Abstract
Anomalously unradiogenic neodymium in authigenic phases of the North Atlantic during glacial terminations has been attributed to weathering of glacial sediments derived from shield rocks. However, mechanisms producing unradiogenic neodymium and their link to terrestrial processes remain poorly constrained. Here we analyze neodymium isotopes from co-located stream water and sediment across a deglaciating landscape in southwest Greenland. Dissolved neodymium is ~8 ɛNd units less radiogenic than bedload in recently exposed watersheds. In watersheds with longer exposure time, dissolved neodymium is ~10 ɛNd units and particulate neodymium ~3 ɛNd units higher, decreasing the offset to ~1 unit. This shift results from preferential weathering of minerals with low samarium/neodymium ratios and winnowing of the fine fraction of recently exposed sediments. Variations in the influx and weathering extent of shield-derived sediment alter neodymium isotopic compositions of North Atlantic seafloor sediment and seawater, constraining interpretations of past ice sheet loss and deep ocean circulation.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data availability
Stream water, bedload, and suspended sediment Nd isotope ratios and REE concentration data used in this study are available through the Arctic Data Center at https://doi.org/10.18739/A2GT5FH6P68.
References
Broecker, W. S. & Denton, G. H. The role of ocean-atmosphere reorganizations in glacial cycles. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 53, 2465–2501 (1989).
Boyle, E. A. & Keigwin, L. North Atlantic thermohaline circulation during the past 20,000 years linked to high-latitude surface temperature. Nature 330, 35–40 (1987).
Curry, W. B. & Oppo, D. W. Glacial water mass geometry and the distribution of δ13C of ΣCO2 in the western Atlantic Ocean. Paleoceanography 20, 2004PA001021 (2005).
Blaser, P. et al. Prevalent North Atlantic deep water during the last glacial maximum and Heinrich Stadial 1. Nat. Geosci. 18, 410–416 (2025).
Roberts, N. L., Piotrowski, A. M., McManus, J. F. & Keigwin, L. D. Synchronous deglacial overturning and water mass source changes. Science 327, 75–78 (2010).
Böhm, E. et al. Strong and deep Atlantic meridional overturning circulation during the last glacial cycle. Nature 517, 73–76 (2015).
Lippold, J. et al. Deep water provenance and dynamics of the (de)glacial Atlantic meridional overturning circulation. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 445, 68–78 (2016).
Howe, J. N. W. et al. North Atlantic deep water production during the last glacial maximum. Nat. Commun. 7, 11765 (2016).
Piepgras, D. J. & Wasserburg, G. J. Rare earth element transport in the western North Atlantic inferred from Nd isotopic observations. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 51, 1257–1271 (1987).
Frank, M. Radiogenic isotopes: tracers of past ocean circulation and erosional input. Rev. Geophys. 40, https://doi.org/10.1029/2000RG000094 (2002).
Goldstein, S. L. & Hemming, S. R. Long-lived isotopic tracers in oceanography, paleoceanography, and ice-sheet dynamics. in Treatise on Geochemistry 453–489 https://doi.org/10.1016/B0-08-043751-6/06179-X (Elsevier, 2003).
van de Flierdt, T., Robinson, L. F., Adkins, J. F., Hemming, S. R. & Goldstein, S. L. Temporal stability of the neodymium isotope signature of the Holocene to glacial North Atlantic. Paleoceanography 21, 2006PA001294 (2006).
Siddall, M. et al. Towards explaining the Nd paradox using reversible scavenging in an ocean general circulation model. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 274, 448–461 (2008).
Arsouze, T., Dutay, J.-C., Lacan, F. & Jeandel, C. Reconstructing the Nd oceanic cycle using a coupled dynamical – biogeochemical model. Biogeosciences 6, 2829–2846 (2009).
Lacan, F. & Jeandel, C. Acquisition of the neodymium isotopic composition of the North Atlantic Deep Water. Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst. 6, 2005GC000956 (2005).
Lacan, F. & Jeandel, C. Neodymium isotopes as a new tool for quantifying exchange fluxes at the continent–ocean interface. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 232, 245–257 (2005).
Lambelet, M. et al. Neodymium isotopic composition and concentration in the western North Atlantic Ocean: results from the GEOTRACES GA02 section. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 177, 1–29 (2016).
Wilson, D. J., Piotrowski, A. M., Galy, A. & McCave, I. N. A boundary exchange influence on deglacial neodymium isotope records from the deep western Indian Ocean. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 341–344, 35–47 (2012).
Abbott, A. N., Haley, B. A. & McManus, J. Bottoms up: sedimentary control of the deep North Pacific Ocean’s εNd signature. Geology 43, 1035–1035 (2015).
Stordal, M. C. & Wasserburg, G. J. Neodymium isotopic study of Baffin Bay water: sources of REE from very old terranes. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 77, 259–272 (1986).
Howe, J. N. W., Piotrowski, A. M. & Rennie, V. C. F. Abyssal origin for the early Holocene pulse of unradiogenic neodymium isotopes in Atlantic seawater. Geology 44, 831–834 (2016).
Zhao, N. et al. Glacial–interglacial Nd isotope variability of North Atlantic Deep water modulated by North American ice sheet. Nat. Commun. 10, 5773 (2019).
Pöppelmeier, F. et al. Influence of ocean circulation and benthic exchange on deep northwest Atlantic Nd isotope records during the past 30,000 years. Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst. 20, 4457–4469 (2019).
Jaume-Seguí, M. et al. Distinguishing glacial AMOC and interglacial Non-AMOC Nd isotopic signals in the deep western Atlantic over the last 1 Myr. Paleoceanogr. Paleoclimatol. 36, e2020PA003877 (2021).
von Blanckenburg, F. & Nägler, T. F. Weathering versus circulation-controlled changes in radiogenic isotope tracer composition of the Labrador Sea and North Atlantic Deep Water. Paleoceanography 16, 424–434 (2001).
Goldstein, S. J. & Jacobsen, S. B. The Nd and Sr isotopic systematics of river-water dissolved material: Implications for the sources of Nd and Sr in seawater. Chem. Geol. Isot. Geosci. Sect. 66, 245–272 (1987).
Levy, L. B., Kelly, M. A., Howley, J. A. & Virginia, R. A. Age of the Ørkendalen moraines, Kangerlussuaq, Greenland: constraints on the extent of the southwestern margin of the Greenland Ice Sheet during the Holocene. Quat. Sci. Rev. 52, 1–5 (2012).
Whitehouse, M. J., Kalsbeek, F. & Nutman, A. P. Crustal growth and crustal recycling in the Nagssugtoqidian orogen of West Greenland. Precambrian Res. 91, 365–381 (1998).
Scribner, C. A. et al. Exposure age and climate controls on weathering in deglaciated watersheds of western Greenland. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 170, 157–172 (2015).
Deuerling, K. M. et al. Chemical weathering across the western foreland of the Greenland Ice Sheet. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 245, 426–440 (2019).
Martin, J. B., Pain, A. J., Martin, E. E., Rahman, S. & Ackerman, P. Comparisons of nutrients exported from greenlandic glacial and deglaciated watersheds. Glob. Biogeochem. Cycles 34, e2020GB006661 (2020).
Pain, A. J., Martin, J. B., Martin, E. E., Rahman, S. & Ackermann, P. Differences in the quantity and quality of organic matter exported from greenlandic glacial and deglaciated watersheds. Glob. Biogeochemical Cycles 34, e2020GB006614 (2020).
Martin, J. B., Pain, A. J. & Martin, E. E. Geochemistry of glacial, proglacial, and deglaciated environments. in Treatise on Geochemistry 251–299 https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-99762-1.00110-8 (Elsevier, 2025).
Church, M. & Ryder, J. M. Paraglacial sedimentation: a consideration of fluvial processes conditioned by glaciation. Geol. Soc. Am. Bull. 83, 3059 (1972).
Ballantyne, C. K. A general model of paraglacial landscape response. Holocene 12, 371–376 (2002).
Blum, J. D. & Erel, Y. Rb-Sr isotope systematics of a granitic soil chronosequence: the importance of biotite weathering. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 61, 3193–3204 (1997).
Pain, A. J., Martin, J. B., Martin, E. E., Salinas-Reyes, J. T. & Bennett, C. Glacial retreat converts exposed landscapes from net carbon sinks to sources. Commun. Earth Environ. 6, 424 (2025).
Blum, J. D., Erel, Y. & Brown, K. 87Sr/86Sr ratios of sierra nevada stream waters: implications for relative mineral weathering rates. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 57, 5019–5025 (1993).
Salinas-Reyes, T., Martin, J. & Martin, E. Mineralogical composition, trace element concentration, and radiogenic isotope ratios of mineral separates of bedload from four southwestern Greenland streams (collected 2013 & 2017), NSF Arctic Data Center https://doi.org/10.18739/A24F1MM2R (2025).
Harlavan, Y., Erel, Y. & Blum, J. D. The coupled release of REE and Pb to the soil labile pool with time by weathering of accessory phases, Wind River Mountains, WY. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 73, 320–336 (2009).
Foster, G. L. & Vance, D. Negligible glacial–interglacial variation in continental chemical weathering rates. Nature 444, 918–921 (2006).
Gutjahr, M., Frank, M., Halliday, A. N. & Keigwin, L. D. Retreat of the Laurentide ice sheet tracked by the isotopic composition of Pb in western North Atlantic seawater during termination 1. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 286, 546–555 (2009).
Crocket, K. C., Vance, D., Foster, G. L., Richards, D. A. & Tranter, M. Continental weathering fluxes during the last glacial/interglacial cycle: insights from the marine sedimentary Pb isotope record at Orphan Knoll, NW Atlantic. Quat. Sci. Rev. 38, 89–99 (2012).
Parker, R. L. et al. Laurentide Ice Sheet extent over the last 130 thousand years traced by the Pb isotope signature of weathering inputs to the Labrador Sea. Quat. Sci. Rev. 287, 107564 (2022).
Blaser, P. et al. The resilience and sensitivity of Northeast Atlantic deep water εNd to overprinting by detrital fluxes over the past 30,000 years. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 245, 79–97 (2019).
Du, J., Haley, B. A. & Mix, A. C. Neodymium isotopes in authigenic phases, bottom waters and detrital sediments in the Gulf of Alaska and their implications for paleo-circulation reconstruction. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 193, 14–35 (2016).
Roberts, N. L., Piotrowski, A. M., Elderfield, H., Eglinton, T. I. & Lomas, M. W. Rare earth element association with foraminifera. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 94, 57–71 (2012).
Abbott, A. N., Löhr, S. C., Payne, A., Kumar, H. & Du, J. Widespread lithogenic control of marine authigenic neodymium isotope records? Implications for paleoceanographic reconstructions. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 319, 318–336 (2022).
Gutjahr, M. et al. Reliable extraction of a deepwater trace metal isotope signal from Fe–Mn oxyhydroxide coatings of marine sediments. Chem. Geol. 242, 351–370 (2007).
Blaser, P. et al. Extracting foraminiferal seawater Nd isotope signatures from bulk deep sea sediment by chemical leaching. Chem. Geol. 439, 189–204 (2016).
Abbott, A. N., Haley, B. A. & McManus, J. The impact of sedimentary coatings on the diagenetic Nd flux. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 449, 217–227 (2016).
Wilson, D. J., Piotrowski, A. M., Galy, A. & Clegg, J. A. Reactivity of neodymium carriers in deep sea sediments: implications for boundary exchange and paleoceanography. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 109, 197–221 (2013).
Hillaire-Marcel, C., Vernal, A. D., Bilodeau, G. & Wu, G. Isotope stratigraphy, sedimentation rates, deep circulation, and carbonate events in the Labrador Sea during the last ~ 200 ka. Can. J. Earth Sci. 31, 63–89 (1994).
McManus, J. F., Francois, R., Gherardi, J.-M., Keigwin, L. D. & Brown-Leger, S. Collapse and rapid resumption of Atlantic meridional circulation linked to deglacial climate changes. Nature 428, 834–837 (2004).
Elmore, A. C., Piotrowski, A. M., Wright, J. D. & Scrivner, A. E. Testing the extraction of past seawater Nd isotopic composition from North Atlantic deep sea sediments and foraminifera. Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst. 12, 2011GC003741 (2011).
Dyke, A. S. An outline of North American deglaciation with emphasis on central and northern Canada. in Developments in Quaternary Sciences Vol. 2 373–424 (Elsevier, 2004).
Colville, E. J. et al. Sr-Nd-Pb isotope evidence for ice-sheet presence on southern Greenland during the last interglacial. Science 333, 620–623 (2011).
Reyes, A. V. et al. South Greenland ice-sheet collapse during Marine Isotope Stage 11. Nature 510, 525–528 (2014).
Revel, M., Sinko, J. A., Grousset, F. E. & Biscaye, P. E. Sr and Nd isotopes as tracers of North Atlantic lithic particles: paleoclimatic implications. Paleoceanography 11, 95–113 (1996).
Fagel, N. et al. Nd and Pb isotope signatures of the clay-size fraction of Labrador Sea sediments during the Holocene: implications for the inception of the modern deep circulation pattern. Paleoceanography 19, 2003PA000993 (2004).
Harlavan, Y., Erel, Y. & Blum, J. D. Systematic Changes in Lead Isotopic Composition with Soil Age in Glacial Granitic Terrains. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 62, 33–46 (1998).
Tachikawa, K., Jeandel, C. & Roy-Barman, M. A new approach to the Nd residence time in the ocean: the role of atmospheric inputs. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 170, 433–446 (1999).
Toth, D. J. & Lerman, A. Organic matter reactivity and sedimentation rates in the ocean. Am. J. Sci. 277, 465–485 (1977).
Shabani, M. B., Akagi, T. asuku & Masuda, A. kimasa Preconcentration of trace rare-earth elements in seawater by complexation with bis(2-ethylhexyl) hydrogen phosphate and 2-ethylhexyl dihydrogen phosphate adsorbed on a C18 cartridge and determination by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Anal. Chem. 64, 737–743 (1992).
Pin, C. & Zalduegui, J. S. Sequential separation of light rare-earth elements, thorium and uranium by miniaturized extraction chromatography: application to isotopic analyses of silicate rocks. Anal. Chim. Acta 339, 79–89 (1997).
Manhes, G., Minster, J. F. & Allègre, C. J. Comparative uranium-thorium-lead and rubidium-strontium study of the Saint Sèverin amphoterite: consequences for early solar system chronology. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 39, 14–24 (1978).
Kamenov, G. D., Perfit, M. R., Mueller, P. A. & Jonasson, I. R. Controls on magmatism in an island arc environment: study of lavas and sub-arc xenoliths from the Tabar–Lihir–Tanga–Feni island chain, Papua New Guinea. Contrib. Miner. Pet. 155, 635–656 (2008).
Salinas-Reyes, T., Martin, J. & Martin, E. Dissolved and sediment neodymium concentrations and isotope ratios and sediment rare earth element concentrations in watersheds of southwestern Greenland (2013–2023), NSF Arctic Data Center https://doi.org/10.18739/A2GT5FH6P (2025).
Filippova, A. et al. Authigenic and detrital carbonate Nd isotope records reflect pulses of detrital material input to the Labrador Sea during the Heinrich stadials. Paleoceanogr. Paleoclimatol. 38, e2022PA004470 (2023).
Blaser, P. et al. Labrador Sea bottom water provenance and REE exchange during the past 35,000 years. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 542, 116299 (2020).
Gutjahr, M., Frank, M., Stirling, C. H., Keigwin, L. D. & Halliday, A. N. Tracing the Nd isotope evolution of North Atlantic Deep and Intermediate Waters in the western North Atlantic since the Last Glacial Maximum from Blake Ridge sediments. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 266, 61–77 (2008).
Hasholt, B. & Søgaard, H. Et forsøg på en klimatisk-hydrologisk regionsinddeling af Holsteinsborg Kommune (Sisimiut). Geografisk Tidsskr. Dan. J. Geogr. 77, 72–92 (1978).
Bayon, G. et al. The control of weathering processes on riverine and seawater hafnium isotope ratios. Geology 34, 433 (2006).
Acknowledgements
The authors disclose support for the research of this work from the US National Science Foundation [Grant number 2000649]. Sampling was conducted under the Bureau of Minerals and Petroleum Export licenses 027/2014 and 016/2017, and the Scientific Survey Licenses VU-00113 and SP-34. J.T.S.R. thanks George Kamenov for technical assistance and Christina Bennett for field work and lab assistance. We thank the reviewers for their time and effort in providing feedback that improved this study.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
J.T. Salinas-Reyes conducted field work, trace element and Nd isotope analyses, and data analysis, and drafted the original manuscript. E.E. Martin and J.B. Martin led the research project, conducted field work and data analysis, and contributed to reviewing and editing the manuscript. K.M. Deuerling conducted field work and trace element and Nd isotope analyses, and contributed to reviewing and editing the manuscript.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Competing interests
The authors declare no competing interests.
Peer review
Peer review information
Communications Earth and Environment thanks Patrick Blaser and the other, anonymous, reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work. Primary handling editors: Kai Deng and Alireza Bahadori. A peer review file is available.
Additional information
Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Supplementary information
Rights and permissions
Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
About this article
Cite this article
Salinas-Reyes, J.T., Martin, E.E., Martin, J.B. et al. Changes in terrestrial weathering following glacial retreat reveal processes altering North Atlantic neodymium isotopes. Commun Earth Environ (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-026-03220-9
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-026-03220-9
