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This paper presents radiocarbon results from a single Diploastrea heliopora coral from Vanuatu that lived during the Younger Dryas climatic episode, between ca. 11,700 and 12,400 calendar yr bp. The specimen has been independently dated with multiple 230 Th measurements to permit calibration of the 14 C time scale. Growth bands in the coral were used to identify individual years of growth. 14 C measurements were made on each year. These values were averaged to achieve decadal resolution for the 14 C calibration. The relative uncertainty of the decadal 14 C data was below 1% (2σ). The data are in good agreement with the existing dendrochronology and allow for high-resolution calibration for most years. Variations in the fine structure of the 14 C time series preserved in this specimen demonstrate sporadic rapid increases in the Δ 14 C content of the surface ocean and atmosphere. Certain sharp rises in Δ 14 C are coincident with gaps in coral growth evidenced by several hiatuses. These may be related to rapid climatic changes that occurred during the Younger Dryas. This is the first coral calibration with decadal resolution and the only such data set to extend beyond the dendrochronology-based 14 C calibration.
Burr et al. (Thu,) studied this question.