40 



core material. The time interval chosen includes at least one major glacia- 

 tion bracketed by two interglacials, including the present one. 



Fluctuations in oceanic conditions, which take place on time scales 

 ranging from the almost instantaneous to tens of thousands of years, have 

 periodic as well as random components. It is the purpose of this investi- 

 gation to examine fluctuations in oceanic conditions on time scales ranging 

 from several hundred or a thousand years to hundreds of thousands of 

 years. They cannot be studied by the usual oceanographic means, nor 

 can they be extrapolated from models based on the dynamics of the 

 present ocean. The project goals are to: 



a. Determine in detail oceanic and climatic fluctuations associated with 

 glacial-interglacial transitions and examine the mechanisms in- 

 volved and the climatic consequences, separating random from di- 

 rectional changes ; 



b. Determine the eff^ects of shifts of major oceanic circulation features 

 on local water and climate conditions; and 



c. Determine the consequences of the introduction of solutes and sus- 

 pensoids in the ocean by tracking the fate of natural inputs with 

 time and assessing the impact of changing boundary conditions. 



Research Plan 



Paleo-oceanographic maps will be constructed for four selected times : 

 6,000 years ago (the post-glacial thermal maximum), 17,000 years ago 

 (last glacial stage), these clearly shown in Figure 18, 120,000 years ago 



30 20 



THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO 



Figure 18. Equatorial ocean surface temperature during last 50 thousand years, as determined by stratigraphic 

 analysis of deep sea cores. 



