MIS 5e

MIS 5e
Epica 18 plot.png: NOAA derivative work: Autopilot · Public domain · source
Name	Marine Isotope Stage 5e
Other names	Last Interglacial, Eemian
Epoch	Pleistocene
Start	~129 ka
End	~116 ka
Primary evidence	oxygen isotope ratios, sea-level markers, coral terraces
Significance	peak interglacial warmth, high sea levels, hominin dispersals

MIS 5e MIS 5e was a peak interglacial interval in the late Pleistocene characterized by pronounced warming, elevated global sea level, and widespread ecological shifts. It is a key stratigraphic marker used by paleoceanographers, paleoclimatologists, Quaternary geologists, and archaeologists to correlate records across marine, terrestrial, and polar archives. MIS 5e provides crucial context for interpreting the evolution of Homo, the distribution of fauna, and the responses of ice sheets during interglacial highstands.

Definition and Chronostratigraphy

MIS 5e is defined in the benthic and planktonic oxygen isotope records from cores such as those from the Vostok Station, DSS-1, ODP Site 677, and MD95-2042 and is chronostratigraphically correlated with the Eemian interglacial of northern Europe, the Ipswichian of the United Kingdom, and the Sangamonian of North America. Stratigraphic frameworks reference isotope stratigraphy from the Lisbon Core, GISP2, EPICA, GRIP, and North Atlantic Deep Water records to establish the ~129–116 ka range. Marine isotope stratigraphy is integrated with geomagnetic excursions like the Laschamp event and with tephrochronological horizons identified in archives tied to institutions such as the Smithsonian Institution and the British Geological Survey. Chronostratigraphic correlation also uses markers from the Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and basins sampled by the IODP and IODP Expedition 303.

Paleoclimate and Sea-Level Changes

Paleoclimate reconstructions for MIS 5e combine evidence from Greenland Ice Sheet Project 2, EPICA Dome C, North Greenland Ice Core Project, Talos Dome, and Lake Ohrid sequences, showing temperatures comparable to or exceeding late 20th-century values in many regions. Sea-level indicators from coral terraces at Bermuda, Bahamas, Great Barrier Reef, Yucatan Peninsula, Cyprus, Seychelles, Western Australia, and the Red Sea point to highstands of several meters to over ten meters relative to present, consistent with melt from the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, the Greenland Ice Sheet, and peripheral glaciers in the Alps, Scandes, and Himalaya. Pollen spectra from sites near Lago Grande di Monticchio, Lake Baikal, Loch Lomond', and Eifel Maar deposits indicate shifts in vegetation linked to climate forcing documented in [{[NO LINK REQUIRED]}] atmospheric compositions measured by Law Dome and Taylor Dome ice cores. Ocean circulation shifts inferred from proxies at Bering Sea, Northeast Atlantic, Southern Ocean, Agulhas Current, and Mediterranean Outflow sites implicate changes in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation and monsoon systems such as the Indian Monsoon and East Asian Monsoon.

Human Evolution and Archaeological Evidence

Archaeological horizons attributed to Homo populations during MIS 5e include stone-tool industries found at sites like Qafzeh, Skhul, Tabun, Jebel Irhoud, Oued Djebbana, Sungir, Ksar Akil, Blombos Cave, Die Kelders Cave Mouth, Monte Verde, Pinnacle Point, Zugarramurdi, Atapuerca, Sima de los Huesos (contextual layers), Lagar Velho, and Niah Cave. Fossil and genetic evidence from research groups at institutions such as the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, the Natural History Museum, London, and the Smithsonian Institution link population expansions and dispersals across Levantine Corridor, Arabian Peninsula, Sahara, Eurasian Steppe, and Sunda Shelf corridors. Homo sapiens remains and Mousterian-to-Upper Paleolithic transitions documented by teams from University of Cambridge, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Tel Aviv University, University of Cape Town, and University of Bologna provide insight into behavioral innovations—artifacts paralleling finds in collections at the British Museum, Musée de l'Homme, National Museum of Ethiopia, and Iziko South African Museum.

Regional Expressions and Correlatives

Regional correlative stages include the Eemian in Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany, the Ipswichian in England, the Sangamonian in United States, and the Mikulino in Russia. Terrestrial sequences in the Mediterranean Basin, Caucasus, Anatolia, Levant, Iberian Peninsula, Balkan Peninsula, Central Asia, and East Africa show distinct expressions of MIS 5e warmth and moisture regimes, as do marine records from the North Sea, Black Sea, Adriatic Sea, Ionian Sea, Aegean Sea, and Caribbean Sea. Paleobotanical correlations rely on assemblages from Pollen Core 4A, Lake Ohrid, Lake Van, Sivas Basin, and the Jordan Valley, and are cross-referenced with faunal turnovers recorded at Dmanisi, Ain el Hanech, Sahabi Formation, and Olduvai Gorge.

Dating Methods and Chronology

Chronologies for MIS 5e integrate U-series dating of coral terraces by labs at University of Miami, Australian National University, and University of Tokyo, radiocarbon calibration against IntCal, optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) from quartz and feldspar at laboratories such as Oxford University Luminescence Dating Laboratory, USGS, and NERC facilities, and amino acid racemization studies by groups at University of Bristol and University of Oxford. Uranium-thorium ages from reefs at Bermuda, Roti Island, and Sicily provide precise constraints, while cosmogenic nuclide exposure dating applied at Svalbard, Sierra Nevada, and Tibetan Plateau glacial landforms uses facilities at ETH Zurich and Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory. Synchronization with ice-core chronologies like GICC05 and speleothem records from Heshang Cave, Soreq Cave, Sima de las Palomas yields multi-proxy age models adopted by the International Union for Quaternary Research community.

Geological and Sedimentary Records

Sedimentary archives that preserve MIS 5e include coral reef sequences at Heron Island, Fraser Island, and Kiritimati, lacustrine successions at Lake Malawi, Lake Tanganyika, and Lake Turkana, fluvial terraces along the Rhine, Thames, Murray River, and Zambezi, and aeolian deposits across the Sahara, Kalahari, and Loess Plateau. Periglacial and cryogenic features in the Canadian Shield, Scandinavian Ice Sheet margins, and Patagonian Andes record ice-margin dynamics, while speleothems in the Akiyoshidai, Mladeč, and Grotta di Castelcivita capture humidity oscillations. Biogenic proxies—foraminifera assemblages from sites such as Lisbon Canyon, Cape Basin, and Agulhas Bank, ostracods from Black Sea cores, and diatomite from Lake Baikal—enable paleoenvironmental reconstructions used by researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Geological Survey of Japan, and CNRS.

Category:Quaternary