Articles | Volume 3, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-3-49-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-3-49-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Novel method for determining 234U–238U ages of Devils Hole 2 cave calcite (Nevada)
Department of Earth Sciences, University of Minnesota, 116 Church
Street SE, Minneapolis, MN, USA
Kathleen A. Wendt
Department of Earth Sciences, University of Minnesota, 116 Church
Street SE, Minneapolis, MN, USA
Institute of Geology, University of Innsbruck, Innrain 52,
Innsbruck, Austria
Yuri Dublyansky
Institute of Geology, University of Innsbruck, Innrain 52,
Innsbruck, Austria
Gina E. Moseley
Institute of Geology, University of Innsbruck, Innrain 52,
Innsbruck, Austria
Christoph Spötl
Institute of Geology, University of Innsbruck, Innrain 52,
Innsbruck, Austria
R. Lawrence Edwards
Department of Earth Sciences, University of Minnesota, 116 Church
Street SE, Minneapolis, MN, USA
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We present a reconstruction of permafrost and snow cover on the British Isles for the Younger Dryas period, a time of extremely cold winters that happened approximately 12 000 years ago. Our results indicate that seasonal sea ice in the North Atlantic was most likely a crucial factor to explain the observed climate shifts during this time.
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We use cave rocks to reconstruct northern Siberian climate 8.68 ± 0.09 million years ago. We show that when global average temperature was about 4.5 °C warmer than today (similar to what’s expected in the coming decades should carbon emissions continue unabated), Arctic temperature increased by more than 18 °C. Similar levels of Arctic warming in the future would see huge areas of permafrost (permanently frozen ground) thaw and release greenhouse gases to the atmosphere.
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Reconstructing past temperatures at regional scales during the Common Era is necessary to place the current warming in the context of natural climate variability. We present a climate reconstruction based on eight stalagmites from four caves in the Pyrenees, NE Spain. These stalagmites were dated precisely and analysed for their oxygen isotopes, which appear dominated by temperature changes. Solar variability and major volcanic eruptions are the two main drivers of observed climate variability.
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Cryogenic cave carbonates (CCCs) provide a marker for past permafrost conditions. Their formation age is determined by Th / U dating. However, samples can be contaminated with small amounts of Th at formation, which can cause inaccurate ages and require correction. We analysed multiple CCCs and found that varying degrees of contamination can cause an apparent spread of ages, when samples actually formed within distinguishable freezing events. A correction method using isochrons is presented.
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The activity of slow-moving deep-seated landslides is commonly governed by pore pressure variations within the shear zone. Groundwater recharge as a consequence of precipitation therefore is a process regulating the activity of landslides. In this context, we present a highly automated geo-statistical approach to spatially assess groundwater recharge controlling the velocity of a deep-seated landslide in Tyrol, Austria.
Caroline Welte, Jens Fohlmeister, Melina Wertnik, Lukas Wacker, Bodo Hattendorf, Timothy I. Eglinton, and Christoph Spötl
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Stalagmites are valuable climate archives, but unlike other proxies the use of stable carbon isotopes (δ13C) is still difficult. A stalagmite from the Austrian Alps was analyzed using a new laser ablation method for fast radiocarbon (14C) analysis. This allowed 14C and δ13C to be combined, showing that besides soil and bedrock a third source is contributing during periods of warm, wet climate: old organic matter.
Kathleen A. Wendt, Xianglei Li, R. Lawrence Edwards, Hai Cheng, and Christoph Spötl
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In this study, we tested the upper limits of U–Th dating precision by analyzing three stalagmites from the Austrian Alps that have high U concentrations. The composite record spans the penultimate interglacial (MIS 7) with an average 2σ age uncertainty of 400 years. This unprecedented age control allows us to constrain the timing of temperature shifts in the Alps during MIS 7 while offering new insight into millennial-scale changes in the North Atlantic leading up to Terminations III and IIIa.
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Chao-Jun Chen, Dao-Xian Yuan, Jun-Yun Li, Xian-Feng Wang, Hai Cheng, You-Feng Ning, R. Lawrence Edwards, Yao Wu, Si-Ya Xiao, Yu-Zhen Xu, Yang-Yang Huang, Hai-Ying Qiu, Jian Zhang, Ming-Qiang Liang, and Ting-Yong Li
Clim. Past Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-2021-20, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-2021-20, 2021
Manuscript not accepted for further review
Lilian Schuster, Fabien Maussion, Lukas Langhamer, and Gina E. Moseley
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Precipitation and moisture sources over an arid region in northeast Greenland are investigated from 1979 to 2017 by a Lagrangian moisture source diagnostic driven by reanalysis data. Dominant winter moisture sources are the North Atlantic above 45° N. In summer local and north Eurasian continental sources dominate. In positive phases of the North Atlantic Oscillation, evaporation and moisture transport from the Norwegian Sea are stronger, resulting in more precipitation.
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Short summary
In this study, we built a statistical model to determine the initial δ234U in submerged calcite crusts that coat the walls of Devils Hole 2 (DH2) cave (Nevada, USA) and, using a 234U–238U dating method, extended the chronology of the calcite deposition beyond previous well-established 230Th ages and determined the oldest calcite deposited in this cave, a time marker for cave genesis. The novel method presented here may be used in future speleothem studies in similar hydrogeological settings.
In this study, we built a statistical model to determine the initial δ234U in submerged calcite...