Grain-size characteristics and climate variability in TMS5e sequence of Tumen section in southern Tengger Desert, northwestern China

The TMS5e sequence from the Tumen section,at the southern edge of Tengger Desert in the northwestern China,is synchronous with Marine Isotope Stage 5e(MIS5e).It consists of 16 layers of aeolian dune sands,11 layers of lacustrine loess-like facies,and 5 layers of lacustrine facies.The results of grain-size analysis shows that the palaeo-mobile dune sands,palaeo-fixed to semi-fixed dune sands and loess-like sandy loams are mainly composed of sands,ranging from 70% to 96%;their silt contents ranged from 4% to 20%,and their clay contents ranged from 1% to 5%;the climate under which the aeolian dune sands were deposited is similar to that under which modern mobile dune sands form,which is caused by the dominance of the cold,dry East Asian winter monsoon.In contrast,the lacustrine loess-like facies and lacustrine facies had a lower sand contents than those of the three aeolian dune sands,but have higher silt and clay contents,most of their sand content ranged from 30% to 60%,their silt contents ranged from 35% to 55%,and their clay contents ranged from 6% to 20%.The lacustrine loess-like facies and lacustrine facies formed under the influence of the warm,humid East Asian summer monsoon based on their similarity with modern sediments.The grain-size indicator Mz(mean grain diameter) and the SC/D value in the TMS5e sequence indicate climatic insta-bility at the southern edge of the Tengger Desert during MIS5e,with at least 14 fluctuations between a warm,humid climate and a cold,dry climate,divided into five stages:TMS5e5(139 kyr to 129.3 kyr B.P.),TMS5e4(129.3 kyr to 124 kyr B.P.),TMS5e3(124 kyr to 119.5 kyr B.P.),TMS5e2(119.5 kyr to 116.5 kyr B.P.),and TMS5e1(116.5 kyr to 113.7 kyr B.P.).These correspond roughly to MIS5e5,MIS5e4,MIS5e3,MIS5e2,and MIS5e1,respectively,in the GRIP ice core data.     

天水谢家湾全新世环境变迁及人地关系演化

在野外详细观测的基础上，对天水谢家湾全新世黄土剖面以2cm为间距进行了连续采样，并对所有样品作了磁化率和粒度分析，结果综合反映出研究区自全新世以来，经历了早期升温、中期基本暖湿、晚期趋于干冷的气候环境演化阶段，其中全新世中期在总体温湿的大背景下，存在频繁的气候波动。以此为基础，结合对渭河文化的历史研究资料，探讨了区内约1万年以来的人地关系演化历史，指出人地关系的和谐与统一，对人类社会发展具有重要意义。     

Holocene climate cycles in northwest margin of Asian monsoon

In the mid-latitude regions of the Asian continent,Zhuye Lake is located in the northwest margin of the Asian monsoon,where the modern climate is affected by the Asian monsoon and Westerlies.In this study,we investigated the absolutely dated Holocene records in Zhuye Lake for detecting the Holocene climate cycles.Totally,14 14 C dates and 6 optically simulated luminescence(OSL) dates are obtained from the QTH01 and QTH02 sections.The proxies of grain-size,total organic carbon content(TOC),C/N and δ 13 C are used for wavelet analysis,and the results show obvious ~256,~512 and ~1024-year climate cycles,which are consistent with the Holocene millennial and centennial scale climate cycles in the typical Asian summer monsoon domain.In different parts of the Zhuye Lake,the Holocene sediments show variable climate cycles that are affected by the lake basin topography.In the Zhuye Lake,the Holocene climate cycles are mainly correlated with the solar-related Asian summer monsoon variability and the North Atlantic ice-rafting events.     

EVIDENCE FOR ABRUPT CLIMATIC CHANGES ONNORTHWESTERN MARGIN OF EAST ASIAN MONSOON REGION DURING LAST DEGLACIATION

Based on investigations of the Zhongwei Nanshan aeolian section situated in the southeastern margin of Tengger Dcsert, carbon-14 and TL (thermoluminescence) dating results and paleoclimatic proxies such as magnetic susceptibility and grain size, we inferred that the northwestern margin of East Asian monsoon region experienced abrupt climatic changes during the last deglaciation. Six oscillation events were identified: Oldest Dryas, Belling, Older Dryas, AllerФd, lntra-AllerФd Cold Period (1ACP) and Younger Dryas (YD). The summer monsoon was weaker during Oldest Dryas and Younger Dryas when the winter monsoon was stronger. However, during the B/A (BФlling/AllerФd) period, the summer monsoon strengthened, reflected by magnetic susceptibility, when the winter monsoon also became strong, which is different from the paleoclimatic pattern established in the East Asian monsoon region. Furthermore,the summer monsoon was nearly in phase with the climate changes inferred from the oxygen isotopic records of Greenland ice cores. It could be speculated that the variations of the sea ice cover in the high latitudes of the North Hemisphere affected the high pressure of Asian continent and the changes of the winter monsoon inland. On the other hand,the sea ice cover variations might have indirectly caused the occurrence of ENSO events that has tightly been related to the summer monsoon in northwest margin of East Asian monsoon region.     

陕西榆林风沙滩区全新世气候和环境变迁

榆林长城沿线处于环境变化敏感带,其风沙滩区沉积剖面的磁化率和粒度分析结果显示,该区全新世早期11 500~10 000 a BP随着全球气候的逐渐转暖,磁化率、黏粒和粉沙含量逐渐增高;全新世中期的10 000~4 500 a BP气候相对比较湿润,植被覆盖度增大,风沙活动减弱,地表沉积物当中粉沙和黏土成分含量显著增大,风化成壤作用增强,地表发育沙质弱古土壤;全新世中期后段的4 500~3 000 a BP期间,气候以比较温和湿润为主,但在4 200~4 000 a BP出现一个气候干旱事件,风沙活动强烈;近3 000 a以来,气候显著干旱化,波动频繁,地表风沙沉积物显著变粗,表现出有5次沙漠扩张。该区生态环境演化、人文历史变迁基本上是自然因素与人为活动综合作用的结果,以自然演化为主,近代人为因素对环境变化起着加强和放大作用。     

PALEOSOLS OF SANDY LANDS AND ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES IN THE WESTERN PART OF NORTHEAST PLAIN OF CHINA WESTERN DURING HOLOCENE

ＰＡＬＥＯＳＯＬＳＯＦＳＡＮＤＹＬＡＮＤＳＡＮＤＥＮＶＩＲＯＮＭＥＮＴＡＬＣＨＡＮＧＥＳＩＮＴＨＥＷＥＳＴＥＲＮＰＡＲＴＯＦＮＯＲＴＨＥＡＳＴＰＬＡＩＮＯＦＣＨＩＮＡＷＥＳＴＥＲＮＤＵＲＩＮＧＨＯＬＯＣＥＮＥ￥ＱｉｕＳｈａｎｗｅｎ（裘善文）ＬｉＱｕｓ...     

ENVIRONMENTAL EVOLUTION OF ORDOS DESERT IN CHINA SINCE 1.1MA B. P. AS INDICATED BY YULIN STRATIGRAPHICAL SECTION AND ITS GRAIN-SIZE ANALYSIS RESULTS

1INTRODUCTIONOrdosDesertisageneral appellationof Qubqi Desert onthe north, Hedong Sandy Landonthesouthwest and MuUs Desert on the southeast (Fig. 1). It is situated on atransitional zone from arid desert steppe to semi-aridsteppe between ariddesertinNorth…     

Sedimentary Characteristics of the Second Marine Layer During the Late Marine Isotope Stage 3 in Southern Yellow Sea and Their Response to the East Asian Monsoon

We use the particle size of sediments in core YS01 A to study the sedimentary environment of the mud deposit in the central South Yellow Sea of China during late Marine Isotope Stages 3(MIS3;40.5 kyr–31.3 kyr).In addition,the East Asian Monsoon and its relationship with the North Atlantic Ocean climate change are discussed based on the sensitive grain-size calculation and the spectrum analysis.The results show that during late MIS3,the muddy area in the central South Yellow Sea experienced the evolution of coastal facies,shallow marine facies,coastal facies,and continental facies,with weak hydrodynamic conditions.Compared with other climate indicators,we found that there were many century to millennium-scale climate signals documented in the muddy area sediments in the central South Yellow Sea.According to our particle size results,three strong winter monsoon events occurred at 37.6 kyr,35.6 kyr and 32.2 kyr.The East Asian Winter Monsoon records in core YS01 A are consistent with the Greenland ice core and the Hulu cave stalagmite δ~(18)O.The millennial and centennial scale cycles,which are 55 yr,72 yr,115 yr,262 yr respectively,correspond to solar activity cycles,while the 1049 yr and 2941 yr cycles correspond to the Dansgaard-Oeschger cycles.These cycles indicate that the paleoclimate evolution of the area was controlled by the solar activities,with the high-latitude driving thermohaline circulation as the main energy conveyor belt,followed by the sea-air-land amplification of the winter monsoon variation in the central Yellow Sea in the late MIS3.     

The Holocene warm-humid phases in the North China Plain as recorded by multi-proxy records

The grain size and palinology of sediment and the frequency of 14C dada provide an integrated reconstruction of the Holocene warm-humid phases of the North China Plain. Two clear intense and long-lasting warm-humid phases were identified by comprehensive research in this region. The first phase was dated back to the early Holocene (9 000–7 000 a BP), and the second was centered at 5 000–3 000 a BP. The warm-humid episode between 9 000 and 7 000 a BP was also recognized at other sites showing global climatic...     

Sedimentary facies and evolution of aeolianites on Shidao Island, Xisha Islands

The aeolianite deposits on Shidao Island of the Xisha Islands,the South China Sea,contain five stages of aeolian biocalcarenites and four paleosols.The aeolian biocalcarenites consist of two sedimentary facies:dune and interdune deposits.In the dunes,large-scale festoon cross-bedding,humped cross-bedding and high-angle foreset bedding are well developed,and in the interdunes,large-scale flat-bedding and low-angle wedge shaped cross-bedding are well developed.The sedimentary structures and lamella features indicate that the aeolian deposits are driven mainly by the northeast monsoon.The aeolian biocalcarenite and paleosols may reflect the arid and humid climates of the East Asian monsoon,respectively.By comparison with the stalagmite oxygen isotope climosequence of Hulu Cave,Nanjing,we inferred that the aeolianite formed in the last glacial stage,and the paleosols were formed during relatively long-term warm events.     

Abrupt climate changes of Holocene

This paper is a review of studies of abrupt climate changes(ACCs) during the Holocene published during the past ten years.North Atlantic cold events are indicators of ACCs.As indicated by North Atlantic ice-rafted debris(IRD),there were nine confirmed cold events during the Holocene,occurring at 11.1 kyr,10.3 kyr,9.4 kyr,8.1 kyr,5.9 kyr,4.2 kyr,2.8 kyr,1.4 kyr,and 0.4 kyr respectively according to most representative results from Bond et al.(1997).However,the identification of chronology has been made with some uncertainties.Considerable climatic proxy data have shown that,during the cold events,substantial climate abnormalities have occurred widely across the globe,particularly in the areas surrounding the North Atlantic.These abnormalities were in the form of high-latitude cold in the both hemispheres,expansion of the Westerlies to low latitudes,drought in the monsoon regions,recession of summer monsoons,and intensification of the winter monsoons.Studies have indicated that the four ACCs occurring in the early Holocene may be related to freshwater pulses from ice melting in the northern part of the North Atlantic,and the other five ACCs that occurred during the middle and late Holocene may be related to the decreased solar activity.     

Mid-Holocene Climate Variations Recorded by Palaeolake in Marginal Area of East Asian Monsoon： A Multi-proxy Study

Traditionally, the mid-Holocene in most parts of China was thought to be warmer with higher precipitation, resulting from a strong Asian summer monsoon. However, some recent researches have proposed a mid-Holocene drought interval of millennial-scale in East Asian monsoon margin areas. Thus whether mid-Holocene was dry or humid remains an open issue. Here, Zhuyeze palaeolake, the terminal lake of the Shiyang River Drainage lying in Asian monsoon marginal areas, was selected for reconstructing the details of climate variations during the Holocene, especially mid-Holocene, on the basis of a sedimentological analysis. Qingtu Lake (QTL) section of 6.92m depth was taken from Zhuyeze palaeolake. Multi-proxy analysis of QTL section, including grain size, carbonate, TOC, C/N and δ13C of organic matter, was used to document regional climatic changes during 9-3 cal ka B.P. The record shows a major environmental change at 9.0-7.8 cal ka B.P., attributed to a climate trend towards warmth and humidity. This event was followed by a typical regional drought event which occurred during 7.8-7.5 cal ka B.P. And a warm and humid climate prevailed from 7.5 to 5.0 cal ka B.P., attributed to the warm/humid Holocene Optimum in this region. After that, the climate gradually became drier. Moreover, comparison of the climate record from this paper with the summer insolation at 30°N indicates that the climate pattern reflecting the Asian monsoon changes was caused by insolation change.     

Holocene abrupt climate shifts and mid-Holocene drought intervals recorded in Barkol Lake of Northern Xinjiang of China

Study results in this paper have indicated that the Holocene climate in Xinjiang, Northwestem China has been alternating between wet and dry conditions, and was punctuated with a series of abrupt climate shifts. A sediment core taken from Barkol Lake in the northern Xinjiang of Northwest China was analyzed at 1 cm interval for grain-size distribution. Abrupt climate shifts revealed by the grain-size proxy occurred at ca 1.4, 3.0, 4.3, 5.6, 8.0 cal kyr B.E, which were well correlated to both the abrupt shifts recorded in the North Atlantic Ocean （NAO） and the Holocene sea surface temperature （SST） cooling events in the Arabian Ocean. The correlation indicated that the climatic changes in the extreme arid Northwest China were associated with the NAO, probably via the North Atlantic Oscillation-affected westerly winds. The strength and position of westerly winds probably modulated the Siberian-Mongolian high- pressure system （winter monsoon）, and played an important role in climate change of Northwest China. Moreover, an evident drought interval during the middle Holocene was also revealed by grain-size proxy.     

Paleosols and their reflection of the environmental changes in the northeast region of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau

Based on field investigations, laboratory analyses and ¹⁴C dating, this paper discusses the laws of the formation and development of the paleosols in the northeast region of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau since Late Pleistocene. The authors reconstruct basic conditions of climate, vegetation, soil and natural zones during the three periods in which the paleosols were formed, i.e. the last interglacial of the Late Pleistocene, warm stage of Late Glacial and the Optimum of Holocene. Finally, this paper discusses the relationship between the paleosols and the uplift of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau.     

PALEOSOLS AND THEIR REFLECTION OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES IN THE NORTHEAST REGION OF THE QINGHAI－XIZANG PLATEAU

ＰＡＬＥＯＳＯＬＳＡＮＤＴＨＥＩＲＲＥＦＬＥＣＴＩＯＮＯＦＴＨＥＥＮＶＩＲＯＮＭＥＮＴＡＬＣＨＡＮＧＥＳＩＮＴＨＥＮＯＲＴＨＥＡＳＴＲＥＧＩＯＮＯＦＴＨＥＱＩＮＧＨＡＩ－ＸＩＺＡＮＧＰＬＡＴＥＡＵ徐叔鹰，潘保田ＰＡＬＥＯＳＯＬＳＡＮＤＴＨＥＩＲＲＥＦ...     

用大气热源表征的东亚夏季风指数的研究

利用1965—2007年NCEP／NCAR再分析资料和同期的中国160站降水资料,在讨论大气热源的气候特征基础上,用整层积分的大气热源定义了一个东亚夏季风指数,并用该指数研究了东亚夏季风和中国气候的关系。研究表明：定义的大气热源季风指数能反映夏季风的异常变化,高（低）指数年对应的东亚夏季风偏强（弱）;该指数与长江中下游降水存在高度的同期负相关,对长江中下游夏季降水有较强的分辨能力。     

用大气热源表征的东亚夏季风指数的研究

利用1965—2007年NCEP／NCAR再分析资料和同期的中国160站降水资料,在讨论大气热源的气候特征基础上,用整层积分的大气热源定义了一个东亚夏季风指数,并用该指数研究了东亚夏季风和中国气候的关系。研究表明：定义的大气热源季风指数能反映夏季风的异常变化,高（低）指数年对应的东亚夏季风偏强（弱）;该指数与长江中下游降水存在高度的同期负相关,对长江中下游夏季降水有较强的分辨能力。     

Preliminary study on the holocene environment changes in xinjiang—geologic records and sequence

A great number of geologic records has shown that the climatic environment in Xinjiang in the Holocene was mainly characterized by warm-dry, although alternated with sub-fluctuations, several important boundaries of environmental changes can also be determined as follows: 12,000 a B.P., 9000 a B. P., 3000 a B.P., 1500 a B.P. and 400 a B.P.. Since the Holocene, Xinjiang has undergone the influence of two kinds of environmental development patterns (the westerly type and the monsoon type), so the hydro-thermal disposal here was much more complicated. Generally speaking, the neoglacials of Xinjiang are characteristics of cold (cool)-humid and in the Climatic Optimal, it is dominated by warm-humid conditions in spite of being intercalated several sub-fluctuations of warm-dry intervals.     

Interdecadal variations of surface winds over China marginal seas

Long term variability in the surface winds over the marginal seas of China is examined with a dominant-mode singular value decomposition method. Both interannual and interdecadal patterns are found to be seasonally and spatially dependent, with reanalyses and satellite remote sensing data yielding highly consistent results. The study reveals that summer monsoon winds over the East China Sea experienced an interdecadal weakening in the late 1960s and began a persistent recovery in 2005. The study also shows gradual weakening of the winter monsoon in the southern South China Sea by more than 2m/s since the 1960s, with corroboration from coastal climate stations in Borneo. This phenomenon has not been reported in previous monsoon studies.     

A singular spectrum analysis on Holocene climatic oscillation from lake sedimentary record in Minqin Basin, China

The total organic carbon (TOC) content series from the lake sediment of Minqin Basin (100°57′–104°57′E, 37°48′–39°17′N) in northwestern China, which has a 10 000-year-long paleo-climatic proxy record, was used to analyze the Holocene climate changes in the local region. The proxy record was established in the Sanjiaocheng (SJC), Triangle Town in Chinese, Section (103°20′25″E, 39°00′38″N), which is located at the northwestern boundary of the present Asian summer monsoon in China, and is sensitive to global environmental and climate changes. Applying singular spectrum analysis (SSA) to the TOC series, principal climatic oscillations and periodical changes were studied. The results reveal 3 major patterns of climate change regulated by reconstructed components (RCs). The first pattern is natural long-term trend of climatic change in the local area (Minqin Basin), indicating a relatively wetter stage in early Holocene (starting at 9.5 kaBP), and a relatively dryer stage with a strong lake desiccation and a declined vegetation cover in mid-Holocene (during 7–6 kaBP). From 4.0 kaBP to the present, there has been a gradually decreasing trend in the third reconstructed component (RC3) showing that the local climate changed again into a dryer stage. The second pattern shows millennial-centennial scale oscillations containing cycles of 1 600 and 800 years that have been present throughout almost the entire Holocene period of the last 10 000 years. The third pattern is a millennial-centennial scale variation with a relatively smaller amplitude and unclear cycles showing a nonlinear interaction within the earth’s climate systems.