Articles | Volume 13, issue 8
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-2379-2016
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-2379-2016
Ideas and perspectives
 | 
25 Apr 2016
Ideas and perspectives |  | 25 Apr 2016

Ideas and perspectives: Southwestern tropical Atlantic coral growth response to atmospheric circulation changes induced by ozone depletion in Antarctica

Heitor Evangelista, Ilana Wainer, Abdelfettah Sifeddine, Thierry Corrège, Renato C. Cordeiro, Saulo Lamounier, Daniely Godiva, Chuan-Chou Shen, Florence Le Cornec, Bruno Turcq, Claire E. Lazareth, and Ching-Yi Hu

Abstract. Recent Southern Hemisphere (SH) atmospheric circulation, predominantly driven by stratospheric ozone depletion over Antarctica, has caused changes in climate across the extratropics. Here, we present evidence that the Brazilian coast (southwestern Atlantic) may have been impacted from both wind and sea-surface temperature changes derived from this process. Skeleton analysis of massive coral species living in shallow waters off Brazil are very sensitive to air–sea interactions, and seem to record this impact. Growth rates of Brazilian corals show a trend reversal that fits the ozone depletion evolution, confirming that ozone impacts are far reaching and potentially affect coastal ecosystems in tropical environments.

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Short summary
Recent Southern Hemisphere (SH) atmospheric circulation, predominantly driven by stratospheric ozone depletion over Antarctica, has caused changes in climate across the extratropics. We present evidence that the Brazilian coast may have been impacted from both wind and sea surface temperature changes derived from this process. Skeleton analysis of massive coral species living in shallow waters off Brazil are very sensitive to air–sea interactions and seem to record this process.
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