The CoralHydro2k database: a global, actively curated compilation of coral δ18O and Sr ∕ Ca proxy records of tropical ocean hydrology and temperature for the Common Era

• DOI: 10.5194/essd-15-2081-2023
• Publication Date: 2023-05-24T05:14:27Z
• Authors: Rachel M. Walter; Hussein R. Sayani; Thomas Felis; Kim M. Cobb; Nerilie J. Abram; Ariella K. Arzey; Alyssa R. Atwood; Logan D. Brenner; Émilie P. Dassié; Kristine L. DeLong; Bethany Ellis; Julien Emile-Geay; Matthew J. Fischer; Nathalie F. Goodkin; Jessica A. Hargre...; K. Halimeda Kilbo...; Hedwig Krawczyk; Nicholas P. McKay; Andrea L. Moore; Sujata A. Murty; Maria Rosabelle Ong; Riovie D. Ramos; Emma V. Reed; Dhrubajyoti Samanta; Sara C. Sanchez; Jens Zinke
• Keywords: δ18O; Proxy (statistics)

Abstract. The response of the hydrological cycle to anthropogenic climate change, especially across tropical oceans, remains poorly understood due scarcity long instrumental temperature and records. Massive shallow-water corals are ideally suited reconstructing past oceanic variability as they widely distributed tropics, rapidly deposit calcium carbonate skeletons that continuously record ambient environmental conditions, can be sampled at monthly annual resolution. Climate reconstructions based on primarily use stable oxygen isotope composition (δ18O), which acts a proxy for sea surface (SST), seawater (δ18Osw), measure variability. Increasingly, coral δ18O time series paired with strontium-to-calcium ratios (Sr/Ca), SST, from same quantify δ18Osw through time. To increase utility such reconstructions, we present CoralHydro2k database, compilation published, peer-reviewed Sr/Ca records Common Era (CE). database contains 54 Sr/Ca–δ18O 125 unpaired or records, 88 % these providing data coverage 1800 CE present. A quality-controlled set metadata standardized vocabulary units accompanies each record, informing database. tracks large-scale As such, it is well-suited investigations variability, comparisons model simulations including isotope-enabled models, application in paleodata-assimilation projects. available Linked Paleo Data (LiPD) format serializations MATLAB, R, Python downloaded NOAA National Center Environmental Information's Paleoclimate Archive https://doi.org/10.25921/yp94-v135 (Walter et al., 2022).