Understanding the Red Sea response to sea level

Here we outline a new, pragmatic methodology to derive relative sea-level estimates from central Red Sea oxygen isotope records based on a previously published model. In this paper, the methodology is described in detail, and it is shown that sea-level change is the dominant factor responsible for the recorded variability in Red Sea δ18O (PDB) for sea level changes greater than 12 m. Variables such as temperature or net evaporation are shown to have relatively small effects on the oxygen isotope record. The modelled δ18O (PDB) to sea level relationship is given in terms of a fifth order polynomial which may be used to describe relative sea level from central Red Sea oxygen isotope records. We show how established sea level records from fossil reef terraces for the last 20 kyr are successfully simulated from central Red Sea oxygen isotope records. We also examine the spatial variability of δ18O (PDB) in the basin over the last 13 kyr.