Cave KNI-51, Western Australia 2,200 Year Stalagmite Flood Layer Data Denniston, R.F.; Villarini, G.; Gonzales, A.N.; Wyrwoll, K-H.; Polyak, V.J.; Ummenhofer, C.C.; Lachniet, M.S.; Wanamaker, A.D.; Humphreys, W.F.; Woods, D.; Cugley, J. Denniston, R.F. Villarini, G. Gonzales, A.N. Wyrwoll, K-H. Polyak, V.J. Ummenhofer, C.C. Lachniet, M.S. Wanamaker, A.D. Humphreys, W.F. Woods, D. Cugley, J. ENSO earth science/paleoclimate/speleothems (event layer,calcium carbonate,null,count,null,speleothems,raw,null,N,flood layers) earth science/paleoclimate/speleothems (age,null,null,year Common Era,null,speleothems,null,null,N,null) earth science/paleoclimate/speleothems (Cave KNI-51>LATITUDE -15.18>LONGITUDE 128.37) Assessing temporal variability in extreme rainfall events before the historical era is complicated by the sparsity of long-term "direct" storm proxies. Here we present a 2,200-y-long, accurate, and precisely dated record of cave flooding events from the northwest Australian tropics that we interpret, based on an integrated analysis of meteorological data and sediment layers within stalagmites, as representing a proxy for extreme rainfall events derived primarily from tropical cyclones (TCs) and secondarily from the regional summer monsoon. This time series reveals substantial multicentennial variability in extreme rainfall, with elevated occurrence rates characterizing the twentieth century, 850-1450 CE (Common Era), and 50-400 CE; reduced activity marks 1450-1650 CE and 500-850 CE. These trends are similar to reconstructed numbers of TCs in the North Atlantic and Caribbean basins, and they form temporal and spatial patterns best explained by secular changes in the dominant mode of the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the primary driver of modern TC variability. We thus attribute long-term shifts in cyclogenesis in both the central Australian and North Atlantic sectors over the past two millennia to entrenched El Niño or La Niña states of the tropical Pacific. The influence of ENSO on monsoon precipitation in this region of northwest Australia is muted, but ENSO-driven changes to the monsoon may have complemented changes to TC activity. STUDY NOTES: Stalagmite flood layer data from 7 stalagmites collected in cave KNI-51, Western Australia, at annual resolution for the past 2,200 years. Flood events are identified as mud layers in the stalagmites. The data denote presence/absence of flood layers (0 = no flood layer; 1 = flood layer) and corresponding age. Stalagmites were measured at 0.5 mm intervals. NCDC-Paleoclimatology https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/data-access/paleoclimatology-data - Bauer Bruce Investigator : Denniston, R.F. Investigator : Villarini, G. Investigator : Gonzales, A.N. Investigator : Wyrwoll, K-H. Investigator : Polyak, V.J. Investigator : Ummenhofer, C.C. Investigator : Lachniet, M.S. Investigator : Wanamaker, A.D. Investigator : Humphreys, W.F. Investigator : Woods, D. Investigator : Cugley, J. 2015-03-30 ONLINE Files online, ASCII https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/study/18235 https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-p-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-i-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-11-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-10-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-f-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-g-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-o-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-p-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-i-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-11-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-10-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-f-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-g-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-o-2015flood.txt English https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/study/18235 https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-p-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-i-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-11-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-10-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-f-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-g-2015flood.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/australia/kni-51-o-2015flood.txt Rhawn F. Denniston, Gabriele Villarini, Angelique N. Gonzales, Karl-Heinz Wyrwoll, Victor J. Polyak, Caroline C. Ummenhofer, Matthew S. Lachniet, Alan D. Wanamaker, Jr, William F. Humphreys, David Woods, and John Cugley2015Extreme rainfall activity in the Australian tropics reflects changes in the El Niño/Southern Oscillation over the last two millenniaProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences10.1073/pnas.1422270112http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2015/03/24/1422270112.abstract START YEAR: -222 AD * END YEAR: 1986 AD 128.37 -15.18 128.37 -15.18