The LLTM occurred about 41.52 Ma,[1] amidst a broader cooling trend known as the Middle-Late Eocene Cooling (MLEC),[2] and lasted for about 30 kyr.[1] It is believed to have been a globally synchronous event.[3]
Causes
The LLTM coincided with exceptionally high insolation of the Northern Hemisphere caused by the coincidence of a precession minimum modulated by high eccentricity and an obliquity maximum, which also cooccurred with maxima in the 2.4 Myr eccentricity cycle and the 1.2 Myr obliquity cycle.[1]
Effects
The high solar irradiance experienced by the Earth during the LLTM caused an acceleration of the water cycle, increasing the rate of runoff and input of terrestrial sediment into the ocean. This resulted in the freshening and eutrophication of seawater. Amidst these conditions occurred peaks in the abundance of opportunistic Reticulofenestra that were less than 5 μm in size and of an assortment of opportunistic benthic foraminifera, while the oligotrophic calcareous nannofossilZygrhablithus bijugatus was significantly reduced in abundance.[4]
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Information related to Late Lutetian Thermal Maximum