Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Paleoclimate

Silicate weathering feedback hindered by clay formation

  • News & Views
  • Published:

From Nature Geoscience

View current issue Submit your manuscript

The chemical weathering of silicate rocks plays a central role in stabilizing our climate through CO2 drawdown. Li isotopic evidence from a prolonged Eocene warming event suggests clay formation may disrupt this feedback on intermediate timescales.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1: Lithium isotope ratios, denoted as δ7Li, reflect the predominant weathering style of a river’s catchment.

References

  1. Berner, R. A., Lasaga, A. C. & Garrels, R. M. Am. J. Sci. 283, 641–683 (1983).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Walker, J. C. G., Hays, P. B. & Kasting, J. F. J. Geophys. Res. 86, 9776–9782 (1981).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Krause, A. J., Sluijs, A., van der Ploeg, R., Lenton, T. M. & Pogge von Strandmann, P. A. E. Nat. Geosci. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-023-01234-y (2023).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Berner, R. A. & Caldeira, K. Geology 25, 955–956 (1997).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Penman, D. E. et al. Nat. Geosci. 9, 575–580 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Rugenstein, J. K. C., Ibarra, D. E. & von Blanckenburg, F. Nature 571, 99–102 (2019).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Bohaty, S. M., Zachos, J. C., Florindo, F. & Delaney, M. L. Paleoceanography 24, PA2207 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Henehan, M. J., Hull, P. M., Penman, D. E., Rae, J. W. B. & Schmidt, D. N. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 371, 20150510 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Elsworth, G., Galbraith, E., Halverson, G. & Yang, S. Nat. Geosci. 10, 213–216 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Evans, D. et al. A Palaeogene record of the ionic composition of seawater and its relationship to atmospheric CO2. In Goldschmidt Virtual 2021 (European Association of Geochemistry and of the Geochemical Society, 2021).

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Earth Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK

    Michael J. Henehan

Authors
  1. Michael J. Henehan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michael J. Henehan.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The author declares no competing interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Henehan, M.J. Silicate weathering feedback hindered by clay formation. Nat. Geosci. 16, 663–664 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-023-01242-y

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-023-01242-y

  • Springer Nature Limited

Search

Navigation