Delta progradation and chenier formation in the Huanghe (Yellow River) delta,China

To clarify Holocene development of the Huanghe (Yellow River) delta and the relationship between delta progradation and chenier formation, detailed sediment analyses and high-resolution radiocarbon dating were done on borehole samples taken from two sites on the present Huanghe; H9601 (Latitude 37°40.5′N and Longitude 118°28.7′E with an altitude of +5.5 m) and H9602 (Lat. 37°47.8′N and Long. 118°54.3′E, +4.8 m). Downcore changes of sediment facies and accumulation rate show that delta progradation occurred at least twice during ca 2.6–1.2 C-14 yrBP and 1855–present at the two borehole sites. These phases of progradation correlate with Superlobes 6 and 7 and Superlobe 10 respectively, of ten superlobes composing the Holocene Huanghe Delta shown by C. Xue (Historical changes in the Yellow River delta, China, Marine Geology 113, 321–329, 1993). The boundary of these sediments at H9602 is sharp and erosional, and correlates with cheniers located between borehole sites on the delta plain. The diastem period between these phases of progradation almost coincides with the periods when the river mouth of the Huanghe was located in the northwestern part of the Bohai Sea during 1048–1128 AD (Superlobe 8), and the Jiangsu region facing the Yellow Sea during 1128–1855 (Superlobe 9). This suggests that chenier formation and delta progradation are linked, and controlled by sediment supply and river course shifts of the lower reaches of the Huanghe.     

Late Quaternary sedimentation on the Southern Sohm Abyssal Plain

Six closely spaced sediment cores taken below the carbonate compensation depth penetrated fine silty muds and entered sandy sediment at 10–12 m below the seafloor. Foraminiferal assemblages and δ⁸O analyses on planktonic foraminifera indicated that the surface muds down to 2 m are Holocene and derived from local promontories above the CCD. Below these sediments are about 6 m of clays deposited during the late Wisconsin. These are unfossiliferous and have a possible northern source suggested by the higher chlorite content. Sandy sediments below 9 m in the cores contain well preserved benthic foraminifera from the Scotian Shelf. Glacial δ¹⁸O values on planktonic tests indicate the sandy sediments are most likely of latest Wisconsin age. Thus during the recent interglacial, the sand fraction of the southern Sohm Abyssal Plain sediments is mostly locally derived, but during glacial periods the sediments have a distant northern source containing quartz sand that was initially deposited on the Scotian Shelf 1,500 km to the north.     

Climate forcing,primary production and the distribution of Holocene biogenic sediments in the Gulf of California

The Gulf of California is a marginal seaway under the influence of a monsoon climate that produces cool, dry winters and warm, humid summers. Winds, tidal mixing and coastal-trapped waves forced by climate and the Pacific Ocean control nutrient advection and primary productivity (PP). Strong northwest winds from the subtropical East Pacific High Pressure system begin in November and last until April and drive coastal upwelling along the mainland margin, especially in the central and southern Gulf. In the northern Gulf, particularly around the midrift island, tidal mixing and turbulence occurs year round, advecting nutrients into the mixed layer and high productivity. During summer and early fall months, winds are variable, of less intensity and mainly blow cross-basin except in the most northern Gulf. Summer PP is generally low in the central and southern Gulf except along the mainland where coastal-trapped waves associated with tropical surges and hurricanes generate mixing over the continental shelf. Mesoscale eddies or gyres often associated with jets and filaments extend to depths of 1000 m and transport nutrient-enriched upwelled waters and plankton detritus across the Gulf. The largest and most persistent gyres rotate in an anti-cyclonic direction (east to west) and are a principal source of the plankton export to the peninsula margin.Two major biogenic sediment patterns are present in core-top sediments. Hemipelagic biosiliceous-rich muds are accumulating beneath upwelling areas of high productivity in the central Gulf and along the mainland margin. Calcium carbonate- and organic carbon-rich (OC) sediments are concentrated along the peninsula margin, generally beneath lower productivity waters with the highest OC content in areas with the lowest productivity. The high, uniform biosiliceous content in Guaymas basin, extending southward into Carmen basin reflects the redistribution by mesoscale gyres of phytoplankon debris produced in mainland coastal upwelling and tidally forced areas around the midrift islands.Holocene biogenic patterns are similar to the present day with the major difference in rates of accumulation. Phytoplankton production prior to about 8200 yr BP was significantly higher in the central and southern Gulf, decreased though the mid-Holocene and has been reasonably steady for the past 2500 yr. The strong north–south and east–west gradients in present-day phytoplankton productivity patterns are also reflected in the Holocene sediment record. A series of depositional cycles occur in the biogenic record with the strongest peaks of variability at about 150 (144±18), 200 (198±5) and 350 (350±40) yrs. Longer periodicities are present prior to 3200 yr BP but the 350 yr cycle dominates in the late Holocene where it is best expressed as productivity/dissolution cycles in the carbonate record.     

The clay mineralogy and paleogeography of the Gotland Basin (based on the data from the Psd-303590 core)

At the exit of the Slupsk Trench, suspended sediment carried by the near-bottom currents is deposited on the southern slope of the Gotland Deep, forming a large alluvial fan (delta front). The sediment core Psd-590, which was recovered at this locality, exhibits a transition from the Ancylus Lake homogeneous clays to a thick member of Middle-Upper Holocene marine muds represented by mixed clayey-silty types of sediments. Clay minerals are characterized by a predominance of illite, with minor amounts of chlorite and kaolinite. Quartz, feldspar, and illite, the major components of Holocene sediments, are interpreted to be products of erosion and redeposition of the Baltic Shield granite-gneisses.     

全新世海侵对长江口沿海平原新石器遗址分布的影响

文章通过对长江三角洲南北两岸太湖和里下河两大平原新石器遗址分布和迁移特征的对比研究,发现两地新石器文化均起源于7000aB.P.前。可以认为全新世气候变暖和海平面上升是两地新石器文化兴起的原因。之后里下河平原经历了由全新世海侵引起的盐沼化过程,古文化发展受到明显的抑制;相比之下,太湖古平原为一丘状台地,地势高爽,加上贝壳砂堤对海水的有效阻挡,盐沼化过程稍弱,古文化得以延续和繁荣。     

全新世海侵对长江口沿海平原新石器遗址分布的影响

文章通过对长江三角洲南北两岸太湖和里下河两大平原新石器遗址分布和迁移特征的对比研究,发现两地新石器文化均起源于7000aB.P.前。可以认为全新世气候变暖和海平面上升是两地新石器文化兴起的原因。之后里下河平原经历了由全新世海侵引起的盐沼化过程,古文化发展受到明显的抑制;相比之下,太湖古平原为一丘状台地,地势高爽,加上贝壳砂堤对海水的有效阻挡,盐沼化过程稍弱,古文化得以延续和繁荣。     

晚更新世末期尼罗河三角洲蒸发性盆地群的发现及其意义

利用８７个深为１０-６０ｍ的钻孔，并结合大量样品分析，对尼罗河三角洲晚更新世末期硬土的分布和成因进行了研究。共发现１４个由硬土组成的洪积盆地和四种硬土亚相:Ⅰ）含钙质结核硬土亚相；Ⅱ）含石膏结核硬土亚相；Ⅲ）含贝壳硬土亚相和Ⅳ）含泥炭硬土亚相。亚相Ⅰ）基本上分布在盆地的外缘，亚相Ⅱ）总是出现在盆地中央；它们与亚相Ⅲ）和Ⅳ）一起，总体反映了晚更新世末期尼罗河三角洲干旱气候条件控制下的蒸发性古洪积盆地群的成因特征。     

渤海湾泥质海岸带近现代地质环境变化研究(Ⅱ):成果与讨论

渤海湾泥质海岸带国土资源大调查以其特有的方法、手段和要求,获得了一批带有地质调查特点的、关于全新世地层与近现代地质环境变化的阶段性成果,主要包括:1)该地区海岸带全新世地层具有4种沉积类型:(A)远离海岸的传统的"三分"型;(B)海相层与陆(海陆过渡)相层的多次交替;(C)末次冰期后期未接受沉积,全新统半咸水的海陆过渡相直接覆于历时约10～20ka的沉积间断面上,向上,进一步发育为海相层;(D)沿海低洼地区在末次盛冰期后的晚更新世晚期即已进入海侵阶段,晚更新世晚期与全新世早期的海陆过渡相沉积是连续的,向上继续发育海相层.2)从以海水影响为主的开放潮坪(及浅海区)环境转变为(陆源影响逐渐加强的)湖-盐沼环境,是研究区中晚全新世地质环境转变的重要特征,建立了表征这两种不同环境的非正式地层单位("灰色单元"与"黄色单元").3)牡蛎礁与贝壳堤的对比方案,以牡蛎礁对应潮坪的贝类繁盛期,牡蛎礁中的水平再搬运夹层和/或上覆泥质盖层(往往形成"岭地")对应贝壳堤成堤.4)大比例尺区调地质点(浅孔)揭示了中晚全新世(近现代)地质环境变化,编绘出约4500calB.P.以来小于1ka时段的二维、假三维环境系列图.一个实例是Ⅱ贝壳堤向陆侧的洼地甚至早于该堤的形成,推测洼地边缘的NNW向的埋藏线性凸起可能受同一方向的新构造活动控制.5)渤海湾沿海平原线性砂坝(障壁岛)-湖/盐沼成因假说.作为堆积贝壳堤正地形的补偿,堤前因"簸选"贝壳导致的潮坪负地形,同样可发育湖沉积.6)210pb/137Cs测年研究提供了该地区现代沉积速率的初步结果(＜0.1cm/a或＞3cm/a不等),据此将海岸带划分为不同的沉积类型区.     

Pleistocene sediment-hosted uranium deposits at Henkries, South Africa: using settling tubes to delineate buried ore bodies

Sediment-hosted uranium ores at Henkries in northwest South Africa occur in fine-grained sands, carbonaceous muds and diatomaceous earth within late Pleistocene lake deposits. The lakes are linked by short fluvial channel reaches and these aqueous beds are encompassed in predominant aeolian dune deposits. The late Pleistocene fluvial-lacustrine-aeolian succession is succeeded by a Holocene dune cover. Textural characterisation of lacustrine, fluvial and aeolian sands was based on volume percentages observed in sediment settling tubes. Vortex action during Holocene dune migration contaminated these aeolian cover sands with small amounts of substrate material, whose presence could be detected in settling tube patterns of surface aeolian sediment samples. It was thus possible to map buried lacustrine ore bodies, which were shown, by a successful drilling programme, to be displaced downwind. Received: 28 August 1996 / Accepted: 3 September 1996     

Relict nebkhas (pimple mounds) record prolonged late Holocene drought in the forested region of south-central United States

The origin and significance of pimple mounds (low, elliptical to circular dune-like features found across much of the south-central United States) have been debated for nearly two centuries. We cored pimple mounds at four sites spanning the Ozark Plateau, Arkansas River Valley, and Gulf of Mexico Coastal Plain and found that these mounds have a regionally consistent textural asymmetry such that there is a significant excess of coarse-grained sediment within their northwest flanks. We interpret this asymmetry as evidence of an eolian depositional origin of these mounds and conclude they are relict nebkhas (coppice dunes) deposited during protracted middle to late Holocene droughts. These four mounds yield optically stimulated luminescence ages between 2400 and 700 yr that correlate with well-documented periods of eolian activity and droughts on the southern Great Plains, including the Medieval Climate Anomaly. We conclude vegetation loss during extended droughts led to local eolian deflation and pimple mound deposition. These mounds reflect landscape response to multi-decadal droughts for the south-central U.S. The spatial extent of pimple mounds across this region further underscores the severity and duration of late Holocene droughts, which were significantly greater than historic droughts.     

尼罗河与长江三角洲晚更新世末期硬土层特征及其成因对比研究

作者根据多年来在尼罗河与长江三角洲工作中所获大量实测资料,探讨两个三角洲晚更新世末期硬土层沉积特征、时空分布及其成因;剖析干旱性气候和湿冷性气候对三角洲硬土层成因的影响;指出两个三角洲晚更新世末期的硬土层主要为洪水泛滥堆积物,但在枯水期受到了风的改造。     

闽南、粤东全新世海平面变化

本文对7类古海面标志物的137个样品年龄数据进行沉积深度校正、构造升降幅度校正和潮差校正后,绘出闽南、粤东全新世以来海平面变化曲线。闽南、粤东出现全新世第一次高海面时间为6300aB.P.前后。闽南、粤东全新世海平面变化曲线反映海水进退的波动情况基本相似。海平面发生波动的时间从东往西逐渐推迟。海平面变化曲线与硅藻垂向变化、孢粉所反映的气候变化、滨岸沙堤形成期和古文化遗址堆积的变化有较好的一致性。     

晋南地区仰韶至东周时期人地关系研究

基于晋南地区全新世黄土剖面样品的光释光(OSL)测年和磁化率数据,恢复该区全新世以来的古温度和古降水,并结合该区仰韶至东周时期文化发展特性及各时期考古聚落在不同地貌类型上的分布比例,探讨晋南地区全新世以来环境演变与人类活动的关系。研究表明,仰韶早期和中期,气候较为暖湿,古土壤发育,利于文化的产生和发展。仰韶晚期气候由暖湿向温干转换,可能对文化发展有一定影响。龙山时期温度和降水较之前有所下降,但气候仍较现今暖湿,又因相对干旱的气候促使先民积聚在水源地附近,以及农业生产技术水平的不断进步,该时期文化快速繁荣发展。夏、商和西周时期气候持续干凉化,文化发展受到制约。东周时期气候仍然较干凉,但随着人类社会的发展和农业生产效率的提高,环境因素对文化的影响越来越小。晋南地区仰韶到东周时期聚落主要分布在耕作条件较好的冲积平原、台塬和山前倾斜平原上,在丘陵和山地上分布较少;随着气候的干凉化,仰韶到东周时期聚落在山前倾斜平原和台塬的分布比例有减小趋势,而在冲积平原的分布比例有增大趋势。     

Late Holocene estuarine phosphogenesis in Raglan Harbour, New Zealand

A unique instance of Holocene estuarine phosphogenesis has been investigated in Raglan Harbour, on the west coast of North Island, New Zealand. Nodular calcareous concretions, which formed within surficial estuarine muds between 6500 and 3600 years BP, were superficially impregnated by carbonate fluorapatite between 3600 and 1600 years BP. The phosphatized nodules lie beneath a late Quaternary shore platform, which is reinforced by a mass of intertwined bioturbation structures and tubular rootlet casts impregnated by limonite and goethite. Large polygonal cracks, indicative of a desiccatory regime, are locally conspicuous on the platform surface and in the immediately subjacent muds. The phosphogenesis in Raglan Harbour is here related to an episode of lowered sea-level, during which a paludal environment succeeded the estuarine, to be followed, in turn, by a positively and interlude. The subsequent rise of sea-level to its present position over the last 1600 years or so has reinstated the shore platform in its present intertidal situation.     

Geomorphic and climatic change over the past 12,900 yr at Swiftcurrent Lake, Glacier National Park, Montana, USA

Glaciated alpine landscapes are sensitive to changes in climate. Shifts in temperature and precipitation can cause significant changes to glacier size and terminus position, the production and delivery of organic mass, and in the hydrologic energy related to the transport of water and sediment through proglacial environments. A sediment core representing a 12,900-yr record collected from Swiftcurrent Lake, located on the eastern side of Glacier National Park, Montana, was analyzed to assess variability in Holocene and latest Pleistocene environment. The spectral signature of total organic carbon content (%TOC) since ~ 7.6 ka matches that of solar forcing over 70-500 yr timescales. Periodic inputs of dolomite to the lake reflect an increased footprint of Grinnell Glacier, and occur during periods when sediment sinks are reduced, glacial erosion is increased, and hydrologic energy is increased. Grain size, carbon/nitrogen (C/N) ratios, and %TOC broadly define the termination of the Younger Dryas chronozone at Swiftcurrent Lake, as well as major Holocene climate transitions. Variability in core parameters is linked to other records of temperature and aridity in the northern Rocky Mountains over the late Pleistocene and Holocene.     

A record of late-Holocene environmental change from southern New England, USA

Analyses of a sediment core from Little Pond, located in the town of Bolton, Massachusetts, provide new insights into the history of environmental and ecological changes in southern New England during the late Holocene. Declines in organic content and peaks in the abundance of Isoetes spores indicate reduced water depth at 2900–2600, 2200–1800, and 1200–800 calibrated years before present (cal yr BP), generally consistent with the timing of dry conditions in records from elsewhere in the northeastern United States. The Little Pond pollen record features little change over the last 3000 yr, indicating that the surrounding vegetation was relatively insensitive to these periods of drought. The 1200–800 cal yr BP dry interval, however, coincides with increased abundance of Castanea pollen, suggesting that the expansion of Castanea in southern New England may have been influenced by late-Holocene climatic variability.     

Late Quaternary climate change record from two long sediment cores from Guaymas Basin,Gulf of California

Modern Guaymas Basin (Gulf of California, Mexico) is a region of high diatom productivity where exceptional preservation factors maintain biannually alternating sediment deposition as annual varves. New sediment cores from Guaymas Basin (MD02‐2512 and MD02‐2515) present the opportunity to construct climate records from below the last glacial period. A low‐resolution age model has been constructed from oxygen isotope analysis, correlation with other dated short piston cores from Guaymas Basin and an estimate of sedimentation rate. MD02‐2512 from eastern Guaymas Basin has an age range from the Holocene to late marine isotope stage 6 (MIS 6); MD02‐2515 from western Guaymas Basin has an age range from ～8000 to 40 000 yr. Shipboard analyses of colour reflectance, magnetic susceptibility and sediment density are combined with continuous X‐ray fluorescence scans to reconstruct a picture of glacial climate in the Gulf of California. Eastern Guaymas Basin is affected by glacial sea level fall, which results in a drastic change in productivity rates and sediment type. The laminated record of MIS 5 allows comparison with the Holocene, showing a similarity of sedimentation patterns during deglaciation and a series of very rapid variations just prior to the last glaciation. In western Guaymas Basin there are a series of Younger Dryas‐like events during the glacial, typified by low productivity and high terrigenous input. Long‐term climate and productivity changes appear to be caused by the southward displacement of the Subtropical High pressure zone. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Late Pleistocene and Holocene Sea Level Changes in the Hisarönü Gulf,Southeast Aegean Sea

Fluctuations in relative sea level, tectonic movement, and sedimentation during the late Pleistocene to Holocene in the Hisarönü Gulf (SE Aegean Sea) and surrounding area were investigated with a high‐resolution geophysical survey and underwater archaeological observations. The Hisarönü Gulf has been affected by vertical tectonic movements and rising sea level following the last glacial period (20,000 yr B.P.). High‐resolution seismic data were interpreted to reveal the structure of the late Pleistocene to Holocene deposits and determine the location of the paleoshoreline. In order to describe the relative rise of sea level, principles of sequence stratigraphy were used for the late Pleistocene to Holocene transition, and submerged archaeological remains and bioerosional indicators were used for the late Holocene period. A comparison of archaeological observations in the study area with the known regional sea level curve indicates that the relative rise in sea level for the late Holocene is, for the most part, due to the tectonic subsidence of the coastal plain. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Sedimentary and foraminiferal facies in Exmouth Gulf,in arid tropical northwestern Australia

Exmouth Gulf is a major U‐shaped embayment on the northwestern coast of Western Australia, at a latitude of 22°S. Water temperatures are 18–31°C and normal oceanic salinity is maintained by strong tidal currents despite the hot, arid climate. A series of sediment grab samples were collected and analysed for particle‐size and foraminiferal diversity. Samples contained mud, quartzose fine sand and coarse carbonate sand fractions. The muddiest facies are located in the most sheltered areas of the gulf: mangrove channels, tidal flats, southwestern flanks and the deeper axial region. Quartzose fine sands probably have mixed origins which might include: southern aeolian dunes; cyclone‐related reworking of beach and near‐shore deposits; and reworked relict shelf alluvium. The shallow‐water fair‐weather wave climate may play a significant role in localised sediment dispersal and sorting along the eastern margin of the gulf. Sediment distributions within the gulf are complicated by low sedimentation rates through much of the central and western areas of the gulf, significant mixing, and possible inheritance of pre‐Holocene alluvium. The Holocene foraminiferal assemblage recorded from Exmouth Gulf is overwhelmingly dominated by benthic species: agglutinated, calcitic‐porcellaneous, and calcitic‐hyaline groups. The distribution of individual foraminiferal species shows relatively simple patterns, governed by environmental parameters. Live individuals are rare.     

The effect of geomorphological setting on Holocene lake sediment variability,northern Swedish Lapland

Comparison of catchment geomorphology and lithostratigraphical analysis of sediments in two small neighbouring alpine lakes show that the minerogenic influx into the lakes has varied significantly during the Holocene, despite similarities in environmental setting. One lake contains a homogeneous organic‐rich sediment sequence whereas the sediment of the other lake is laminated and has a higher minerogenic content. X‐ray radiographs are used to visualise lithostratigraphical structures and provide high‐resolution density data. We find that moderate differences in geomorphology and process activity in the lakeshore region around alpine lakes can significantly affect the lake sediment composition. Minerogenic sediment accumulation rates vary strongly over time, owing to different depositional processes, which complicate temporal reconstructions. We also find that non‐glacial processes deposit minerogenic sediment layers with similar characteristics (high density, low organic content) as layers interpreted as having a glaciofluvial origin. This has implications for palaeoclimate studies based on proglacial lacustrine sediment. Our results indicate that erosion of surface sediments in the catchments characterised the early Holocene. A low and constant minerogenic inflow indicates that stable environmental conditions (with little fluvial erosion) were established in the catchments during the middle Holocene. The variability in sediment composition increased again in the late Holocene, possibly as a result of short‐term climate fluctuations superimposed on a general climate deterioration trend. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.