Tree-ring chronology development for western insular Newfoundland, compared with dendroclimatic evidence

Wood, Michael S. (1998) Tree-ring chronology development for western insular Newfoundland, compared with dendroclimatic evidence. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

The development of the western Newfoundland tree-ring chronologies from cross- sections collected by the Newfoundland Forest Service is the basis for this study. Sampling undertaken by the Newfoundland Forest Service started in 1985 and continued through the summer of 1997 and beyond. The data obtained from the Newfoundland Forest Service were cross-dated, time-series evaluated and standardized to achieve five ring-width indices. -- Abies balsamea is the dominant species used in the Western Newfoundland chronologies. Northern Peninsula ring widths are correlated with mean summer and winter temperatures. These ring widths are also correlated with sea-surface temperature and mean monthly surface-air temperature. The Northern Peninsula chronologies show evidence of 1820-1830s warming and subsequent cooling as well as the 1960-1970s North Atlantic anomalies. -- Comparison between published data and developed tree-ring chronologies depicts much similarity in areas from the North Atlantic sector. Comparison between temperature correlation significance in Scandinavia and the Northern Peninsula chronologies shows a definite relationship between mean monthly surface temperature for winter months and ring-width indices. -- Monthly climate data for western insular Newfoundland do not extend backward beyond the early 1930s. The development of tree-ring chronologies, extending as far back as 1760, will improve the understanding of environmental change in the Northwest Atlantic sector.

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