Reliability of Relative Paleointensity Recorded in Chinese Loess–Paleosol Sediments

A detailed paleomagnetic and rock-magnetic investigation spanning loess L7 to paleosol S8 has been carried out at the Baoji and Xifeng sections. Results of anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility confirm that the studied loess–paleosol sediments retain primary sedimentary fabrics. Stepwise thermal demagnetization shows that two well-defined magnetization components can be isolated from both loess and paleosol specimens. A low-temperature component, isolated between 100°C and 200°C, is consistent with the present geomagnetic field direction, and a high-temperature component, isolated between 200–300°C and 620–680°C, includes clearly normal and reversed polarities. Isothermal remanent magnetization and thermomagnetic analyses indicate that characteristic remanent magnetization is mainly carried by magnetite and hematite. The Day plot, together with the stratigraphic variations of rock-magnetic parameters, shows that the uniformity of magnetic mineralogy and grain size fulfills the criteria for relative paleointensity (RPI) studies. RPI records have been constructed using natural remanent magnetization (NRM) intensity after thermal demagnetization at 300°C normalized by low-frequency magnetic susceptibility (NRM300/χ). The results show that the RPI record from the Baoji section, where pedogenesis is quite weak, is compatible with the stacked PISO-1500 paleointensity record, suggesting that it might reflect the paleointensity variation of the geomagnetic field. The RPI record from the Xifeng section, where pedogenesis is rather strong, indicates a clear dissimilarity with the stacked PISO-1500 paleointensity record, implying that it does not reflect the paleointensity variation of the geomagnetic field. Our new results show that the NRM300/χ from the strongly pedogenetic paleosols does not completely eliminate the pedogenetic (climatic) influence, so it might be unsuitable for a reliable paleointensity study.     

Magnetic mineral transport and sorting in the swash‐zone: northern Lake Erie,Canada

A combined field and laboratory study in northern Lake Erie has provided new insights into the origin and dynamics of heavy mineral placer deposits on beaches consisting primarily of non‐magnetic sediment. Work was conducted on the cross‐shore and longshore transport of heavy magnetic minerals using magnetic susceptibility and fluorescent paints to trace the movement, in the field, of samples of magnetic (magnetite) and non‐magnetic (quartz and calcite) grains, respectively. Laboratory experiments examined how the burial of small, dense magnetic minerals is affected by the grain size of the non‐magnetic host material, and how grain burial affects magnetic susceptibility measurements at the surface. The field experiments demonstrated that the magnetic mineral tracers were buried rapidly beneath coarser, non‐magnetic grains under low to moderate wave conditions, and subsequently were unable to move in the longshore or cross‐shore directions. The laboratory experiments showed that the magnetic susceptibility rapidly decreased with the rate and depth of burial of the magnetic minerals, and that magnetic grain burial was most effective beneath coarser rather than finer non‐magnetic sand and, for the latter sediments, under less rather than more energetic conditions. The results imply that magnetic mineral concentrations develop in this area through magnetic grain burial under fairly mild conditions, and subsequent settling, exposure and concentration in the upper swash zone during more energetic periods, when the non‐magnetic grains are eroded. It is probably during these erosional periods, when the magnetic minerals are exposed in fairly homogeneous deposits, that longshore and cross‐shore transport takes place.     

The paleo- and petromagnetic record in the Polish and Ukrainian loess-paleosol sequences

718 samples from five loess-paleosol sections located in the Black Sea region, the western Ukraine and Poland (Lublin Upland) were the subject of a paleomagnetic and petromagnetic study. Strong magnetic enhancement is observed in the cambisols, chernozems and iluvial horizons of the forest (podzolic) and leached brown type (brownerde) soils. Distinct magnetic depletion or dilution occurs in the gley soils and the leached horizons of podsols and brown type soils. Magnetic enhancement in the section from Black Sea region was not simply dependent on paleotemperature. Soils from the interstadial periods could be magnetically enhanced to the same degree as soils which were formed during interglacials. In the Polish and Ukrainian loess-palesol sequences, paleorainfall could be a significant factor controlling the susceptibility signal in addition to paleotemperature. The degree of warming of paleoclimate can be expressed by the amount of secondary maghemite that was formed in the studied paleosols.All sections were deposited after the Brunhes/Matuyama paleomagnetic reversal. No remarkable paleomagnetic event was encountered. However, very distinct directional changes associated most probably with the secular variations were observed in the Polish and western Ukrainian sections. These changes can serve as a stratigraphic correlation tool for comparison with petromagnetic data.     

塔里木盆地柯坪地区奥陶系层序地层研究

以露头层序地层学和沉积学为指导,对塔里木盆地西北缘柯坪地区奥陶系3个剖面进行了深入研究,建立了柯坪地区奥陶系层序地层格架。柯坪地区奥陶系由6个三级层序组成,横向对比表明四石厂剖面发育最完整,同古四布隆和苏巴什剖面有地层缺失,只能识别出下部3个三级层序。碳酸盐岩磁化率测量结果表明,磁化率的变化趋势与相对海平面升降曲线之间呈负相关,并且与层序界面、层序内部各体系域之间有着较好的对应关系,可以作为划分层序的一个辅助性的定量化指标。     

A Multi-cycle Climatic Fluctuation Record of the Last Interglacial Period:Typical Stratigraphic Section in the Salawusu River Valley on the Ordos Plateau,China

The Last Interglacial Period strata in the Milanggouwan section in the Salawusu River valley on the Ordos Plateau, China, have 8.5 sedimentary cycles composed alternately of eolian dune sands, fluvio-lacustrine facies and paleosols. Based on comprehensive analyses on the distribution of magnetic susceptibility and CaCO3 and paleo-ecology indicated by fossils in the region, it is considered that the sedimentation cycles resulted from dry-cold and warm-humid climate fluctuations. Magnetic susceptibility values and CaCO3 contents in stratigraphic sectors Ⅰ, Ⅲ, Ⅴ and Ⅱ, Ⅳ basically respectively present peaks and low vales, and the former three can in time correlate with MIS5a, MIS5c and MIS5e successively and the latter two with MIS5b and MIS5d. In addition, some horizons of eolian dune sands and the low vales of their magnetic susceptibility and CaCO3 are also correlated with 6 periods of cooling events indicated by the higher content of foraminifer Neogloboquadrina pachyderma (S.) documented in the V29-191 drill in the North Atlantic and the cold events recorded by δ^18O in the ice cores in GRIP, especially with 9 periods of dust events in Chinese Loess Plateau.     

The loess sequence of Dolní Věstonice,Czech Republic: A new OSL‐based chronology of the Last Climatic Cycle

The Dolní Věstonice loess section in the Czech Republic is well known for its high‐resolution loess–palaeosol sequence of the last interglacial–glacial climatic cycle (Upper Pleistocene). The loess section is situated in a climatic transition zone between oceanic and continental climates and is therefore of great value in reconstructing past regional climate conditions and their interaction with climate systems, in particular that of the North Atlantic. Based on a combination of optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) ages, stratigraphic field observations and magnetic susceptibility measurements, a chrono‐climatic interpretation of the Dolní Věstonice loess section is presented. To establish a reliable Upper Pleistocene chronology, a quartz OSL approach was applied for equivalent dose (D_e) determination. Monomineralic quartz extracts of three distinct grain sizes, fine (4–11 μm), middle (38–63 μm) and coarse (90–200 μm), were used and compared. Within error limits, the calculated OSL ages are the same for the different grain sizes, and the OSL ages are in stratigraphic order. The established OSL chronology is in agreement with a Weichselian litho‐ and pedostratigraphy. The Dolní Věstonice loess section is characterized by four pedosedimentary subsequences. At the base of the profile, subsequence I is characterized by a distinct Early Glacial soil complex, OSL‐dated to c. 110 to 70 ka, representing one of the most complete records of environmental change in the European loess belt. Subsequence II is allocated to the Lower Pleniglacial and is characterized by laminated sandy loess. Middle Pleniglacial subsequence III is represented by a brown soil complex, and is followed by the uppermost subsequence IV, characterized by a thick body of laminated sandy loess, indicating strong wind activity and a high sedimentation rate of more than ～1 mm a^?1 during the Upper Pleniglacial. According to the OSL chronology, as well as to the sedimentological and palaeopedological investigations, it is likely that the sequence at Dolní Věstonice has recorded most of the climatic events expressed in the NGRIP δ¹⁸O reference record between 110 and 70 ka.     

Cenozoic Vertical-Axis Rotations of the Hoh Xil Basin, Central–Northern Tibet

Understanding the Cenozoic vertical-axis rotation in the Tibetan Plateau is crucial for continental dynamic evolution. Paleomagnetic and rock magnetic investigations were carried out for the Oligocene and Miocene continental rocks of the Hoh Xil basin in order to better understand the tectonic rotations of central Tibet. The study area was located in the Tongtianhe area located in the southern part of the Hoh Xil basin and northern margin of the Tanggula thrust system in central-northern Tibet. A total of 160 independently oriented paleomagnetic samples were drilled from the Tongtianhe section for this study. The magnetic properties of magnetite and hematite have been recognized by measurements of magnetic susceptibility vs. temperature curves and unblocking temperatures. The mean directions of the Oligocene Yaxicuo Group in stratigraphic coordinates(Declination/Inclination = 354.9°/29.3°, k = 33.0, α_(95) = 13.5°, N =5 Sites) and of the Miocene Wudaoliang Group in stratigraphic coordinates(Declination/Inclination = 3.6°/36.4°, k = 161.0, α_(95) = 9.7°, N =3 Sites) pass reversal tests, indicating the primary nature of the characteristic magnetizations. Our results suggested that the sampled areas in the Tuotuohe depression of the Hoh Xil basin have undergone no paleomagnetically detectable rotations under single thrusting from the Tanggula thrust system. Our findings, together with constraints from other tectonic characteristics reported by previous paleomagnetic studies, suggest tectonic rotations in the Cuoredejia and Wudaoliang depressions of the Hoh Xil basin were affected by strike-slip faulting of the Fenghuo Shan-Nangqian thrust systems. A closer examination of geological data and different vertical-axis rotation magnitudes suggest the tectonic history of the Hoh Xil basin may be controlled by thrust and strike-slip faulting since the Eocene.     

Late Pleistocene Climatic Variations at Achenheim, France, Based on a Magnetic Susceptibility and TL Chronology of Loess

New field investigations of the Achenheim sequence (Alsace, France) allow for the characterization of variations in the low-field magnetic susceptibility over most of the last climatic cycle, i.e., the past 130,000 yr. New stratigraphic data and thermoluminescence measurements permit reassessment of the previous chronological interpretation of the Upper Pleistocene at Achenheim. A high-resolution analysis of magnetic susceptibility discloses the occurrence of a fine-grained “marker” horizon which was also found recently in another section. This horizon is interpreted as a small-scale dust layer deposited prior to the main interval of loess deposition. The horizon, deposited at the marine isotope stage (MIS) 5/4 boundary, has been found in other loess sequences and is especially prevalent in central Europe. It is characterized by low susceptibility values and a grayish color. New thermoluminescence dates indicate that the loess deposition took place after the MIS 5/4 boundary, i.e., after 70,000 yr. These results are consistent with the Greenland GRIP ice-core dust record which also demonstrates a dusty atmosphere after 72,000 yr ago. On a more regional scale, the Achenheim loess sequence demonstrates a reliable correlation between the western side of the Eurasian loess belt and the dust record of the Greenland ice cores.     

Palaeoenvironmental application of magnetic measurements from inter-drumlin hollow lake sediments near Dungannon, Co. Tyrone, Northern Ireland

Measurements of palaeomagnetic horizontal remanent intensity, saturation isothermal remanence, coercivity of remanence, high field remanence and magnetic susceptibility, have been made on lateglacial and postglacial sediments from two small, inter-drumlin hollow lakes from central Northern Ireland. These magnetic measurements have been compared with pollen and chemical analyses from the same profiles and with complementary mineral magnetic data from local soils. Representative sediment samples have also been divided into a range of particle size fractions and each fraction has been subjected to magnetic investigation. Five distinctive stratigraphic horizons have been identified on the basis of the magnetic mineralogy. Two horizons relate to phases of pronounced erosion. One of these is connected with solifluction processes in the lateglacial and the other to an intensive period of farming activity which started in Medieval times. Two horizons are associated with periods of very high iron and manganese deposition and are possibly related to the precipitation of magnetic minerals within the lake. Hydrological changes during periods of local anthropogenic activity appear to produce magnetic mineral assemblages indicative of stream bed/bank substrate sources. The particle size data also support the suggestion that downcore changes in the mineral magnetic record are mainly caused by changes in the sediment source rather than particle size or sedimentological effects.     

甘肃环县剖面记录的末次间冰期地磁场

环县剖面的古地磁研究结果表明，在第一层古土壤S1的上部和下部分别存在两个地磁场异常。通过剖面磁化率曲线与深海沉积物氧同位素曲线的对比，建立了地磁场变化的时间序列。S1上部记录的地磁场异常，年龄与挪威-格陵兰海及大西洋中发现的地磁异常年龄相当。S1下部的地磁异常，以磁偏角方向强烈摆动，偶极磁场强度明显下降为特征，其年龄与报道的布莱克事件的年龄相当，也与索马里海和地中海所记录的大幅度偶极磁场减弱相吻合，但与西宁剖面的记录不同的是，环县剖面记录的地磁场从没有达到完全的倒转，VGP曲线表现为围绕采样点旋转的经过南半球低纬地区的大环。这些特征表明，在偶极磁场减弱期，具有强烈区域性的非偶极磁场的变化可能对地磁场起着重要的作用。     

地磁学、古地磁学和环境磁学的研究新进展——第32届国际地质大会学科总结和评述

第32届国际地质大会接受关于地磁学、古地磁学、环境磁学方面的摘要120余篇,主要内容涉及：（1）古地磁学在古大陆再造中的应用;（2）地磁场倒转和长期变的理论、观测和应用以及磁性地层学;（3）磁化率测量在地层划分和对比中的应用;（4）气候变化的环境磁学证据;（5）环境污染监测的环境磁学方法等研究领域。此外,磁法勘探也有很好的成果展出。基于物质磁学和地磁学的方法技术在日益广阔的地学研究领域中有很好的应用前景。     

Environmental significance of magnetic properties of Gley soils near Rosslau (Germany)

Geophysical methods are widely applied to soils for resolving different tasks in precision agriculture, pollution evaluation, erosion estimation, etc. Environmental magnetic methods were applied in our study on a collection of soil samples from area near Rosslau (Germany), which was gathered on the basis of a field electromagnetic induction study. Magnetic laboratory analyses include magnetic susceptibility, isothermal remanent magnetization (IRM), anhysteretic remanent magnetization (ARM), thermomagnetic analyses for determination of the kind of magnetic minerals present in soils. The results reveal the presence of statistically significant inverse correlations between magnetic susceptibility, as well as remanent magnetizations ARM and IRM, and conductivity values. This maybe ascribed to influence of topography and water regime on the iron oxide forms in soil and the influence of soil moisture on soil conductivity. Magnetic measurements on soil cores showed close correspondence between soil horizons outlined in 1 m-long cores, and depth changes in mass-specific magnetic susceptibility. Existing relationships between magnetic characteristics, soil reaction pH, and nutrients’ content (total nitrogen, carbon and sulphur) have been explored by cluster analysis and general regression model statistics. The results reveal the presence of significant correlations between nutrients’ content, magnetic susceptibility and the grain size sensitive ratio ARM/χ. These are expressed by numerical equations, representing pedotransfer functions, which predict the content of Nitrogen, Carbon and Sulphur through combination of magnetic parameters and soil pH. The obtained pedotransfer functions for the particular case of Gley soils and Fluvisols studied could be used for application of magnetic methods in agricultural practice as a fast and inexpensive proxy evaluation of the content of these nutrition elements.     

宜昌地区砾石层的磁性特征与物源分析

分布于宜昌-宜都-鸦鹊岭-枝江一带的宜昌砾石层,是江汉平原边缘丘陵区厚度最大的第四纪沉积物,对地层划分、环境演化及长江形成等研究具有十分重要意义。通过对代表该砾石层完整沉积序列的善溪窑剖面（上段）、云池剖面（中段）与李家院剖面（下段）的磁学特征分析发现,从云池剖面距底部9m处向上,磁化率和磁化参数F_300mT等均明显高于其下部分,具体为：  1）下部磁化率平均值为28×10^-8 m³/kg,而上部磁化率平均达到17010^-8 m³/kg;   2）云池剖面距底部9m处以上主导砾石层剖面磁性特征的物质以低矫顽力的亚磁铁性矿物为主,而以下却含有更多的高矫顽力磁性矿物(如赤铁矿);   3）善溪窑和云池砾石层的亚磁性物质颗粒要粗于李家院样品。初步分析认为,上述磁性差异主要是物源变化引起的,距云池剖面底部9m以下的砾石层物源主要为鄂西山地,从云池剖面9m开始有四川以西的物质进入江汉平原,表明此时三峡已经贯通。根据已有的测年资料,推测长江贯通三峡的时间大约为1.0～1.1MaB.P.。     

郑州邙山官庄峪黄土地层研究

邙山官庄峪剖面共厚154.9 m, 出露S10及以上黄土-古土壤地层序列, 特征的马兰黄土厚度达70.125 m, 具有明显的粗粒、均匀特点, 且在该段地层中部, 并没有比较明显的弱古土壤层。磁性地层测量表明B/M界线置于深度132.04 m处, 位于L8的下部; 剖面底部未进入Jaramillo正极性亚时。与赵下峪剖面对比结果显示, 以B/M界线为标志, 72 m以下地层两者高度一致, 只是对地层的划分不同而已; 但赵下峪剖面中比较特征的具有较高磁化率值的L1SS1地层单元, 在官庄峪剖面却无明显表现, 其原因可能需进一步深入研究。      

Magnetic susceptibility as a possible correlation tool in Quaternary alluvial stratigraphy

Correlation of the fluvial magnetic susceptibility (MS) record of borehole Devavanya‐1 in the Körös Basin (eastern Hungary) with Chinese aeolian MS records (Jingbian, Lingtai) and the marine δ¹⁸O record from the Equatorial Pacific (V28‐239) is established here based on cross‐correlations and singular spectral analysis. A basin‐scale well‐to‐well correlation based on magnetic susceptibility records was also performed involving unpublished cores. To refine the age model, a Monte Carlo simulation was conducted using the Chinese Jingbian section as a tuning target. Spectral analysis of the tuned record revealed c. 400, c. 100 and c. 41 ka cycles over the 2.5 million years of the Quaternary fluvial succession. To ensure a complementary palaeoclimate proxy, the full width at half maximum of smectites was measured as a facies‐independent indicator of weathering intensity. This investigation was carried out on a subset of samples involved in MS measurements representing a c. 400 ka time interval across the top of the Olduvai subchron. A phase‐shift between MS and weathering intensity recorded in the clay mineralogy indicates different response times of the considered proxies. The fluvial MS record is determined by the climatic control on delivery and preservation of magnetic minerals, mainly of magnetite. Under cold‐and‐dry climate these minerals were released owing to frost shattering in the adjacent hinterlands and were transported to alluvial plains in the early postglacial periods thanks to the increasing discharge of rivers. With further warming the weathering‐sensitive magnetic minerals soon disappeared from the soils of the catchment area and thus from the fluvial load. As a result, in fluvial successions early postglacial warmings are expressed by the occurrences of MS maxima (magnetic episodes), while the palaeotemperature maximum and the subsequent cooling remain concealed within the tract of low MS values. The early postglacial magnetic episodes may serve as ideal stratigraphical markers in regional and global correlations.     

2 1/2 and 3 dimensional interpretation of magnetic anomalies in the central-southern Pyrenees (Spain)

Abstract

Available aeromagnetic data have been used to interprete magnetic anomalies using 2 1/2 and 3 D techniques in an area that includes parts of the Axial Zone and of the South Pyrenean Thrust Sheets in the Spanish Pyrenees. The interpretation has been made with the help of field magnetic susceptibility measurements. The dip of the Ebro Basin basement to the north has been inferred for part of the magnetic profile. Large magnetically disturbing bodies with the top at about sea level can be interpreted as a stack of Paleozoic basement thrusts or, alternatively, as an accumulation of Triassic volcanic rocks. Some smaller anomalies are clearly associated with outcropping or buried basaltic rocks (ophites). The disposition of major magnetic anomalies suggests that shear movement may have affected part of the studied area.     

The geoarchaeological and paleoenvironmental context of Paleoindian sites in western Middle Park,Colorado, USA

Geoarchaeological investigations in western Middle Park provide important information for understanding the soil‐stratigraphic context of Paleoindian components, as well as the latest Quaternary environmental change and landscape evolution in a Southern Rocky Mountain intermontane basin. Paleoindian components are associated with the oldest two of four latest Quaternary stratigraphic units (1–4) recognized in co‐alluvial mantles (combined slopewash and colluvium) in uplands and in alluvial valley fills. Limited data suggest accumulation of unit 1 as early as ∼12,500 ¹⁴C yr B.P. in alluvial valleys and by at least ∼11,000 ¹⁴C yr B.P. in uplands was followed by brief stability and soil formation. A relatively widespread disconformity marks earliest Holocene erosion and substantial removal of latest Pleistocene deposits in upland and alluvial settings followed by unit 2 deposition ∼10,000–9000 ¹⁴C yr B.P., perhaps signaling the abrupt onset of an intensified summer monsoon. In situ Paleoindian components in uplands are found in a moderately developed buried soil (the Kremmling soil) formed in units 1 and 2 in thin (≤1m) hillslope co‐alluvial mantles. The Kremmling soil reflects geomorphic stability in upland and alluvial settings ∼9000–4500 ¹⁴C yr BP, and represents a buried landscape with the potential to contain additional Paleoindian components, although elsewhere in western Middle Park Early Archaic components are documented in morphologically similar soils. Kremmling soil morphology, the relative abundance of charcoal in unit 2 relative to younger units, and charcoal morphology indicate the expansion of forest cover, including Pinus, and grass cover during the early and middle Holocene, suggesting conditions moister than present. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Field and dual magnetic susceptibility proxies for heavy metal pollution assessment in the urban soil of Al-Karak City, South Jordan

A total of 115 urban soil samples collected on grid bases from Al-Karak, South Jordan, were investigated for their field and dual-frequency magnetic susceptibility (χ _field, χ _d) and heavy metal content using Bartington susceptibility meters and ICP-MS. The upper soils have higher magnetic susceptibility values than lower soils, and large particles contain more heavy metals and higher magnetic susceptibility than smaller particles. This might be attributed to the lack of pedogenesis due to arid climate influence. Within the upper soil all heavy metal showed positive significant correlation with upper soil low-frequency χ _dlf. This was evident from the distribution maps produced by Surfer 9.0 for χ _dlf and heavy metals. The results showed that higher χ _dlf is associated with traffic-dominated sites more than other areas. The frequency-dependent susceptibility (χfd %) falls between 2 and 10 %, which indicate the presence of admixture of fine supermagnetic particles. Mildly correlation exists between χfd % and χ _dlf, which implies that soils contain anthropogenic multi-domain grains. Selected samples have been analyzed for their mineral constituents; the results indicate the presence of magnetite as the main magnetic mineral. This confirms the anthropogenic source of pollution mainly from the vehicle-related materials. The results indicate the applicability of magnetic susceptibility for pollution detection.     

Holocene palaeoflood events recorded by slackwater deposits along the lower Jinghe River valley,middle Yellow River basin,China

Palaeoflood slackwater deposits (SWDs), are the natural record of overbank flooding and are often found within aeolian loess‐soil profiles along the river valleys of the middle Yellow River basin. These pedo‐stratigraphic sequences are studied using a multi‐disciplinarily approach to reconstruct Holocene hydro‐climatic variations. Our field investigations along the lower Jinghe River valley have identified palaeoflood SWDs at several sites along the riverbanks based on sedimentological criteria. Analytical results, including magnetic susceptibility, particle‐size distribution and concentrations of chemical elements, indicate that these well‐sorted palaeoflood SWD beds were deposited from the suspended sediment load in floodwaters. We identify two episodes of extraordinary palaeoflood events along the Jinghe River valley. These hydro‐climatic events were dated to 4200–4000 and 3200–2800 a BP, by using the optically stimulated luminescence method in combination with archaeological dating of retrieved anthropogenic remains, and with pedo‐stratigraphic correlations with the previously studied Holocene pedo‐stratigraphy in the Jinghe River drainage basin. The flooding events are therefore considered to be a regional expression of known climatic events in the northern hemisphere and demonstrate Holocene climate was far from stable. This study provides important data in understanding the interactions between regional hydro‐climatic systems and global change in semi‐arid and sub‐humid regions. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.