., and Zhu, R. X.: Ice-volume forcing of East Asian winter monsoon variations in the past 800 000 years, Quaternary Res., 44, 149–159, 1995. Ding, Z. L., Sun, J. M., Liu, T. S., Zhu, R. X., Yang, S. L., and Guo, B.: Wind-blown origin of the Pliocene red clay formation in the central Loess Plateau, China, Earth and Planet. Sci. Lett., 161, 135–143, 1998. Duchaufour, P. H. : Pdologie, Tome I: Pdogense et Classification, Masson-Paris-New York-Barcelone-Milan, 477 pp., 1983. FAO-Unesco: Soil Map of the World, 1:5 000 000 Vol. I, Legend, UNESCO, Paris, 20–32, 1974. Fedoroff, N. and Goldberg, P.: Comparative micromorphology of two late Pleistocene paleosols (in the Paris Basin), Catena, 9, 227–251, 1982. Flöhn, H.: Der indische sommermonsun als Glied der planetarischen Zirkulation der atmosphere, Bec. Des D. wd. Bd., 4, 22, 1956. Fluteau, F., Ramstein, G., and Besse, J.: Simulating the evolution of the Asian and African monsoons during the past 30 Myr using an atmospheric general circulation model, J. Geophys. Res., 104, 11995–12018, 1999. Fu, C. B.: Potential impacts of human-induced land cover change on East Asia monsoon, Global Planet. Change, 37, 219–229, 2003. Garzione, C. N., Dettman, D. L., Quade, J., DeCelles, P. G., and Butler, R. F.: High times on the Tibetan Plateau: Paleoelevation of the Thakkhola graben, Nepal, Geology, 28, 339–342, 2000. Garzione, C. N., Ikari, M. J., and Basu, A. R.: Source of Oligocene to Pliocene sedimentary rocks in the Linxia basin in northeastern Tibet from Nd isotopes: Implications for tectonic forcing of climate, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 117, 1156–1166, 2005. Gersonde, R., Crosta, X., Abelmann, A., and Armand, L.: Sea-surface temperature and sea lee distribution of the Southern Ocean at the EPILOG Last Glacial Maximum – A circum-Antarctic view based on siliceous microfossil records, Quat. Sci. Rev., 24, 869–896, doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2004.07.015, 2005. Ghosh, P., Adkins, J., Affek, H., Balta, B., Guo, W. F., Schauble, E. A., Schrag, D., and Eller, J. M.: $^13$C-$^18$O bonds in carbonate minerals: A new kind of paleothermometer, Geochim. Cosmochim. Ac., 70, 1439–1456, 2006. Guo, Z. F., Wilson, M., Liu, J. Q., and Mao, Q.: Post-collisional, potassic and ultrapotassic magmatism of the northern Tibetan Plateau: Constraints on characteristics of the mantle source, geodynamic setting and uplift mechanisms, J. Petrol., 47, 1177–1220, 2006. Guo, Z. T., Fedoroff, N., An, Z. S., and Liu, T. S.: Interglacial dustfall and origin of iron oxides hydroxides in the paleosols of the Xifeng loess section, China, Sci. Geol. Sinica, 2, 91–100, 1993. Guo, Z. T., Liu, T. S., Guiot, J., Wu, N. Q., L, H. Y., Han, J. M., Liu, J. Q., and Gu, Z. Y.: High frequency pulses of East Asian monsoon climate in the last two glaciations: link with the North Atlantic, Clim. Dynam., 12, 701-709, 1996. Guo, Z. T., Fedoroff, N., and An, Z. S.: Genetic types of the Holocene soil and the Pleistocene palaeosols in the Xifeng loess section in central China, in: Loess, Environment and Global Change, edited by: Liu, T. S., Ding, Z. L., Guo, Z. T., Science Press, Beijing, 93–111, 1991. Guo, Z. T., Liu, T. S., Fedoroff, N., Wei, L. Y., Ding, Z. L., Wu, N. Q., Lu, H. Y., Jiang, W. Y., and An, Z. S.: Climate extremes in loess of China coupled with the strength of deep-water formation in the North Atlantic, Global Planet. Change, 18, 113–128, 1998. Guo, Z. T., Biscaye, P., Wei, L. Y., Chen, X. H., Peng, S. Z., and Liu, T. S.: Summer monsoon variations over the last 1.2 Ma from the weathering of loess-soil sequences in China, Geophys. Res. Lett., 27, 1751-1754, 2000. Guo, Z. T., Ruddiman, W. F., Hao, Q. Z., Wu, H. B., Qiao, Y. S., Zhu, R. X., Peng, S. Z., Wei, J. J., Yuan, B. Y., and Liu, T. S.: Onset of Asian desertification by 22 Myr ago inferred from loess deposits in China, Nature, 416, 159–163, 2002. Guo, Z. T.: Uplift of the Tibetan Plateau and the aeolian deposits in China (in Chinese), in: Formation of Tibetan Plateau, Environment and Development, edited by: Zheng, D. and Yao, T. D., Hebei Scientific and Technical Press, Shijiazhuang, 70–79, 2003. Guo, Z. T., Peng, S. Z., Hao, Q. Z., Biscaye, P., An, Z. S., and Liu, T. S.: Late Miocene-Pliocene development of Asian aridification as recorded in the Red-Earth Formation in northern China, Global Planet. Change, 41, 135–145, 2004. Halley, E.: An historical account of the trade winds and monsoons observable in the seas between and near the tropics with an attempt to assign the physical cause of the said wind, Philos.T. R. Soc. Lond., 16, 153–168, 1986. Hao, Q. Z. and Guo, Z. T.: Magnetostratigraphy of a late Miocene-Pliocene loess-soil sequence in the western Loess Plateau in China, Geophys. Res. Lett., 31, L09209, doi:10.1029/2003GL019392, 2004. Hao, Q. Z. and Guo, Z. T.: Magnetostratigraphy of an early-middle Miocene loess-soil sequence in the western Loess Plateau of China, Geophys. Res. Lett., 34, L18305, doi:10.1029/2007GL031162, 2007. Hao, Q.Z., Oldfield, F., Bloemendal, J., and Guo, Z.T.: The magnetic properties of loess and paleosol samples from the Chinese Loess Plateau spanning the last 22 million years, Palaeogeogr. Palaeocl., 260, 389–404, 2008. Harrison, T. M., Copeland, P., Kidd, W. S. F., and Yin, A.: Raising Tibet, Science, 255, 1663–1670, 1992. Harrison, T. M., Copeland, P., Hall, S. A., Quade, J., Burner, S., Ojha, T. P., and Kidd, W. S. F.: Isotopic preservation of Himalayan/Tibetan uplift, denudation, and climatic histories of two molasse deposits, J. Geol., 101, 157–175, 1993. Hodell, D. A. and Woodruff, F.: Variations in the strontium isotopic ratio of seawater during the Miocene: Stratigraphic and geochemical implications, Paleoceanography, 9, 405-426, 1994. Houghton, J. T.: The Global Climate, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge and New York, 239 pp., 1984. Hovan, S. A. and Rea, D. K.: Post-Eocene record of eolian deposition at sites 752, 754, and 756, Eastern Indian Ocean, Proc. ODP Sci. Res, 121, 219–228, 1991. Hussein, J. and Adey, M. A.: Changes in microstructure, voids and b-fabric of surface samples of a Vertisol caused by wet/dry cycles, Geoderma, 85, 63–82, 1998. Iriondo, M.: Patagonian dust in Antarctica, Quat. Int., 68, 83–86, 2000. Jahn, B. M., Gallet, S., and Han, J. M.: Geochemistry of the Xining, Xifeng and Jixian sections, Loess Plateau of China: eolian dust provenance and paleosol evolution during the last 140 ka, Chem. Geol., 178, 71–94, 2001. Jia, G. D, Peng, P. A., Zhao, Q. H., and Jian, Z. M.: Changes in terrestrial ecosystem since 30 Ma in East Asia: Stable isotope evidence from black carbon in the South China Sea, Geology, 31, 1093-1096, 2003. Jiang, F. C., Wang, S. B., Zhao, Z. Z., and Fu, J. L.: Mangshan loess in Central China and the paleomonsoon variations since the last interglaciation, Acta Geol. Sin-Engl., 78, 813–819, 2004. Johnson, W. C., Willey, K. L., Mason, J. A., and May, D. W.: Stratigraphy and environmental reconstruction at the middle Wisconsinan Gilman Canyon Formation type locality, Buzzard's Roost, southwestern Nebraska, USA, Quaternary Res., 67, 474–486, 2007. Kemp, R. A.: Pedogenic modification of loess: significance for palaeoclimatic reconstructions, Earth-Sci. Rev., 54, 145–156, 2001. Kroon, D., Steens, T., and Troelstra, S. R.: Onset of monsoonal related upwelling in the western Arabian Sea as revealed by planktonic foraminifers, Proc. ODP Sci. Res., 117, 257–263, 1991. Kukla, G., An, Z. S., Melice, J. L., Gavin, J., and Xiao, J. L.: Magnetic susceptibility record of Chinese loess, T. Roy. Soc. Edin-Earth., 81, 263–288, 1990. Kutzbach, J. E., Guetter, P. J., Ruddiman, W. F., and Prell, W. L.: Sensitivity of climate to late Cenozoic uplift in Southern Asia and the American West: Numerical experiments, J. Geophys. Res., 94, 18 393–18 407, 1989. Kutzbach, J. E., Prell, W. L., and Ruddiman, W. F.: Sensitivity of Eurasian climate to surface uplift of the Tibetan Plateau, J. Geol., 101, 177–190, 1993. Lambert, F., Delmonte, B., Petit, J. R., Bigler, M., Kaufmann, P. R., Hutterli, M. A., Stocker, T. F., Ruth, U., Steffensen, J. P., and Maggi, V.: Dust-climate couplings over the past 800 000 years from the EPICA Dome C ice core. Nature, 452, 616–619, 2008. Lear, C. H., Elderfield, H., and Wilson, P. A.: Cenozoic deep-sea temperatures and global ice volumes from Mg/Ca in benthic foraminiferal calcite, Science, 287, 269–272, 2000. Lemarchand, D., Gaillardet, J., Lewin, E., and Allegre, C. J.: The influence of rivers on marine boron isotopes and implications for reconstructing past ocean pH, Nature, 408, 951–954, 2000. Lezine, A. M., Tiercelin, J. J., Robert, C., Saliege, J. F., Cleuziou, S., Inizan, M. L., and Braemer, F.: Centennial to millennial-scale variability of the Indian monsoon during the early Holocene from a sediment, pollen and isotope record from the desert of Yemen, Palaeogeogr., Palaeocl., 243, 235–249, 2007. Li, F. J., Wu, N. Q., Pei, Y. P., Hao, Q. Z., and Rousseau, D. D.: Wind-blown origin of Dongwan late Miocene-Pliocene dust sequence documented by land snail record in western Chinese Loess Plateau, Geology, 34, 405–408, 2006a. Li, F. J., Wu, N. Q., and Rousseau, D. D.: Preliminary study of mollusk fossils in the Qinan Miocene loess-soil sequence in western Chinese Loess Plateau, Sci. China Ser. D, 49, 724–730, 2006b. Li, J. J. and Fang, X. M.: Uplift of the Tibetan Plateau and environmental changes, Chinese Sci. Bull., 44, 2117–2124, 1999. Li, Q. Y., Han, Z. M., and Su, X.: Late Oligocene rapid transformations in the South China Sea, Mar. Micropaleontol., 54, 5–25, 2005. Li, Q. Y., Wang, P. X., Zhao, Q. H., Shao, L., Zhong, G. F., Tian, J., Cheng, X. R., Han, Z. M., and Su, X.: A 33 Ma lithostratigraphic record of tectonic and paleoceanographic evolution of the South China Sea, Mar. Geol., 230, 217–235, 2006c. Liang, M. Y., Guo, Z. T., and Gu, Z. Y.: Geochemical characteristics of the Miocene eolian deposits and comparison with those of the Pliocene and Quaternary eolian deposits (in Chinese with English abstract), Quaternary Science, 26, 657–664, 2006. Liu, J. F., Guo, Z. T., Hao, Q. Z., Peng, S. Z., Qiao, Y. S., Sun, B., and Ge, J. Y.: Magnetostratigraphy of the Miziwan Miocene eolian deposits in Qin'an County (Gansu Province)(in Chinese with English abstract), Quaternary Science, 25, 503–508, 2005. Liu, J. F., Guo, Z. T., Qiao, Y. S., Hao, Q. Z., and Yuan, B. Y.: Eolian origin of the Miocene loess-soil sequence at Qin'an, China: Evidence of quartz morphology and quartz grain-size, Chinese Sci. Bull., 51, 117–120, 2006. Liu, T. S.: Loess and the Environment, China Ocean Press, Beijing, 251 pp., 1985. Liu, T. S. and Guo, Z. T.: Geological environment in China and global change, in: Selected Works of Liu Tungsheng, edited by: An, Z. S., Science Press, Beijing, 192–202, 1997. Liu, T. S. and Ding, Z. L.: Chinese loess and the paleomonsoon, Annu. Rev. Earth Pl. Sc., 26, 111–145, 1998. Liu, X. D. and Yin, Z. Y.: Sensitivity of East Asian monsoon climate to the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau, Palaeogeogr. Palaeocl., 183, 223–245, 2002. Lu, H. Y., Wang, S. M., Wu, N. Q., Tong, G. B., Yang, X. D., Shen, C. M., Li, S. J., Zhu, L. P., and Wang, L.: A new pollen record of the last 2.8 Ma from the Co Ngoin, central Tibetan Plateau, Sci. China Ser. D, 44, 292–300, 2001. Lu, H. Y., Wang, X. Y., An, Z. S., Miao, X. D., Zhu, R. X., Ma, H. Z., Li, Z., Tan, H. B., and Wang, X. Y.: Geomorphologic evidence of phased uplift of the northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau since 14 million years ago, Sci. China Ser. D, 47, 822–833, 2004. Markgraf, V., Baumgartner, T. R., Bradbury, J. P., Diaz, H. F., Dunbar, R. B., Luckman, B. H., Seltzer, G. O., Swetnam, T. W., and Villalba, R.: Paleoclimate reconstruction along the Pole-Equator-Pole transect of the Americas (PEP 1), Quat. Sci. Rev., 19, 125–140, 2000. Manabe, S. and Terpstra, T. B.: The effects of mountains on the general circulation of the atmosphere as identified by numerical experiments, J. Atmos. Sci., 31, 3–42, 1974. Meigs, P.: World distribution of arid and semi-arid homoclimates, in: UNESCO Arid Zone Research, Series No.1, Arid Zone Hydrology, UNESCO, Paris, 203–209, 1953. Miao, X. D., Sun, Y. B., Lu, H. Y., and Mason, J. A.: Spatial pattern of grain size in the Late Pliocene `Red Clay' deposits (North China) indicates transport by low-level northerly winds, Palaeogeogr. Palaeocl., 206, 149–155, 2004. Miller, K. G., Faribanks, R. G., and Mountain, G. S.: Tertiary oxygen isotope synthesis, sealecel history, and continental margin erosion, Paleoceanography, 2, 1–19, 1987. Miller, K. G., Mountain, G. S., Browning, J. V., Kominz, M., Sugarman, P. J., Christie-Blick, N., Katz, M. E., and Wright, J. D.: Cenozoic global sea level, sequences, and the New Jersey transect: Results from coastal plain and continental slope drilling, Rev. Geophys., 36, 569–601, 1998. Molnar, P.: Mio-Pliocene growth of the Tibetan Plateau and evolution of Asian climate, Palaeontol. Electron., 8, 1–23, 2005. Moran, K., Backman, J., Brinkhuis, H., Clemens, S. C., Cronin, T., Dickens, G. R., Eynaud, F., Gattacceca, J., Jakobsson, M., Jordan, R. W., Kaminski, M., King, J., Koc, N., Krylov, A., Martinez, N., Matthiessen, J., McInroy, D., Moore, T. C., Onodera, J., O'Regan, M., Palike, H., Rea, B., Rio, D., Sakamoto, T., Smith, D. C., Stein, R., St John, K., Suto, I., Suzuki, N., Takahashi, K., Watanabe, M., Yamamoto, M., Farrell, J., Frank, M., Kubik, P., Jokat, W., and Kristoffersen, Y.: The Cenozoic palaeoenvironment of the Arctic Ocean, Nature, 441, 601–605, 2006. Pagani, M., Arthur, M. A., and Freeman, K. H.: Miocene evolution of atmospheric carbon dioxide, Paleoceanography, 14, 273–292, 1999. Pagani, M., Zachos, J. C., Freeman, K. H., Tipple, B., and Bohaty, S.: Marked decline in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations during the Paleogene, Science, 309, 600–603, 2005. Pavelic, D., Avanic, R., Bakrac, K., and Vrsaljko, D.: Early Miocene braided river and lacustrine sedimentation in the Kalnik Mountain area (Pannonian Basin System, NW Croatia), Geol. Carpath., 52, 375–386, 2001. Pearson, P. N. and Palmer, M. R.: Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations over the past 60 million years, Nature, 406, 695–699, 2000. Peng, S. Z. and Guo, Z. T.: Geochemical indicator of original eolian grain size and implications on winter monsoon evolution, Sci. China Ser. D, 44 (Suppl.), 261–266, 2001. Porter, S. C.: Chinese loess record of monsoon climate during the last glacial-interglacial cycle, Earth-Sci. Rev., 54, 115–128, 2001. Prell, W. L. and Kutzbach, J. E.: Sensitivity of the Indian monsoon to forcing parameters and implications for its evolution, Nature, 360, 647–652, 1992. Pye, K.: The nature, origin and accumulation of loess, Quaternary Sci. Rev., 14, 653–667, 1995. Qiao, Y. S., Guo, Z. T., Hao, Q. Z., Wu, W. X., Jiang, W. Y., Yuan, B. Y., Zhang, Z. S., Wei, J. J., and Zhao, H.: Loess-soil sequences in southern Anhui Province: Magnetostratigraphy and paleoclimatic significance, Chinese Sci. Bull., 48, 2088–2093, 2003. Qiao, Y. S., Guo, Z. T., Hao, Q. Z., Yin, Q. Z., Yuan, B. Y., and Liu, T. S.: Grain-size features of a Miocene loess-soil sequence at Qinan: Implications on its origin, Sci. China Ser. D, 49, 731–738, 2006. Qiu, Z. D. and Li, C. K.: Evolution of Chinese mammalian faunal regions and elevation of the Qinghai-Xizang (Tibet) Plateau, Sci. China Ser. D, 48, 1246–1258, 2005. Quade, J., Cerling, T. E., and Bowman, J. R.: Development of Asian monsoon revealed by marked ecological shift during the latest Miocene in northern Pakistan, Nature, 342, 163–166, 1989. Ramstein, G., Fluteau, F., Besse, J., and Joussaume, S.: Effect of orogeny, plate motion and land-sea distribution on Eurasian climate change over the past 30 million years, Nature, 386, 788–795, 1997. Raymo, M. E. and Ruddiman, W. F.: Tectonic forcing of Late Cenozoic climate, Nature, 359, 117–122., 1992. Raymo, M. E., Ruddiman, W. F., and Froelich, P. N.: Influence of late Cenozoic mountain building on ocean geochemical cycles, Geology, 16, 649–653, 1988. Rea, D. K., Leinen, M., and Janecek, T. R.: Geologic approach to the long-term history of atmospheric circulation, Science, 227, 721–725, 1985. Rea, D. K.: The paleoclimatic record provided by eolian deposition in the deep-sea - the geologic history of wind, Rev. Geophys., 32, 159–195, 1994. Rousseau, D. D. and Kukla, G.: Late Pleistocene climate record in the Eustis loess section, Nebraska, based on land snail assemblages and magnetic susceptibility, Quaternary Res., 42, 176–187, 1994. Rousseau, D. D., Kukla, G., Zoller, L., and Hradilova, J.: Early Weichselian dust storm layer at Achenheim in Alsace, France, Boreas, 27, 200–207, 1998. Rowley, D. B. and Currie, B. S.: Palaeo-altimetry of the late Eocene to Miocene Lunpola basin, central Tibet, Nature, 439, 677–681, 2006. Rowley, D. B., and Garzione, C. N.: Stable isotope-based paleoaltimetry, Annu. Rev. Earth. Pl. Sc., 35, 463–508, 2007. Royer, D. L., Wing, S. L., Beerling, D. J., Jolley, D. W., Koch, P. L., Hickey, L. J., and Berner, R. A.: Paleobotanical evidence for near present-day levels of atmospheric CO₂ during part of the tertiary, Science, 292, 2310–2313, 2001. Ruddiman, W.F., Raymo, M.E., Prell, W.L., and Kutzbach, J.: The uplift-climate connection: a synthesis, in: Tectonic uplift and climate change, edited by Ruddiman, W.F., Plenum Press, New York and London, 471–515, 1997. Ruddiman, W. F. and Kutzbach, J. E.: Forcing of late Cenozoic Northern Hemisphere climate by plateau uplift in southern Asia and the American West, J. Geophys. Res., 94, 18 409–18 427, 1989. Ruddiman, W. F., Prell, W. L., and Raymo, M. E.: Late Cenozoic uplift in southern Asia and the American West: rational for general circulation modeling experiments, J. Geophys. Res., 94, 18 379–18 391, 1989. Shi, Y. F., Tang, M. C., and Ma, Y. Z.: Linkage between the second uplifting of the Qinghai-Xizang (Tibetan) Plateau and the initiation of the Asian monsoon system, Sci. China Ser. D, 42, 303–312, 1999. Song, Z. C., Li, H. M., Zheng, Y. H., and Liu, G.: Miocene floristic region of China (in Chinese), in: Palaeobiogeographic Provinces of China, edited by: Lu, Y. H., Beijing Science Press, Beijing, 178–184, 1983. Spicer, R. A., Harris, N. B. W., Widdowson, M., Herman, A. B., Guo, S., Valdes, P. J., Wolfek, J. A., and Kelley, S. P.: Constant elevation of southern Tibet over the past 15 million years, Nature, 412, 622–624, 2003. Stuut, J. B. W., and Lamy, F.: Climate variability at the southern boundaries of the Namib (Southwestern Africa) and Atacama (northern Chile) coastal deserts during the last 120 000~yr, Quat. Res., 62, 301–309, doi:10.1016/j.yqres.2004.08.001, 2004. Sun, D. H., Liu, T. S., Chen, M. Y., An, Z. S., and Shaw, J.: Magnetostratigraphy and palaeoclimate of Red Clay sequences from Chinese Loess Plateau, Sci. China Ser. D, 40, 337–343, 1997. Sun, J. M.: Provenance of loess material and formation of loess deposits on the Chinese Loess Plateau, Earth and Planet. Sci. Lett., 203, 845–859, 2002. Sun, X. J. and Wang, P. X.: How old is the Asian monsoon system?-Palaeobotanical records from China, Palaeogeogr., Palaeocl., 222, 181–222, 2005. Taylor, S. R., McLennan, S. M., and McCulloch, M. T.: Geochemistry of loess, continental crustal composition and crustal model ages, Geochim. Cosmochim. Ac., 47, 1897–1905, 1983. Tsoar, H. and Pye, K.: Dust transport and the question of desert loess formation, Sedimentology, 34, 139–153, 1987. Turner, S., Hawkesworth, C., Liu, J. Q., Rogers, N., Kelley, S., and Vancalsteren, P.: Timing of Tibetan Uplift Constrained by Analysis of Volcanic-Rocks, Nature, 364, 50–54, 1993. Valdiya, K. S.: Rising Himalaya: Advent and intensification of monsoon, Curr. Sci. India, 76, 514–524, 1999. Wang, B.: The Asian Monsoon, Springer, UK, 844 pp., 2006. Wang, C. S., Zhao, X. X., Liu, Z. F., Lippert, P. C., Graham, S. A., Coe, R. S., Yi, H. S., Zhu, L. D., Liu, S., and Li, Y. L.: Constraints on the early uplift history of the Tibetan Plateau, P. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 105, 4987–4992, 2008. Wang, J., Wang, Y. J., Liu, Z. C., Li, J. Q., and Xi, P.: Cenozoic environmental evolution of the Qaidam Basin and its implications for the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau and the drying of central Asia, Palaeogeogr. Palaeocl., 152, 37–47, 1999. Wang, P. X.: Neogene stratigraphy and paleoenvironments of China, Palaeogeogr. Palaeocl., 77, 315–324, 1990. Xiao, J. L., Porter, S. C., An, Z. S., Kumai, H., and Yoshikawa, S.: Grain-Size of Quartz as an Indicator of Winter Monsoon Strength on the Loess Plateau of Central China during the Last 130 000-Yr, Quaternary Res., 43, 22–29, 1995. Yuan, B. Y., Guo, Z. T., Hao, Q. Z., Peng, S. Z., Qiao, Y. S., Wu, H. B., Xiao, G. Q., Ge, J. Y., Sun, B., Zhou, X., Yin, Q. Z., Liang, M. Y., Qin, L., Liu, L., Yao, Z. Q., and Liu, T. S.: Cenozoic evolution of geomorphic and sedimentary environments in the Tianshui-Qin'an regions (in Chinese with English abstract), Quaternary Science, 27, 161–171, 2007. Zachos, J., Pagani, M., Sloan, L., Thomas, E., and Billups, K.: Trends, rhythms, and aberrations in global climate 65~Ma to present, Science, 292, 686–693, 2001. Zachos, J., Breza, J. R., and Wise, S. W.: Early Oligocene ice-sheet expansion on Antarctica: Stable isotope and sedimentological evidence from Kerguelen Plateau, southern Indian Ocean, Geology, 20, 569–573, 1992. Zhang, J. M., Xiao, D. N., Huang, R. J., and Zhang, F. R.: Luvisols, in: Chinese Soil Taxonomy, edited by: Gong, Z. T., Science Press, Beijing, 537–607, 1999. Zhang, Z. K., He, H. C., Li, S. H., Tian, H. T., and Wang, Y.: The discovery of Miocene aeolian sediments and its paleoenvironmental significance in East China (in Chinese with English abstract), Acta Sedimentologica Sinica, 25, 116–123, 2007. Zhang, Z. S. and Guo, Z. T.: Spatial reconstructions of paleoenvironments for different periods in the Oligocene and Miocene (in Chinese with English abstract), Quaternary Science, 25, 523–530, 2005. Zhang, Z. S., Wang, H. J., Guo, Z. T., and Jiang, D. B.: Impact of topography and land-sea distribution on East Asian paleoenvironmental patterns, Adv. Atmos. Sci., 23, 258–266, 2006. Zhang, Z. S., Wang, H. J., Guo, Z. T., and Jiang, D. B.: What triggers the transition of palaeoenvironmental patterns in China, the Tibetan Plateau uplift or the Paratethys Sea retreat?, Palaeogeogr. Palaeocl., 245, 317–331, 2007a. Zhang, Z. S., Wang, H. J., Guo, Z. T., and Jiang, D. B.: Impacts of tectonic changes on the reorganization of the Cenozoic paleoclimatic patterns in China, Earth and Planet. Sci. Lett., 257, 622–634, 2007b. Zhao, Q. H.: Microfossils from loess of the Miaodao Islands, Bohai Sea, Sci. China Ser. D, 26, 445–451, 1996. Zheng, H. B., Powell, C. M., An, Z. S., Zhou, J., and Dong, G. R.: Pliocene uplift of the northern Tibetan Plateau, Geology, 28, 715–718, 2000. Ziegler, C. L., Murray, R. W., Hovan, S. A., and Rea, D. K.: Resolving eolian, volcanogenic, and authigenic components in pelagic sediment from the Pacific Ocean, Earth and Planet. Sci. Lett., 254, 416–432, 2007. Zoller, L., Rousseau, D. D., Jager, K. D., and Kukla, G.: Last interglacial, Lower and Middle Weichselian – a comparative study from the Upper Rhine and Thuringian Loess areas, Z. Geomorphol., 48, 1-24, 2004.