Dust supply from river floodplains: the case of the lower Huang He (Yellow River) recorded in a loess–palaeosol sequence from the Mangshan Plateau

The Mangshan Plateau is located on the south bank of the Huang He (Yellow River) just west of the city of Zhengzhou, well outside the Loess Plateau in central China. Mixing models of the grain‐size data indicate that the loess deposits are mixtures of three loess components. Comparison of the mixing model with existing models established for a series of loess–palaeosol sequences from the Loess Plateau indicates that the Mangshan loess has been supplied from a proximal dust source, the Huang He floodplain, during major dust outbreaks. The high accumulation rates, the composition of the loess components, and especially the high proportions of a sandy loess component support this. Owing to the exceptionally high accumulation rates, the Mangshan grain size, magnetic susceptibility and carbonate records provide a high‐resolution archive of environmental and climate change. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Reinterpreting climate proxy records from late Quaternary Chinese loess: A detailed OSL investigation

Numerous authors have utilised physical properties of Chinese loess and red clay deposits to develop apparently detailed and continuous past climate records from the Miocene into the Holocene. Many of these studies have further suggested that the principal climatic agent responsible for the aeolian emplacement and diagenesis of Chinese loess, the East Asian Monsoon, has fluctuated rapidly on millennial to sub-millennial timescales, in concert with dramatic changes in the North Atlantic (Dansgaard–Oeschger cycles and Heinrich events) and the Western Pacific (El Niño Southern Oscillation). Much of this evidence is based on reconstructions and age models that are tied to assumptions concerning the nature of loess sedimentation and diagenesis, for example, the belief that loess sedimentation can be viewed as essentially continuous. Some authors have however, cast doubt on these assumptions and suggest that the application of radiometric techniques may be required to determine their validity. Recent studies utilising Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) methods have reinforced these doubts and here, OSL dates obtained at 10 cm intervals from three sites along a transect across the Chinese Loess Plateau have been used, in combination with climate proxy evidence, to test the existing assumptions that underpin many palaeoclimatic reconstructions from loess. In this way, the first time-continuous and independently dated late Quaternary climate reconstruction is developed from loess. The data indicate that sedimentation is episodic and that once emplaced, loess is prone to pedogenic disturbance, diagenetic modification and in some cases erosion. The relationships between proxies and sedimentation rates are also assessed and climatic interpretations based on different age models compared. The implications of these findings for reconstructions of climate from loess are explored and comparisons are made between the developed palaeoclimate records and evidence from ice and ocean cores. This exercise also highlights important information concerning the relative influence of forcing mechanisms behind East Asian Monsoon change over the late Quaternary.     

Climatic implications of loess deposits from the Beijing region

Variations in magnetostratigraphy, pedostratigraphy, grain size and magnetic susceptibility of the loess deposits near Beijing have been studied at two sections. The sections are about 400 km east of the main loess deposits in China, have a maximum thickness of 100 m and extend back to 1.1 Ma. The sequence consists of 14 loess–palaeosol couplets (S0‐S14), which correlate well with sequences in the Loess Plateau. Susceptibility records from the sites near Beijing are comparable to the Xifeng, Luochuan and Baoji sections located in the middle part of the Loess Plateau; however, the down‐core variations in the grain size in the Upper Lishi Formation exhibit some differences. The median grain size increases by about 25–30 µm from L4 to L2, with the sandy grains (>63 µm) increasing from 10–20 wt% to 40–50 wt% . This implies that the depositional environment of the dust sources in the Beijing loess section is different in some aspects from the Loess Plateau. The Beijing loess may have had a different dust source than the Loess Plateau. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Paleorainfall Reconstructions from Pedogenic Magnetic Susceptibility Variations in the Chinese Loess and Paleosols

The rock magnetic properties of the Chinese loess and paleosols constitute a unique and sensitive record of East Asian paleoclimate through the Quaternary Period. Systematic variations in the concentration and grain size of the magnetic minerals in these sediments have produced systematic variations in the magnetic susceptibility signal, which can be easily and rapidly measured at many sites across the Loess Plateau. Variations in many other rock magnetic properties can be used to identify the key shifts in ferrimagnetic grain size, but magnetic susceptibility alone is sufficiently sensitive to record stadial and interstadial climate stages, as well as glaciations and interglaciations. Past changes in rainfall and monsoon activity for this region are reconstructed from the susceptibility variations. The susceptibility record is calibrated using the modern relationship between rainfall and pedogenic susceptibility on the Loess Plateau. Our rainfall reconstructions identify enhanced summer monsoonal activity in the Chinese Loess Plateau region in the early Holocene and the last interglaciation. In the presently semiarid western area of the plateau, annual precipitation in interglacial times was up to 80% higher than at present; in the more humid southern and eastern areas, values were up to 20% higher than today's levels. During the last glaciation, precipitation decreased across the entire plateau, typically by 25%. The relationship between pedogenic susceptibility, climate, and weathering age was examined over the Northern Hemisphere temperate zone and the observed positive correlation between rainfall and susceptibility indicates that climate, rather than soil age, is the predominant factor that controls pedogenic susceptibility enhancement in loess soils.     

Late Quaternary loess deposition in the southern Chaiwopu Basin of the northern Chinese Tian Shan foreland and its palaeoclimatic implications

The piedmont aeolian sediment in Central Asia is has been widely used for Quaternary palaeoclimatic reconstructions. Here we present detailed sedimentological and rock magnetic investigations on 188 samples from the ~9.4‐m‐thick Urumqi River section (URS) in the southern Chaiwopu Basin of the northern Chinese Tian Shan foreland. Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating constrains the time‐span of the URS loess sedimentation from c. 28 to c. 6.8 ka. This chronology implies that the onset of the URS loess sedimentation is approximately synchronous with the Shangwangfeng Glaciation (MIS 2) in the headwaters of the Urumqi River. Analyses of sediment grain size and rock magnetic parameters indicate that sediment grain‐size composition controls magnetic properties of the URS loess, i.e. the wind intensity model, distinct from the pedogenic model interpreting the variations in magnetic properties of the loess in the Chinese Loess Plateau (CLP). Overall, the variations in sediment grain size and magnetic properties throughout the URS indicate that the present study area was dominated by a climate of strengthened wind associated with gradually intensified aridity during the latest Pleistocene. In contrast, the intensity of aridity and coldness during the early Holocene gradually became relatively weakened.     

Regional lithofacies and pedofacies variations along a north to south climatic gradient during the Last Glacial period in the central Loess Plateau,China

Five lateral sand–loess–palaeosol continua occur within the last glacial sediments of the central Loess Plateau of China along a 500 km north to south climatic gradient. The continua shift southward or northward in concert with desert expansion or contraction, respectively. Lateral lithofacies (desert sand to loess) variations are evident at the north end of the gradient and follow Walther's Law of the correlation of facies. Lateral pedofacies (loess to palaeosol) variations are present near the south end of the gradient, where the climate was warmer and wetter. The lateral stratigraphic changes from sand to loess or loess to soil are driven by variations in the rate of sedimentation along a climatic gradient.Vertical stratigraphic profiles at the north end of the gradient reveal alternating sand and loess beds. In contrast, alternating loess and palaeosols occur within the same stratigraphic interval in the southern Loess Plateau, where dust accretion rates were lower. However, in high resolution studies of climate change vertical profiles of alternating loess and palaeosols (especially weak palaeosols) may not reflect regional or global climate change. Alternating loess and weak palaeosols may reflect local variations in the balance between the rates of dust accretion and pedogenesis. Local fluctuations in either of these rates could result in the presence of time equivalent loess and palaeosols at high resolutions. Thus, some of the high resolution loess-palaeosol alternations may reflect local climatic variation rather than global or hemispherical climate change.     

The ultrafine component in Chinese loess and its variation over the past 7·6 Ma: implications for the history of pedogenesis

Grain‐size data from different climatic zones across the Chinese Loess Plateau show that the loess generally contains an ultrafine component, which has a consistent modal grain size of ca 0·37 μm and a variable proportion of 4 to 10%. The variation of the ultrafine component through a loess section is characterized by a high proportion and fine grain size in palaeosols, and by a low proportion and coarse grain size in loess layers. Its proportional content in a stratum roughly increases from north‐west to south‐east across the Loess Plateau. Quantitative X‐ray diffraction analysis indicates that the ultrafine component is composed mainly of clay minerals (ca 70%), which are mostly illite (ca 80%), and with significant amounts of kaolinite (ca 8%) and chlorite (ca 2%). The temporal and spatial variations of the ultrafine component, and the degree of illite crystallinity, suggest that this component in aeolian sediments is linked closely to the process of pedogenesis. Weakly altered loess on the north‐western margin of the Loess Plateau contains considerable amounts of detrital clay minerals derived from the aeolian source areas. Results from a loess section with a basal age of 7·6 Ma in the central Loess Plateau show that the ultrafine component increased from 7·6 to 5 Ma, and progressively decreased thereafter. This trend was punctuated by two abrupt changes at 2·6 and 0·6 Ma. These variations reflect to a considerable extent the history of pedogenesis during the Late Cenozoic.     

最近130ka来黄土物质化学风化的空间观察

选取黄土高原48个末次间冰期以来沉积剖面中的248个黄土、古土壤和弱发育土壤层的代表性样品,对它们的酸不溶物进行了主量元素的分析。结果表明,在已有的几个不受粒度影响的化学风化指标中,(CaO MgO Na2O)/TiO2比值对气候条件变化具有相对较高的敏感性,且受沉积速率的影响较小。在源区风化状况相对稳定的前提下,它是一个反映夏季风变化较为有效的指标。根据该指标在黄土高原上的空间等值线图,发现其从北到南间冰期的变幅大于冰期,这可能表明间冰期时夏季风降水在黄土高原的变化梯度要大于冰期。     

轨道调谐建立西宁厚层黄土堆积时间标尺的探索

青藏高原东北部西宁-互助地区堆积的厚层黄土是认识高原第四纪环境演化和气候变化的重要信息载体。对西宁泮子山厚层黄土钻孔（181.7m）进行了间隔5cm的采样,在实验室测量了全部样品的粒度,以粒度和北半球高纬太阳辐射数据为材料,选择古地磁年龄作为独立年代控制点,采用改进的自动轨道调谐方法,建立了西宁黄土早更新世以来天文轨道调谐的时间标尺。调谐后的粒度时间序列与ETP曲线在轨道周期上高度相关,在一定程度上证明了轨道调谐方法建立西宁厚层黄土堆积年代标尺的可行性。泮子山厚层黄土的沉积速率在1.0Ma前后发生了明显变化,1.0Ma以来沉积速率的相对高值可能反映了粉尘源区的干旱化程度增强,也指示了亚洲中部和青藏高原干旱环境的急剧发展。西宁厚层黄土年代标尺的建立,对深入认识晚新生代亚洲干旱气候发展过程和青藏高原的环境演化具有积极意义。     

Mollusk record of millennial climate variability in the Loess Plateau during the Last Glacial Maximum

A high-resolution terrestrial mollusk record from the Loess Plateau of China has been studied to characterize climate variability during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). The rapid successions in mollusk taxa in the Weinan loess sequence reveal that climate changes occurred at least four times in this period. In the loess region, millennia-scale climate fluctuations existed, as documented in the grain size and weathering intensity records. Our results show such millennia-scale fluctuations reflecting changes in both temperature and precipitation, rather than a simple cold and warm alternation. Changes in temperature and precipitation were not in phase during the LGM. Temperature varied earlier than precipitation, which could have been the effect of winter and summer monsoon interactions. Our data also reveal that the East Asian summer monsoons could reach the southeast part of the Loess Plateau during the whole of the LGM. The intensification of winter monsoons during the LGM led to short duration of summer monsoons annually impacting on the Loess Plateau, but the intrinsic intensity of summer monsoons would not have changed significantly, thus providing the thermo-hydrological conditions for temperate-humidiphilous mollusks to persistently grow and develop in the glacial age.     

Aeolian origin and palaeoclimatic implications of the ‘red clay’ (north China) as evidenced by grain‐size distribution

The ‘Red Clay’ is an important deposit underlying the Quaternary loess–palaeosol sequence in the Chinese Loess Plateau, being regarded as an excellent record of palaeoclimate changes in the late Tertiary. Several properties of the ‘Red Clay’ have been measured previously in order to derive climatic information. However, the sedimentary processes involved and the origin of the materials remain controversial. Here we present results of grain‐size analyses of the ‘Red Clay’ from four representative sites in the Chinese Loess Plateau. In particular their grain‐size distribution is compared with that of typical Quaternary aeolian loess–palaeosol, as well as lacustrine and fluvial sediments. It appears from the sedimentological evidence that the major part of the ‘Red Clay’ is of aeolian origin. It is rather similar in some of its properties to the Quaternary loessic palaeosols. The dust forming the ‘Red Clay’ was transported by a wind system that was weaker than that involved in the accretion of the Quaternary loess. Furthermore, the ‘Red Clay’ sediment has been modified by post‐depositional weathering. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Middle to Late Pleistocene loess record in eastern Nebraska,USA, and implications for the unique nature of Oxygen Isotope Stage 2

New subsurface data reveal a nearly continuous stratigraphic record of Middle to Late Pleistocene loess sedimentation preserved beneath upland summits in eastern Nebraska, USA. Thickness and grain size trends, as well as pedologic evidence, indicate significant changes in loess sources, accumulation rates, and depositional environments. The newly defined Kennard Formation accumulated in the Middle Pleistocene, and may represent multiple thin increments of distal loess from nonglacial sources on the Great Plains. The overlying Loveland Loess, up to 18 m thick and deposited during Oxygen Isotope Stage 6 (OIS 6) (Illinoian glaciation), probably records the emergence of the Missouri River valley as a major glaciogenic loess source. The prominent Sangamon Geosol formed through long-term pedogenic alteration of the upper Loveland Loess during OIS 5 and 4. Thin loess of the Gilman Canyon Formation records slow loess accumulation and pedogenic alteration in OIS 3. The Peoria Loess (OIS 2) is similar in thickness to Loveland Loess, but may have accumulated more rapidly in an environment less favorable to bioturbation. More importantly, comparison of Peoria and Loveland loess thickness trends indicates much greater influx of nonglaciogenic loess from the Great Plains during OIS 2 than in OIS 6, suggesting colder and/or drier conditions in the Midcontinent during OIS 2 than in earlier glacial stages.     

Comparison of proxy records of Late Pleistocene climate change from a high‐resolution loess–palaeosol sequence in north‐central China

A micromorphologically based pedosedimentary reconstruction of a 40‐m loess–palaeosol sequence from the western part of the Chinese Loess Plateau provides a sensitive proxy record of changing processes and associated environmental conditions in this region between ca. 150 000 and 10 000 yr BP. Depth functions of more traditional climate proxies, such as magnetic susceptibility, calcium carbonate content and median grain size, support the broad pattern of environmental changes inferred from the micromorphology, although the bulk properties sometimes lag behind or are out of phase with each other and do not match all the fluctuations in the micromorphological record. The reasons for the disparities are probably complex, although they partly reflect differences in response rates and sensitivities of proxies to different climate parameters, as well as genuine out‐of‐phase changes in strength of monsoonal climate controls. This work illustrates the sensitivity of micromorphology in detecting past environmental changes within rapidly aggrading landscapes, and emphasises the need to understand more fully the local and regional significance of bulk proxies currently used in global correlations with marine‐ and ice‐core records. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

川西高原黄土记录的末次冰期气候变化

川西高原位于高原气候区和季风气候区的过渡位置,该地区的气候特征对于认识青藏高原对周边气候的影响具有重要意义。通过对漳腊黄土剖面的¹⁴C年代测试、地层对比,结合粒度-年龄模型建立了剖面的年代序列。测试了粒度、色度、磁化率和碳酸盐等指标,建立了剖面的气候演化序列。结果表明,剖面记录了104 ka以来的气候变化过程。漳腊黄土粒度在MIS（深海氧同位素阶段）3和MIS4阶段的中值粒径接近,分别为17.6 μm和17.7 μm,反映了期间有一次高原隆升。漳腊黄土粒度曲线记录了多个粒度变粗和变细事件,粒度在H（海因里希）2时明显粗于H1,表明受到了高纬气候系统的影响。另外还存在2个明显的粒度变细事件,分别发生在处于MIS3的28~31 ka和42~45 ka,是低纬气候系统影响的结果。漳腊黄土研究结果表明川西高原气候系统影响因素的复杂性。     

青藏高原东缘湖相沉积和黄土高原黄土沉积磁化率与粒度相关性对比*

为探讨构造稳定地区(如黄土高原)和构造活跃地区(如青藏高原东缘)粉尘沉积物中磁化率(SUS)与粒度的相关性及其对环境事件的指示意义,本次研究分析了黄土高原蓝田剖面黄土—古土壤样品和青藏高原东缘湖相沉积样品的粒度和磁化率记录。黄土高原黄土—古土壤沉积SUS与2~10 μm粒度组分最强正相关,青藏高原东缘湖相沉积的SUS与2~10 μm粒度组分最强负相关,反映2~10 μm粒度组分为黄土高原和青藏高原乃至亚洲干旱—半干旱地区连续稳定敏感的背景沉积组分。黄土高原黄土—古土壤沉积的SUS与32~63 μm粒度组分最强负相关,青藏高原东缘湖相沉积的SUS与32~63 μm粒度组分最强正相关,反映32~63 μm粒度组分不仅是黄土高原尘暴事件沉积的敏感指标,也是青藏高原东缘湖相沉积记录的地震事件敏感指标。SUS与粒度组分的相关性在青藏高原东缘地区地震事件层开始部分高于结束部分,也较好地反映地震事件为研究区添加新鲜沉积物后随地形地貌恢复逐步减少的过程。SUS与粒度组分相关性也受当地物源的影响。     

郑州邙山桃花峪高分辨率晚更新世黄土地层

风成邙山黄土分布于河南郑州西北黄河南岸。黄土序列较完整,初步研究了桃花峪剖面S₂以上黄土地层,S₀、L₁、S₁、L₂和S₂分别厚0.6m、70.8m、9.9m、12.4m和1.0m。特别有意义的是晚更新世马兰黄土厚度巨大,分辨率高。以10cm间距对邙山桃花峪剖面进行了磁化率测量,并与海洋氧同位素时间序列进行对比,按Kukla等的磁化率年龄模式,获得相应的年代时间标尺。对末次冰期黄土以40cm间距进行了粒度分析,不同冰期或冰阶的平均沉积速率和分辨率有很大的差异。特别是末次冰期晚冰阶黄土粒度所反映的冬季风振荡的频率和幅度都超过了格陵兰冰芯记录。邙山晚更新世黄土地层是进行高分辨率黄土地层与短时间尺度过去全球变化研究的极好对象.      

青藏高原东缘湖相沉积和黄土高原黄土沉积磁化率与粒度相关性对比*

为探讨构造稳定地区(如黄土高原)和构造活跃地区(如青藏高原东缘)粉尘沉积物中磁化率(SUS)与粒度的相关性及其对环境事件的指示意义,本次研究分析了黄土高原蓝田剖面黄土—古土壤样品和青藏高原东缘湖相沉积样品的粒度和磁化率记录。黄土高原黄土—古土壤沉积SUS与2~10 μm粒度组分最强正相关,青藏高原东缘湖相沉积的SUS与2~10 μm粒度组分最强负相关,反映2~10 μm粒度组分为黄土高原和青藏高原乃至亚洲干旱—半干旱地区连续稳定敏感的背景沉积组分。黄土高原黄土—古土壤沉积的SUS与32~63 μm粒度组分最强负相关,青藏高原东缘湖相沉积的SUS与32~63 μm粒度组分最强正相关,反映32~63 μm粒度组分不仅是黄土高原尘暴事件沉积的敏感指标,也是青藏高原东缘湖相沉积记录的地震事件敏感指标。SUS与粒度组分的相关性在青藏高原东缘地区地震事件层开始部分高于结束部分,也较好地反映地震事件为研究区添加新鲜沉积物后随地形地貌恢复逐步减少的过程。SUS与粒度组分相关性也受当地物源的影响。     

青藏高原2.8Ma来的环境演化及其对构造事件响应

本文根据青藏高原中部错鄂湖深钻研究的最新成果,结合东部若尔盖盆地湖泊沉积物记录,探讨了青藏高原2.8Ma以来的环境演化过程和高原构造隆升运动对环境演化的影响。初步研究显示:大约2.8MaBP错鄂湖构造成盆;2.6MaBP左右孢粉组合、粒度特征、岩性变化等均记录了一次强烈的构造隆升运动;2.6Ma~0.8Ma时段,高原可能处于一种整体隆升过程中的相对夷平阶段;若尔盖古湖揭示了0.9MaBP来的3次构造隆升运动,反映了高原环境演变的三个阶段;和黄土底界相当的错鄂湖沉积记录显示并未干旱的特征;黄土旺盛堆积时期(L₁₅、L₉、L₆)高原湖泊记录的气候特征为偏湿气候。      

陇西民和黄土CaCO3和有机碳总量的含量变化及其气候指标的局限性

民和黄土地处黄土高原与青藏高原东北缘的交接部位,对气候反应较敏感,对该黄土1.87-0.70Ma BP段进行了CaCO3和有机碳总量（TOC）的采样分析。民和黄土CoCO3含量在5.89%-18.63%之间变化,平均11.41%;有机碳含量较低,在0.007%-0.452%之间,平均0.088%。民和黄土中的CaCO3含量明显高于兰州、洛川和西安等地,而有机碳含量则远低于上述地区。黄土中CaCO3和有机碳含量变化反映了该区1.87Ma BP以来气候变干冷的趋向。分别受复杂的CaCO3来源与类型、困难的采样、地区上的差异对比等和有机碳保存条件、沉积速率以及“埋藏效应”的影响,黄土中的CaCO3和有机碳的波动变化作为气候变化的替代性指标存在一定的局限性。文章最后指出,在实际应用中,黄土（特别是黄土高原西北部）中CaCO3和有机碳气候指标应结合其他环境指标共同使用,才能从中提取正确的古气候信息。     

Pleistocene Loess-Paleosol Sequences in Arid Central Asia State of Art

Loess of central Asia is located in a linkage zone between the European and Chinese loess depositional belts. Paleoclimate signatures from loess-paleosol sequences here is a key for completely understanding the spatial-tempo paleoclimate changes of Euro-Asia and for understanding the interactions between westerlies and Asia monsoon system during geological time. However, paleoclimate investigations of loess-paleosol sequences in arid central Asia is relatively weak than those from Europe and Chinese Loess Plateau. Specific, correlations of paleoclimate records with Chinese loess is required for better understanding “westerly regimes” in central Asia and its phase relationship with monsoon Asia on various time scale. In this work, we reviewed new advantages of loess study in central Asia during the last decades. Based on the stratigraphic and paleoclimatic correlations of loess-paleosol sequences between central Asia and the Chinese Loess Plateau, we discussed aridification history of Asia on tectonic time scale, the hydroclimate changes in arid central Asia and its phase relationship with Monsoonal Asia on orbital and millennial time scale during the Pleistocene.