Prof. Dr. M. Joachimski

apl. Prof. Dr. Michael Joachimski

Research Scientist

Chair of Geology
GeoZentrum Nordbayern
Schlossgarten 5
91054 Erlangen

Tel: +49 (0)9131 85 29296 (Office)
Tel: +49 (0)9131 8529297 (Lab)
Fax: +49 (0)9131 85 29295

Email: michael.joachimski@fau.de

 

Research focuses on studies of the development of the palaeoclimate in the Earth’s history. With the help of isotope geochemical analyses, attempts are made to reconstruct connections between changes in the global carbon cycle and climatic changes. Current projects include studies in the Palaeozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic.

 

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2024

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2022

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2019

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Projects

  • Änderungen in den Nährstoffkreisläufen während des Perm-Trias Übergangs (NUC)

    (Third Party Funds Single)

    Term: 1. October 2019 - 30. September 2022
    Funding source: DFG-Einzelförderung / Sachbeihilfe (EIN-SBH)

  • Late Permian to Early Triassic palaeo-pCO2 and high latitude palaeotemperature

    (Third Party Funds Group – Sub project)

    Overall project: Temperature-related stresses as a unifying principle in ancient extinctions (TERSANE)
    Term: 1. August 2016 - 31. October 2019
    Funding source: DFG / Forschungsgruppe (FOR)
    Abstract

    Recent studies documented an 8° C temperature rise in low latitudes in the latest Permian. Temperatures continued to increase in the Early Triassic and potentially became inimical to life in low latitudes. High atmospheric CO2 levels in conjunction with high temperatures and anoxic conditions in large parts of the Worlds Early Triassic oceans may have been responsible for the protracted recovery in the aftermath of end-Permian mass extinction. However, to date, neither the atmospheric CO2 evolution nor temperature records from higher latitudes are available that could further constrain a causal link between high atmospheric CO2 levels, high to very high temperatures, the Late Permian mass extinction and the slow recovery in the Early Triassic. This study focuses on the reconstruction of atmospheric pCO2 levels and higher latitude temperatures for the latest Permian to early Middle Triassic in order to get a more comprehensive understanding of the latitudinal temperature evolution during this critical time interval. Carbon isotopes measured on carbonate palaeosols will be used to estimate palaeo-pCO2, higher latitude palaeotemperatures will be reconstructed from oxygen isotopes measured on conodont apatite. The temperature as well as pCO2 records will then be compared to palaeobiological patterns from lower and higher latitudes in order to assess the ecological selectivity of faunal responses to these two components of the deadly trio (temperature, CO2, and anoxia)

  • Temperature-related stresses as a unifying principle in ancient extinctions

    (Third Party Funds Group – Sub project)

    Overall project: FOR 2332: Temperature-related stresses as a unifying principle in ancient extinctions (TERSANE)
    Term: 1. July 2016 - 30. June 2019
    Funding source: DFG / Forschungsgruppe (FOR)
    URL: https://www.gzn.fau.de/palaeoumwelt/projects/tersane/index.html
    Abstract

    Combined with local and regional anthropogenic factors, current human-induced climate warming is thought to be a major threat to biodiversity. The ecological imprint of climate change is already visible on land and in the oceans. The imprint is largely manifested in demographic/abundance changes and phenological and distribution shifts, whereas only local extinctions are yet attributable to climate change with some confidence. This is expected to change in the near future owing to direct heat stress, shortage of food, mismatches in the timing of seasonal activities, geographic barriers to migration, and new biological interactions. Additional stressors are associated with climate warming in marine systems, namely acidification and deoxygenation. Ocean acidification is caused by the ocean's absorption of CO2 and deoxygenation is a result of warmer water, increased ocean stratification and upwelling of hypoxic waters. The combination of warming, acidification and deoxygenation is known as the "deadly trio". Temperature is the most pervasive environmental factor shaping the functional characteristics and limits to life and is also central to the generation and biological effects of hypoxic waters and to modulating the effects of ocean acidification, with and without concomitant hypoxia. Due to the key role of temperature in the interaction of the three drivers we termed these temperature-related stressors (TRS).

  • Rekonstruktion der mittel-und obertriassischen Paleotemperaturgeschichte mittels Sauerstoffisotopenanalysen an Conodontenapatit

    (Third Party Funds Single)

    Term: since 1. March 2014
    Funding source: DFG-Einzelförderung / Sachbeihilfe (EIN-SBH)
    Abstract
    Nach dem größten Aussterbeereignis der Erdgeschichte an der Perm-Trias Grenze, kam es in der Triaszeit wird zu einer ökologischen Reorganisation. Während die Biodiversität in der frühen Trias noch sehr gering war, zudem weder Kohlen noch Cherts und so gut wie keine Metazoenriffe aus der frühen Trias bekannt sind, erfolgte in der Mittel- bis Obertrias eine deutliche Zunahme in der Biodiversität. So wurden z.B. zooxanthellate Steinkorallen (Scleractinia) in der Obertrias zu den wichtigsten riffbildenden Organismen. In einer kürzlich abgeschlossenen und in Science publizierten Studie konnten wir zeigen, dass die Paläotemperaturen in den niedrigen Breiten während der Untertrias sehr hoch waren, in einzelnen Zeitabschnitten (Smithian/Spathian) sogar 40° C überschritten haben. In dem beantragten Projekt soll die Temperaturentwicklung in der mittleren und späten Trias dokumentiert und mit den bereits für die Untertrias vorliegenden Daten eine Temperaturkurve für die gesamte Trias erstellt werden. Die Paläotemperaturen sollen anhand von Sauerstoffisotopenanalysen an Conodontenapatit ermittelt werden. Geländearbeiten sind in Italien (Sizilien, Lombardei) und China (Yunnan, Guizhou) vorgesehen. Um potentielle Änderungen im Kohlenstoffkreislauf aufzeigen zu können, sollen begleitend Kohlenstoffisotopenanalysen an Karbonaten bzw. am sedimentären organischen Kohlenstoff durchgeführt werden. Anhand der hochauflösenden Temperaturkurve sollen folgende zentrale Fragestellungen beantwortet bzw. folgende Hypothesen getestet werden: (i) Waren die Temperaturen in der Mittel- bzw. Obertrias vergleichbar zu den sehr hohen Temperaturen in der Untertrias oder kam es in der Mitteltrias zu einer deutlichen klimatischen Abkühlung? Falls es zu einer Abkühlung kam, wie war der Temperaturverlauf und damit die klimatische Entwicklung in der Mittel- bzw. Obertrias? (ii) Ist die Diversifikation in der Mittel- bis Obertrias die Folge einer klimatischen Abkühlung? (iii) War das Carnian Pluvial Event ein globales Event und ist es mit einer Klimaänderung zu erklären? Wir gehen davon aus, dass der zu erstellende Temperaturrekord zu einem wesentlich besseren Verständnis der Entwicklung in der Trias wie z.B. der verzögerten Recovery nach dem Perm-Trias Massensterben beitragen wird.

  • Oxygen isotope variations in oceanic magmatic rock suites: assimilation-fractional crystallization processes versus mantle source variations

    (Third Party Funds Single)

    Term: 1. January 2009 - 31. December 2010
    Funding source: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)
    Abstract

    Oxygen isotopes are an important tool to study reactions between ascending mantle-derived magmas and material in the oceanic lithosphere that has been altered by surface processes like for example, sediments or hydrothermally altered rocks. Furthermore, crystal fractionation processes can also affect the O isotope composition especially of evolved magmas because different mineral phases fractionate O isotopes. Both assimilation and crystal fractionation thus impede the study of O isotope compositions of the magma sources in the mantle which could give important insights into recycling processes at subduction zones and in deep mantle plume-derived intraplate magmas. Here we suggest a study of the O isotope variation of five well-characterized lava series from different oceanic magmatic settings (mid-ocean ridge, oceanic intraplate, back-arc, and island arc settings) in order to define the variations between basaltic and silicic lavas and the processes affecting the O isotope ratios. Based on the understanding of lithospheric processes we will be able to distinguish the O isotope composition of the mantle sources of the magmas and draw conclusions on crustal recycling into the deep mantle and into the mantle wedge beneath subduction zones. 

  • Tree-ring based high-resolution temporal climate and environmental change in Corsica in the Late Holocene

    (Third Party Funds Single)

    Term: 1. December 2008 - 30. July 2012
    Funding source: DFG-Einzelförderung / Sachbeihilfe (EIN-SBH)
    Abstract

    A dendroclimatological and dendrochemical study on living Pinus nigra laricio trees in Corsica shall reveal the specie’s ecological response to climate change and climate differentiation at the timberline at annual resolution. The study will be based on ring width and latewood density measurements of a spatially dense sampling network. The oldest living trees sampled so far show up to 850 tree rings and are among the oldest in the western Mediterranean region. Due to the alignment along climatic gradients, the selected sites show different climatic sensitivity to cold, wet, warm and dry recent conditions and can thus represent regional climatic trends of different climatic variables. Stable oxygen and carbon isotope variability in wood cellulose will be measured at annual resolution at sites with time series of more than 520 years, spanning the major part of the Little Ice Age. Image analysis of variations of the tracheid properties will provide information about growth-controlling climate variations at an intra-annual scale and will supplement the interpretation of the density measurements. The spatial data achieved by tree material shall be compared with other climate proxies such as montane vegetation distribution, potential treeline position, temporary snowline (remote sensing data), and will be calibrated against data of modern isotopic composition of surface waters and maximum snowline depression. Corsica is located in a climatic key position in the track of Mediterranean cyclones. The study is dedicated to late Holocene mountain climatic change and will contribute new data of the Mediterranean area, which will be strongly affected by warming and drying in the next decades.

  • Sauerstoffisotopie von Conodontenapatit zur Rekonstruktion des Klimas im Perm

    (Third Party Funds Single)

    Term: 1. August 2008 - 30. August 2011
    Funding source: DFG-Einzelförderung / Sachbeihilfe (EIN-SBH)
    Abstract

    Sauerstoffisotopenanalysen an Conodontenapatit sollen zur Rekonstruktion der Vereisungsgeschichte sowie der Temperaturentwicklung des Perm durchgeführt werden. Conodonten sind aufgrund des häufigen Auftretens in paläozoischen Sedimenten sowie aufgrund ihrer mineralogischen Struktur deutlich besser zur Rekonstruktion von hochauflösenden Paläotemperaturkurven geeignet als kalzitische Brachiopodenschalen. Die bisher für das Perm vorliegenden Sauerstoffisotopenkurven, welche ausschließlich auf der Analyse von Brachiopodenkalzit basieren, zeigen weder ein einheitliches Muster in der Temperaturentwicklung, noch liegen hochauflösende Kurven vor. Im Rahmen des Projekts sollen Conodonten aus stratigraphisch gut datierten Profilen in China und den Vereinigten Staaten untersucht werden. Mit Hilfe der Isotopendaten werden Erkenntnisse zu folgenden Themenkomplexen erwartet: (i) Datierung des Endes der permokarbonen Vereisung, (ii) Klimaänderungen in Zusammenhang mit den beiden wichtigen Aussterbeereignissen im Oberperm (Kamura-Event und Perm-Trias Grenze), (iii) Erarbeitung einer hochauflösendem Paläotemperatur-/Paläoklimakurve für das gesamte Perm, und (iv) Integration des zu erarbeitenden Datensatzes in eine δ18OApatit Kurve für das Paläozoikum.

Leiter Isotopenlabor

Gremien

Prüfungsausschuss Geothermie

Prüfungsausschuss Geowissenschaften

Editorial boards

Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology: 2014 -2018

Journal of Earth Science: 2013 –

Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvironments: 2011-