Das Projekt "The role of the East Greenland Current in the mid to late Holocene North Atlantic climate variability" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Leibniz-Institut für Ostseeforschung durchgeführt. Variations in the strength of arctic freshwater export via the East Greenland Current (EGC) can affect thermohaline circulation and the strength of the Subpolar Gyre and, therefore, can modulate the northward heat transport in the North Atlantic Ocean. To assess the role of the EGC in the mid to late Holocene North Atlantic climate variability, its palaeoceanographic history and spatial extent will be studied at three key sites; two sites in the EGC core (Foster Bugt and Nansen Trough) and one site in the Subpolar Front area (SPF; Reykjanes Ridge). For the first time, palaeoceanographic data sets, spanning the last 6000 years, for the EGC core will be produced at a multi-decadal to centennial time scale. A multi-proxy approach, combining foraminifera, diatom, dinoflagellate as well as stable isotope, trace element (Mg/Ca) and IP25 analyses on the same sample set will be performed in close collaboration with national and international project partners. The proposed reconstructions will be linked to marine and terrestrial high-resolution studies from the North Atlantic Drift, the West Greenland Current, the Fram Strait, the Baltic Sea and continental Europe, in order to investigate the timing (in-phase/out-of-phase) of mid to late Holocene climatic oscillations in the different regions. Reconstructing the role of the EGC at high resolution will increase our understanding of trigger mechanisms underlying natural mid to late Holocene climate variability in the North Atlantic region.