Although quantitative isotope data from speleothems has been used to evaluate isotope-enabled model simulations, currently no consensus exists regarding the most appropriate methodology through which to achieve this. A number of modelling groups will be running isotope-enabled palaeoclimate simulations in the framework of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6, so it is timely to evaluate different approaches to using the speleothem data for data–model comparisons. Here, we illustrate this using 456 globally distributed speleothem δ18O records from an updated version of the Speleothem Isotopes Synthesis and Analysis (SISAL) database and palaeoclimate simulations generated using the ECHAM5-wiso isotope-enabled atmospheric circulation model. We show that the SISAL records reproduce the first-order spatial patterns of isotopic variability in the modern day, strongly supporting the application of this dataset for evaluating model-derived isotope variability into the past. However, the discontinuous nature of many speleothem records complicates the process of procuring large numbers of records if data–model comparisons are made using the traditional approach of comparing anomalies between a control period and a given palaeoclimate experiment. To circumvent this issue, we illustrate techniques through which the absolute isotope values during any time period could be used for model evaluation. Specifically, we show that speleothem isotope records allow an assessment of a model's ability to simulate spatial isotopic trends. Our analyses provide a protocol for using speleothem isotope data for model evaluation, including screening the observations to take into account the impact of speleothem mineralogy on δ18O values, the optimum period for the modern observational baseline and the selection of an appropriate time window for creating means of the isotope data for palaeo-time-slices.

Standardizing the signature of tsunami deposits has been identified as a major limitation for the identification of paleo-tsunami deposits. This limitation mostly arises from the strongly source-dependent nature of these deposits, which in turn determines their composition and depositional architecture, and from the effect of the local morphology of the corresponding depositional environment. Here, we provide new high-resolution mineralogical, geochemical and micro/macrofauna data of the 1755 tsunami layer of Boca do Rio estuary (Algarve, Portugal) with the aim of unraveling the signatures of estuarine tsunami deposits and linking them to possible sediment sources. We also apply for the first time diffuse reflectance spectrophotometry (DRS) analysis. Our results show that the 1755 tsunami deposit of the Boca do Rio estuary is featured by an enhancement in Sr and Ca, which are linked to the input of biogenic and detrital carbonates (shell fragments and limestone clasts) from the beach foreshore and a strong depletion in most terrestrial- and marine-sensitive indicators. The latter is interpreted as resulting from the reworking of the estuarine clays and subsequent dilution within a huge volume of sand eroded from the coastal barrier. It confirms that in the case of the Boca do Rio estuary, the sediment source is essentially proximal and coastal. Textural and mineralogical features between the base and the top of the tsunami layer suggest the imprint of run-up and backwash currents derived from a unique wave. Micro and macrofauna analysis and DRS data of the siliciclastic fraction show slight but significant environmental changes occurring just after the tsunami, which could be provoked by an eventual closure of the estuary mouth

Coastal vegetated ecosystems are major organic carbon (OC) and total nitrogen (TN) sinks, but the mechanisms that regulate their spatial variability need to be better understood. Here we assessed how superficial sedimentary OC and TN within intertidal vegetated assemblages (saltmarsh and seagrass) vary along a flow gradient, which is a major driver of sediment grain size, and thus of organic matter (OM) content. A significant relationship between flow current velocity and OC and TN stocks in the seagrass was found, but not in the saltmarsh. OC and TN stocks of the saltmarsh were larger than the seagrass, even though that habitat experiences shorter hydroperiods. Mixing models revealed that OM sources also varied along the flow gradient within the seagrass, but not in the saltmarsh, showing increasing contributions of microphytobenthos (17–32%) and decreasing contributions of POM (45–35%). As well, OM sources varied vertically as microphytobenthos contribution was highest at the higher intertidal saltmarsh (48%), but not POM (39%). Macroalgae, seagrass and saltmarsh showed low contributions. Local trade-offs between flow current velocities, hydroperiod and structural complexity of vegetation must be considered, at both horizontal and vertical (elevation) spatial dimensions, for better estimates of blue carbon and nitrogen in coastal ecosystems.

Natural radioactive tracer-based assessments of basin-scale submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) are well developed. However, SGD takes place in different modes and the flow and discharge mechanisms involved occur over a wide range of spatial and temporal scales. Quantifying SGD while discriminating its source functions therefore remains a major challenge. However, correctly identifying both the fluid source and composition is critical. When multiple sources of the tracer of interest are present, failure to adequately discriminate between them leads to inaccurate attribution and the resulting uncertainties will affect the reliability of SGD solute loading estimates. This lack of reliability then extends to the closure of local biogeochemical budgets, confusing measures aiming to mitigate pollution. Here, we report a multi-tracer study to identify the sources of SGD, distinguish its component parts and elucidate the mechanisms of their dispersion throughout the Ria Formosa – a seasonally hypersaline lagoon in Portugal. We combine radon budgets that determine the total SGD (meteoric + recirculated seawater) in the system with stable isotopes in water (δ²H, δ¹⁸O), to specifically identify SGD source functions and characterize active hydrological pathways in the catchment. Using this approach, SGD in the Ria Formosa could be separated into two modes, a net meteoric water input and another involving no net water transfer, i.e., originating in lagoon water re-circulated through permeable sediments. The former SGD mode is present occasionally on a multi-annual timescale, while the latter is a dominant feature of the system. In the absence of meteoric SGD inputs, seawater recirculation through beach sediments occurs at a rate of ∼ 1.4 × 10⁶ m³ day⁻¹. This implies that the entire tidal-averaged volume of the lagoon is filtered through local sandy sediments within 100 days ( ∼ 3.5 times a year), driving an estimated nitrogen (N) load of ∼ 350 Ton N yr⁻¹ into the system as NO₃⁻. Land-borne SGD could add a further ∼ 61 Ton N yr⁻¹ to the lagoon. The former source is autochthonous, continuous and responsible for a large fraction (59 %) of the estimated total N inputs into the system via non-point sources, while the latter is an occasional allochthonous source capable of driving new production in the system.