Late Quaternary variability of the sedimentary record in the Sao Tome deep-sea system (south Brazilian basin)

Very few sediment records allow addressing the paleoceanographic changes that took place on orbital and/or sub-Milankovitch time scales in the South–West Atlantic. Here, a set of sediment cores located across a deep channel-levee system in the South Brazilian basin (3700–3900 m depth) is used to infer the sediment dynamics that prevailed on this system during the late Quaternary and to relate this pattern to climate changes. The spatial distribution of deposits (changes in mineralogy, texture, structure, and sedimentation rate according to the morphology) indicates bulk of sediment supplies is distributed on the Sao Tomé system by bottom advective processes. The silty–sandy layers, originate undoubtedly from turbidity currents whereas the fine-grained muds and oozes, that form the major part of the deposits, are controlled by deep geostrophic currents. In addition to variations forced by the orbital cycles, (more turbidites, less carbonates and higher sedimentation rate during glacials) the sediment records (chiefly the CaCO3 record) document outstanding higher frequency regional changes in sedimentation. According to the location of the cores at the present day interface between NADW and AABW, we infer that changes in sedimentation are related to pulses of AABW versus NADW production. These changes, commonly marked by asymmetric carbonate pattern of about 10 kyr, suggest that the relative influence of NADW versus AABW followed, throughout the last 190 kyr, a repetitive sequence of progressive increase and sharp decrease. The rather sharp shut down observed during the late glacial could be associated to Heinrich events, when NADW production stopped, but similar events are also well expressed during MIS 5, MIS 6 and at the end of MIS 7.