Decadal to millennial-scale periodicities in North Iceland shelf sediments over the last 12 000 cal yr: long-term North Atlantic oceanographic variability and solar forcing

Giant piston core MD99-2269 recovered 25 m of sediment in Hunáfloáall, a deep trough on the North Iceland margin fronting the Iceland Sea, and the site of a shelf sediment drift. The rate of sediment accumulation is 2 m/kyr (5 yr/cm); the core terminated in the Vedde tephra (12 cal ka). The sediment was sampled at between 5 and 50 yr/sample, including rock magnetic, grain-size, and sediment properties. Data reduction was carried out using principal component analysis. Two PC axes for the 5-yr/sample magnetic data are strongly correlated with measures of coercivity (ARM_{20 mT}/ARM) and magnetic concentrations (kARM). In turn ARM_{20 mT}/ARM is highly correlated (negatively) with grain-size and the mean size of the sortable silt fraction. Analyses of the two PC axes with MTM spectral methods indicate a series of significant (>99%) periodicities at millennial to multidecadal scales, including those at 200, 125, and 88 yr which are associated with solar variability. We also document a strong correlation between the sediment magnetic properties and the ∂¹⁸O on benthic foraminifera on the North Iceland inner shelf. We hypothesize that the links between variations in grain-size, magnetic concentrations, and solar forcing are controlled by atmospheric and oceanographic changes linked to changes in the relative advection of Atlantic and polar waters along the North Iceland margin. Today these changes are associated with variations in the deep convection in the Greenland and Iceland Seas. The precise linkages are, however, presently elusive although a combination of coarser sediments and low ∂¹⁸O values define a Holocene thermal maximum between 8 and 6 cal ka.     

Magnetic properties of sediments in the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea: impact of rapid North Atlantic Ocean climatic events on the strength of the Indian monsoon

The results of a high-resolution mineral magnetic study combined with major element geochemistry analysis, oxygen isotopes and ¹⁴C AMS stratigraphy are reported for deep-sea gravity cores MD77-169 and MD77-180 located in the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal, respectively. Core MD77-169 covers the last 280 kyr and core MD77-180 covers the last 160 kyr. In both cores, rock magnetic parameters indicate that the magnetic assemblage is dominated by pseudo-single domain titanomagnetite grains, with grain-size variations following a strong 23 kyr periodicity. Smaller magnetic grain sizes are observed during periods characterized by a strong summer monsoon. In addition, in core MD77-180, we observe a correlation between magnetic grain size and a chemical index of alteration. This suggests that these magnetic grain-size changes are related to chemical weathering driven by summer monsoon rainfall. A comparison of the GISP2 ice core isotopic record and the magnetic grain-size record of the Bay of Bengal shows that rapid temperature variations documented in the ice core (Dansgaard–Oeschger cycles and Heinrich events), during the last glacial period are also present in the magnetic grain-size record. Heinrich events and cold stadial events are characterized by relatively large magnetic grain sizes. Furthermore, Heinrich events are characterized by lower values of the chemical index of alteration implying a lower degree of chemical weathering related to significantly drier conditions on the continent. We suggest that rapid cold events of the North Atlantic (Heinrich events) during the last glacial stages are characterized by a weaker summer monsoon rainfall over the Himalaya via an atmospheric teleconnection.     

Impact of lithology and soil properties on abandoned dryland terraces during the early stages of soil erosion by water in south‐east Spain

Soil erosion by water in abandoned dry terraces is one of the most important environmental problems in semiarid areas, enhancing biological degradation and reducing possible resources that can be obtained. However, little is known about the effects of the types of lithology and soil properties on the early stages of soil erosion. Therefore, the main aim of this research was to assess the effect of different lithologies (marls, limestones, and metamorphic—phyllites, schists, and greywackes—materials) and soil properties on the early stages of soil erosion by water in abandoned dry terraces, compared with similar terraces still in agricultural use. Soil analyses (texture, aggregate stability, and bulk density) and 22 rainfall simulations were carried out under dry conditions. During the experiments, local inclination, vegetation and stone cover, total organic matter, and antecedent soil moisture were also quantified. The results showed that the highest soil loss (41.41 g/m² in cultivated plots and 17.05 g/m² in the abandoned plots) and runoff (3.79 L/m² in the abandoned plot) occurred on marl substrata. Marls also showed the shallowest infiltration front (9 cm) and lowest infiltration rate (4.3 cm/min). Limestones and, especially, metamorphic areas, showed a lower degree of soil erosion, higher infiltration rates, and deeper infiltration fronts.