10Be dating of boulders on moraines from the last glacial period in the Nyainqentanglha mountains,Tibet

Chronologies of glacial advances during the last glacial period in the Nyainqentanglha mountain range may provide constraints on the past climate in a transition zone of the Asian monsoon.We present 15 new10Be exposure ages from two moraines in the Payuwang valley,on the north slope of the range.The inner moraine has exposure ages ranging from 18.0±1.7 to 30.6±2.8 ka(n=10),with a mean age of 23.8±4.0 ka,corresponding to the global Last Glacial Maximum(LGM).The outer moraine yields exposure ages ranging from 18.0±1.6 to 39.9±3.7 ka(n=5).Evidence for weathering leads us to view the oldest age as a minimum age,placing moraine formation during MIS3.Chronologies from the last glacial period from south slope of the Nyainqentanglha support this interpretation.Thus,there appears to have been a local LGM(LLGM)during MIS3 and a more limited glacial advance during the global LGM.Glacial advances during MIS3 in the Nyainqentanglha may correlate with millennial-scale climate change(Heinrich events).     

Cosmogenic 36Cl glacial chronologies of the Late Quaternary glaciers on Mount Geyikdağ in the Eastern Mediterranean

We report the timing of glaciations during the Late Quaternary in the central Taurus Mountains of Turkey in the Eastern Mediterranean. Forty moraine samples from three glacial valleys on Mount Geyikdağ (36.53°N, 32.10^°E, 2877 m), near the Eastern Mediterranean coast of Turkey, were dated with in-situ cosmogenic ³⁶Cl. These glacial valleys are located on the southern flank of the mountain and were filled with few km long glaciers that terminated at elevations of about 1750 m above sea level. Three glacial retreats/advances were determined in this study. During the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), glaciers reached their maximum positions at 20.6 ± 0.6 ka ago (±1σ). This date is in accordance with the timing of local maximum ice extent, represented by piedmont glaciers in the northern side of the mountain. Glaciers started to retreat after the LGM and shortly stabilized or re-advanced two times before they completely vanished out. The first stage ended before 13.7 ± 0.8 ka ago during the Late-glacial. The last glaciation occurred during the Holocene and ended between 9.6 ± 1.4 ka and 5.9 ± 0.5 ka ago. Later, glaciers mostly vanished from the study area, but a few rock glaciers developed during the Late Holocene. Glacial chronologies of Mount Geyikdağ are mostly comparable with the globally observed advances elsewhere.     

10Be surface-exposure age dating of the Last Glacial Maximum in the northern Pamir (Tajikistan)

Knowledge of the spatial and temporal variations in Alpine glaciations is essential for reconstructing the regional and global timing of ice ages. This study investigates glacial deposits at the mouth of the Muksu catchment in the northern Pamir using ¹⁰Be surface-exposure age dating. We sampled boulders from the furthest downstream recessional moraine (20 samples) and five lateral moraines (41 samples) near the former terminus of the Fedchenko Glacier, the longest (∼72 km) present-day Alpine glacier of the Pamir. After the identification of outliers, the boulder population of the recessional moraine yielded a mean exposure age of 17.5 ± 1.9 ka. The maximum exposure age of the lateral moraines, collected ∼5 km up-valley of the recessional moraine, is 18.2 ± 1.7 ka. The boulder ages reflect glacial deposition during the Last Glacial Maximum (Marine Isotope Stage 2) in the region; they are in accordance with published glacial deposition ages in the western Tian Shan.     

Rate of Glacial Valley Deepening During the Late Quaternary in Assynt,Scotland

A dated landscape history of the Allt nan Uamh valley in the Assynt area is constructed, spanning the last 300 ka, using geomorphological analysis, U-series speleothem dating, and existing cave surveys. The mean rate of valley deepening is estimated to lie between 47 and 68 m per glacial/interglacial cycle of 100 ka. This, combined with an estimated duration of glaciation, implies glacial erosion rates of about 2 mm a⁻¹, in agreement with modern process measurements. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Chronology of Lateglacial ice flow reorganization and deglaciation in the Gotthard Pass area,Central Swiss Alps,based on cosmogenic 10Be and in situ 14C

We reconstruct the timing of ice flow reconfiguration and deglaciation of the Central Alpine Gotthard Pass, Switzerland, using cosmogenic ¹⁰Be and in situ ¹⁴C surface exposure dating. Combined with mapping of glacial erosional markers, exposure ages of bedrock surfaces reveal progressive glacier downwasting from the maximum LGM ice volume and a gradual reorganization of the paleoflow pattern with a southward migration of the ice divide. Exposure ages of ∼16–14 ka (snow corrected) give evidence for continuous early Lateglacial ice cover and indicate that the first deglaciation was contemporaneous with the decay of the large Gschnitz glacier system. In agreement with published ages from other Alpine passes, these data support the concept of large transection glaciers that persisted in the high Alps after the breakdown of the LGM ice masses in the foreland and possibly decayed as late as the onset of the Bølling warming. A younger group of ages around ∼12–13 ka records the timing of deglaciation following local glacier readvance during the Egesen stadial. Glacial erosional features and the distribution of exposure ages consistently imply that Egesen glaciers were of comparatively small volume and were following a topographically controlled paleoflow pattern. Dating of a boulder close to the pass elevation gives a minimum age of 11.1 ± 0.4 ka for final deglaciation by the end of the Younger Dryas. In situ ¹⁴C data are overall in good agreement with the ¹⁰Be ages and confirm continuous exposure throughout the Holocene. However, in situ ¹⁴C demonstrates that partial surface shielding, e.g. by snow, has to be incorporated in the exposure age calculations and the model of deglaciation.     

Cosmogenic surface exposure dating the last deglaciation in Denmark: Discrepancies with independent age constraints suggest delayed periglacial landform stabilisation

Cosmogenic nuclide surface exposure ages are determined from in situ ¹⁰Be and ³⁶Cl analysis of 38 rock surfaces found in different glacial landforms in Denmark. Dating of erratic boulders and adjacent ice-sculpted bedrock on the island of Bornholm in the western Baltic Sea reveals almost identical values. This suggests that little if any inherited nuclides are present in the sampled boulders. West of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) ice margin in Denmark ages reflect exposure from the Middle Weichselian. East of the LGM margin exposure ages from 35 samples show Late Weichselian ages in a range between 20.6–11.9 ka. To test to what extent these dates reflect the onset of deglaciation immediately after cessation of active glacier flow, surface exposure ages are evaluated against independent chronologies of Late Weichselian ice-sheet fluctuations in southwestern Scandinavia. The Bornholm dates agree with the independent age model, however, in the data set for eastern Denmark only less than half the surface exposure ages lie within the expected age envelope. This apparent mismatch is most likely due to post-glaciation shielding and delayed surface stabilisation compared to the timing of ice-margin retreat. Thus ages from boulders resting in dead-ice moraines and mass wasting landscapes underestimate deglaciation by 3–6 thousand years. The results quantify the impact of exhumation and landform stabilisation on cosmogenic surface exposure ages on millennial scales. We conclude, that interpretation of cosmogenic exposure ages should include careful evaluation of possible post-depositional landform transformation in attempts to fine tune ages of e.g. end moraine features. With reference to independent age models we critically evaluate glacier advance – retreat scenarios from regions around the southern Baltic that alone are based on weighted average ages of cosmogenic exposure dating.     

Moraine pebbles and boulders yield indistinguishable Be ages: A case study from Colorado, USA

Cosmogenic exposure dating of moraines during the last two decades has vastly improved knowledge on the timing of glaciation worldwide. Due to a variety of geologic complications, such as moraine degradation, snow cover, bedrock erosion and isotopic inheritance, samples from multiple large boulders (>1–2 m) often lead to the most accurate moraine age assignments. However, in many cases, large boulders are not available on moraines of interest. Here, I test the suitability of pebble collections from moraine crest surfaces as a sample type for exposure dating. Twenty-two ¹⁰Be ages from two Pleistocene lateral moraine crests in Pine Creek valley in the upper Arkansas River basin, Colorado, were calculated from both pebble and boulder samples. Ten ¹⁰Be ages from a single-crested Bull Lake lateral moraine range between 3 and 72 ka, with no statistical difference between pebble (n = 5) and boulder (n = 5) ages. The lack of a cluster of ¹⁰Be ages suggests that moraine degradation has led to anomalously young exposure ages. Twelve ¹⁰Be ages from a single-crested Pinedale lateral moraine have a bimodal age distribution; one mode is 22.0 ± 1.4 ka (three boulders, two pebble collections), the other is 15.2 ± 0.9 ka (two boulders, five pebble collections). The interpretation of the two age modes is that two glacier maxima of similar extent were attained during the late Pleistocene. Regardless of moraine age interpretations, that ¹⁰Be ages from pebble collections and boulders are indistinguishable on moraines of two different ages, and in two different age modes of the Pinedale moraine, suggests that pebble collections from moraine crests may serve as a suitable sample type in some settings.     

First results on determination of cosmogenic 36Cl in limestone from the Yenicekale Complex in the Hittite capital of Hattusha (Turkey)

We have measured ³⁶Cl in three rock surfaces of the Yenicekale building complex in Hattusha (Bo?azköy, Turkey). Hattusha was the capital of Hittite Empire which lasted from about 1650/1600 to 1200 BC. At Yenicekale, Hittite masons flattened the summit of an outcropping limestone knoll to form an artificial platform as the foundation for a building. Next they built a circuit wall along the lateral precipices of the flattened bedrock platform. We took one sample from the limestone bedrock platform and two samples from limestone building blocks of the circuit wall for cosmogenic ³⁶Cl analysis. Calculated exposure ages are 20 ± 1 ka for the sample from the bedrock platform and 24 ± 1 ka and 52 ± 2 ka for the circuit wall blocks. These exposure ages are significantly older than the age expected based on the estimated time of construction between 3.2 ka and 3.7 ka. We conclude that the sampled surfaces contain significant inherited cosmogenic ³⁶Cl. We cannot directly determine exposure ages for the building complex based on these three samples. On the other hand we may use the measured concentrations to determine how much of the rock was removed from the platform during flattening. To this end we modeled the variation of ³⁶Cl production with depth at Yenicekale using the results from the bedrock sample. We conclude that the Hittite masons removed only around 3 m from top of the limestone block. This means that the volume of rock removed from the bedrock platform is significantly less than the volume in the circuit wall atop the platform. They did not gain enough rock from this flattening to make the building. In agreement with this, the first results of our detailed microfacies analysis indicate that many of the building blocks are not of the same facies as the underlying limestone and must have been quarried elsewhere. Although we were not able to exposure date the Yenicekale complex due to the presence of inherited ³⁶Cl, our data suggest that Hittite masons excavated (most of) the building stones not at Yenicekale, but in quarries outside of Hattusha and then transported them to the construction site. These quarries have not yet been identified.     

Ice cap erosion patterns from bedrock 10Be and 26Al,southeastern Tibetan Plateau

Quantifying glacial erosion contributes to our understanding of landscape evolution and topographic relief production in high altitude and high latitude areas. Combining in situ ¹⁰Be and ²⁶Al analysis of bedrock, boulder, and river sand samples, geomorphological mapping, and field investigations, we examine glacial erosion patterns of former ice caps in the Shaluli Shan of the southeastern Tibetan Plateau. The general landform pattern shows a zonal pattern of landscape modification produced by ice caps of up to 4000 km² during pre-LGM (Last Glacial Maximum) glaciations, while the dating results and landforms on the plateau surface imply that the LGM ice cap further modified the scoured terrain into different zones. Modeled glacial erosion depth of 0–0.38 m per 100 ka bedrock sample located close to the western margin of the LGM ice cap, indicates limited erosion prior to LGM and Late Glacial moraine deposition. A strong erosion zone exists proximal to the LGM ice cap marginal zone, indicated by modeled glacial erosion depth >2.23 m per 100 ka from bedrock samples. Modeled glacial erosion depths of 0–1.77 m per 100 ka from samples collected along the edge of a central upland, confirm the presence of a zone of intermediate erosion in-between the central upland and the strong erosion zone. Significant nuclide inheritance in river sand samples from basins on the scoured plateau surface also indicate restricted glacial erosion during the last glaciation. Our study, for the first time, shows clear evidence for preservation of glacial landforms formed during previous glaciations under non-erosive ice on the Tibetan Plateau. As patterns of glacial erosion intensity are largely driven by the basal thermal regime, our results confirm earlier inferences from geomorphology for a concentric basal thermal pattern for the Haizishan ice cap during the LGM. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Micro-hole and multigrain quartz luminescence dating of Paleodeltas at Lake Fryxell,McMurdo Dry Valleys (Antarctica), and relevance for lake history

Relict (perched) lacustrine deltas around the perennially ice-covered lakes in the Taylor Valley, Antarctica, imply that these lakes were up to 40 times larger in area than at present since the last glacial maximum (LGM). These deltas have been used to constrain ice-margin positions in Taylor Valley, and the boundaries of the proposed LGM ice-damned Glacial Lake Washburn. The timing of these high lake levels has depended on ¹⁴C chronologies of algal layers within relict lacustrine deltas. To provide additional geochronometric data for the post-LGM lake-level history, we applied photon-stimulated-luminescence (PSL) sediment dating to polymineral fine silt and sand-size quartz from 7 perched-delta and 3 active-delta sites of different elevations along 3 major meltwater streams entering Lake Fryxell. Our PSL dating of 4 quartz-sand samples from core tops in the seasonal ice-free moat of Lake Fryxell (elevation ∼18 m a.s.l.) and two core-top moat samples from the seasonal moat of Lake Vanda in nearby Wright Valley establish that adequate PSL clock zeroing (by daylight) occurs in regional, modern shoreline deposits. Minimum-age micro-hole PSL results from the moats are consistently near 100 a. Minimum-age micro-hole age estimates for the deltas range from ∼50 to 100 a near the present lake level up to 13.4 ± 1.3 ka at 240 m. These are systematically younger than the comparable, reservoir-uncorrected, ¹⁴C ages that range from 7 ka (cal yr BP) to 13 ka (cal yr BP) near lake level up to 20 ka (cal yr BP) at 220–240 m elevation. Our results indicate the occurrence of a dramatic discrepancy between PSL minimum-age and ¹⁴C age estimates that is presently unresolved.     

Radiometric dating of Meipu hominin site in China by coupled ESR/U-series and cosmogenic 26Al/10Be burial dating methods

The Three Gorges and Western Hubei area in the geographic central part of China was a potential migration corridor for early hominin and mammals linking South and North China during the Pleistocene period. Some key early hominin sites are known in this region where limestone cave and fissure sites are numerous but difficult to date as beyond the dating range of OSL and mass spectrometry U-series method. Here, we report radiometric dating study for such a hominin site, Meipu (Hubei Province), by coupled ESR and U-series dating of nine fossil teeth and cosmogenic ²⁶Al/¹⁰Be burial dating of one quartz sediment. The burial age calculated by simple burial model (573 ± 266 ka) gives a minimum age constraint of the sediment. The fossil dating provided two main age groups at 541 ± 48 ka and 849 ± 39 ka, the older age group is in agreement with the U-series age (>630 ka) of the flowstone overlying the fossil layer and the paleomagnetic data which placed the Brunhes-Matuyama boundary in the fossil layer. The reason of this age difference is probably caused by the U-content discrepancy in the enamel of the dated fossil samples. This study exhibits the limitation of ESR/U-series fossil dating and the importance of using multiple dating approach when it is possible in order to identify the problematic ages.     

A locally calibrated,late glacial 10Be production rate from a low-latitude,high-altitude site in the Peruvian Andes

Well-dated records of tropical glacier fluctuations are essential for developing hypotheses and testing proposed mechanisms for past climate changes. Since organic material for radiocarbon dating is typically scarce in low-latitude, high-altitude environments, surface exposure-age dating, based on the measurement of in situ produced cosmogenic nuclides, provides much of the chronologic information on tropical glacier moraines. Here, we present a locally calibrated ¹⁰Be production rate for a low-latitude, high-altitude site near Quelccaya Ice Cap (∼13.95°S, 70.89°W, 4857 m asl) in the southeastern Peruvian Andes. Using an independent age (12.35 +0.2, −0.02 ka) of the late glacial Huancané IIa moraines based on thirty-four bracketing radiocarbon ages and twelve ¹⁰Be concentrations of boulders on the moraines, we determine a local production rate of 43.28 ± 2.69 atoms gram⁻¹ year⁻¹ (at g⁻¹ yr⁻¹). Reference ¹⁰Be production rates (i.e., production rates by neutron spallation appropriate for sea-level, high-latitude sites) range from 3.97 ± 0.09 to 3.78 ± 0.09 at g⁻¹ yr⁻¹, determined using scaling after Lal (1991) and Stone (2000) and depending on our assumed boulder surface erosion rate. Since our boulder surface erosion rate estimate is a minimum value, these reference production rates are also minimum values. A secondary control site on the Huancané IIIb moraines suggests that the ¹⁰Be production rates are at least as low as, or possibly lower than, those derived from the Huancané IIa moraines. These sea-level, high-latitude production rates are at least 11–15% lower than values derived using the traditional global calibration dataset, and they are also lower than those derived from the late glacial Breque moraine in the Cordillera Blanca of Peru. However, our sea-level, high-latitude production rates agree well with recently published, locally calibrated production rates from the Arctic, New Zealand, and Patagonia. The production rates presented here should be used to calculate ¹⁰Be exposure ages in low-latitude, high-altitude locations, particularly in the tropical Andes, and should improve the ability to compare the results of studies using ¹⁰Be exposure-age dating with other chronological data.     

230Th/U chronology of a paleolithic site at Xinglong Cave in the three-Gorge region of south China

Xinglong Cave, containing four human teeth, numerous mammalian fossils, stone artifacts and a Stegodon tusk with intentional and seemingly grouped engravings, is one of the most significant archaic Homo sapiens sites in south China, located 95 km south of Fengjie County, in Chongqing. In an attempt to constrain the age of the human relics, calcitic flowstone deposits with a significant detrital component were dated by U–Th methods using a leachate scheme. Total sample digestion MC-ICPMS dating was used to assess the reliability of the leachate technique. Six calcite samples from horizons beneath and above the fossil-bearing layer were dated. We obtained ages of 130 ± 9.1, 124 ± 11, 135 ± 12 and 127 ± 11 ka for the flowstones above the fossil layer with a weighted mean of 128.9 ± 5.2 ka. Two flowstone samples gave MC-ICPMS dates between 128.3 ± 3.3 and 152.4 ± 25.3 ka with an assumed detrital component to correct for the initial ²³⁰Th, which are consistent with results obtained using the L/L regression data from layer U-4 within uncertainty. All errors herein quoted at the 2σ level. Ages determined for the flowstone underlying the fossil-bearing layer were 221 ± 29 to 189 ± 19 ka with a weighted mean age of 199 ± 16 ka. These results are stratigraphically consistent within error limits and show that the cave was occupied by Fengjie Man within the time range of ∼200 to ∼130 ka. These new U-series ages of flowstones in association with human teeth and an engraved stegodon tusk at the Xinglong Cave site provide valuable geochronologic information for the study of the origin of modern humans in East Asia and earliest human art.     

Climatic and structural controls on Late-glacial and Holocene rockfall occurrence in high-elevated rock walls of the Mont Blanc massif (Western Alps)

In the Mont Blanc massif (European Western Alps), rockfalls are one of the main natural hazards for alpinists and infrastructure. Rockfall activity after the Little Ice Age is well documented. An increase in frequency during the last three decades is related to permafrost degradation caused by rising air temperatures. In order to understand whether climate exerts a long-term control on rockfall occurrence, a selection of paleo-rockfall scars was dated in the Glacier du Géant basin [>3200 m above sea level (a.s.l.)] using terrestrial cosmogenic nuclides. Rockfall occurrence was compared to different climatic and glacial proxies. This study presents 55 new samples (including replicates) and 25 previously-published ages from nine sampling sites. In total, 62 dated rockfall events display ages ranging from 0.03 ± 0.02 ka to 88.40 ± 7.60 ka. Holocene ages and their uncertainties were used to perform a Kernel density function into a continuous dataset displaying rockfall probability per 100 years. Results highlight four Holocene periods of enhanced rockfall occurrence: (i) c. 7–5.7 ka, related to the Holocene Warm Periods; (ii) c. 4.5–4 ka, related to the Sub-boreal Warm Period; (iii) c. 2.3–1.6 ka, related to the Roman Warm Period; and (iv) c. 0.9–0.3 ka, related to the Medieval Warm Period and beginning of the Little Ice Age. Laser and photogrammetric three-dimensional (3D) models of the rock walls were produced to reconstruct the detached volumes from the best-preserved rockfall scars (≤0.91 ± 0.12 ka). A structural study was carried out at the scale of the Glacier du Géant basin using aerial photographs, and at the scale of four selected rock walls using the 3D models. Two main vertical and one horizontal fracture sets were identified. They correspond respectively to alpine shear zones and veins opened-up during long-term exhumation of the Mont Blanc massif. Our study confirms that climate primarily controls rockfall occurrence, and that structural settings, coincident at both the massif and the rock wall scales, control the rock-wall shapes as well as the geometry and volume of the rockfall events. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A multi-method approach to dating middle and late Quaternary high relative sea-level events on NW Svalbard – A case study

Waxing and waning ice sheets and changing sea levels have been interpreted from the Quaternary stratigraphic record at Leinstranda, Brøggerhalvøya in NW Svalbard. We have identified seven high relative sea-level events, related to glacio-isostatic loading, and separated by at least four glacial events. To establish a chronology for the high sea-level events (interstadials and interglacials) and the intervening glaciations, we have used three different absolute dating methods: optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) of shallow marine deposits, and electron spin resonance (ESR) and radiocarbon (AMS-¹⁴C) dating of fossils contained in these sediments. Of the absolute dating methods, OSL has provided the stratigraphically most consistent dataset and which also matches a biostratigraphically inferred interglacial. The ESR ages of mollusc shells suffer from low precision due to unusually large uranium content in most dated shell samples, which in turn is most likely a result of significant recent uranium enrichment of the sediments. Most radiocarbon ages are non-finite. The results show that the high relative sea-level events range in age from the Saalian sensu lato (≥Marine Isotope Stage, MIS, 6) to the early Holocene (MIS 1), and include events OSL-dated to 185 ± 8 ka, 129 ± 10 ka, 99 ± 8 ka and 36 ± 3 ka. The methods used by us and by previous investigators of the same site are compared and assessed, and sources of error, accuracy and precision of ages are discussed.     

High-precision 40Ar/39Ar dating of pleistocene tuffs and temporal anchoring of the Matuyama-Brunhes boundary

High-precision ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar ages for a series of proximal tuffs from the Toba super-volcano in Indonesia, and the Bishop Tuff and Lava Creek Tuff B in North America have been obtained. Core from Ocean Drilling Project Site 758 in the eastern equatorial Indian Ocean contains discrete tephra layers that we have geochemically correlated to the Young Toba Tuff (73.7 ± 0.3 ka), Middle Toba Tuff (502 ± 0.7 ka) and two eruptions (OTTA and OTTB) related to the Old Toba Tuff (792.4 ± 0.5 and 785.6 ± 0.7 ka, respectively) (⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar data reported as full external precision, 1 sigma). Within ODP 758 Termination IX is coincident with OTTB and hence this age tightly constrains the transition from Marine Isotope Stage 19–20 for the Indian Ocean. The core also preserves the location of the Australasian tektites, and the Matuyama-Brunhes boundary with Bayesian age-depth models used to determine the ages of these events, c. 786 and c. 784 ka, respectively. In North America, the Bishop Tuff (766.6 ± 0.4 ka) and Lava Creek Tuff B (627.0 ± 1.5 ka) have quantifiable stratigraphic relationships to the Matuyama-Brunhes boundary. Linear age-depth extrapolation, allowing for uncertainties associated with potential hiatuses in five different terrestrial sections, defines a geomagnetic reversal age of 789 ± 6 ka. Considering our data with respect to the previously published age data for the Matuyama-Brunhes boundary of Sagnotti et al. (2014), we suggest at the level of temporal resolution currently attainable using radioisotopic dating the last reversal of Earths geomagnetic field was isochronous. An overall Matuyama-Brunhes reversal age of 783.4 ± 0.6 ka is calculated, which allowing for inherent uncertainties in the astronomical dating approach, is indistinguishable from the LR04 stack age (780 ± 5 ka) for the geomagnetic boundary. Our high-precision age is 10 ± 2 ka older than the Matuyama-Brunhes boundary age of 773 ± 1 ka, as reported previously by Channell et al. (2010) for Atlantic Ocean records. As ODP 758 features in the LR04 marine stack, the high-precision ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar ages determined here, as well as the Matuyama-Brunhes boundary age, can be used as temporally accurate and precise anchors for the Pleistocene time scale.     

Multi‐method (14C, 36Cl, 234U/230Th) age bracketing of the Tschirgant rock avalanche (Eastern Alps): implications for absolute dating of catastrophic mass‐wasting

Correct and precise age determination of prehistorical catastrophic rock‐slope failures prerequisites any hypotheses relating this type of mass wasting to past climatic regimes or palaeo‐seismic records. Despite good exposure, easy accessibility and a long tradition of absolute dating, the age of the 230 million m³ carbonate‐lithic Tschirgant rock avalanche event of the Eastern Alps (Austria) still is relatively poorly constrained. We herein review the age of mass‐wasting based on a total of 17 absolute ages produced with three different methods (¹⁴C, ³⁶Cl, ²³⁴U/²³⁰Th). Chlorine‐36 (³⁶Cl) cosmogenic surface exposure dating of five boulders of the rock avalanche deposit indicates a mean event age of 3.06 ± 0.62 ka. Uranium‐234/thorium‐230 (²³⁴U/²³⁰Th) dating of soda‐straw stalactites formed in microcaves beneath boulders indicate mean precipitation ages of three individual soda straws at 3.20 ± 0.26 ka, 3.04 ± 0.10 ka and 2.81 ± 0.15 ka; notwithstanding potential internal errors, these ages provide an ‘older‐than’ (ante quam) proxy for mass‐wasting. Based on radiocarbon ages (nine sites) only, it was previously suggested that the present rock avalanche deposit represents two successive failures (3.75 ± 0.19 ka bp , 3.15 ± 0.19 ka bp ). There is, however, no evidence for two events neither in surface outcrops nor in LiDAR derived imagery and drill logs. The temporal distribution of all absolute ages (¹⁴C, ³⁶Cl, ²³⁴U/²³⁰Th) also does not necessarily indicate two successive events but suggest that a single catastrophic mass‐wasting took place between 3.4 and 2.4 ka bp . Taking into account the maximum age boundary given by reinterpreted radiocarbon datings and the minimum U/Th‐ages of calcite precipitations within the rock avalanche deposits, a most probable event age of 3.01 ± 0.10 ka bp can be proposed. Our results underscore the difficulty to accurately date catastrophic rock slope failures, but also the potential to increase the accuracy of age determination by combining methods. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

OSL chronology and accumulation rate of the Nakdong deltaic sediments,southeastern Korean Peninsula

Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating was performed on Late Quaternary deltaic sequences from a 55-m-long core sampled from the Nakdong River estuary, Korea. OSL ages obtained from chemically separated fine (4–11 μm) and coarse (90–212 μm) quartz grains ranged from 29.4 ± 2.6 to 0.4 ± 0.04 ka, revealing clear consistency between the grain-size fractions. The D_e values from the standardized growth curve (SGC) are consistent with those from the single-aliquot regenerative-dose (SAR) procedure, which suggests that the SGC is valid for the Nakdong deltaic sediments. The ¹⁴C ages of shells and wood fragments ranged from 11 to 2.9 ka, demonstrating reasonable agreement with the OSL ages, within the error range. However, the limited number and random sampling interval of the ¹⁴C age data (10 ages) result in a simple linear and exponential trend in the depth–age curve. In contrast, OSL ages obtained by high-resolution sampling show down-section variations in the depth–age curve, indicating the occurrence of rapid changes in sedimentation rate. It is suggested that the high-sampling-resolution OSL ages provide a more realistic and detailed depth–age curve and sedimentation rate. The Nakdong deltaic sediments were divided into five units based on sedimentation rate. The lowest (unit 5) shows a break in sedimentation between the last glacial maximum (LGM) and the Holocene. The sedimentation rate increased in units 4 and 3, presumably corresponding to the early to middle Holocene sea level rise and high stand. Unit 2 shows a gradually decreasing sedimentation rate following the regression of the shoreline, until about 2 ka. The progradation of the Nakdong River delta resulted in the rapid accumulation of unit 1 during the last 2000 years.     

Refining the Quaternary Geomagnetic Instability Time Scale (GITS): Lava flow recordings of the Blake and Post-Blake excursions

The Blake excursion was among the first recognized with directional and intensity behavior known mainly from marine sediment and Chinese loess. Age estimates for the directional shifts in sediments are poorly constrained to about 118−100 ka, i.e., at the marine isotope stage (MIS) 5e/5d boundary. Moreover, sediments at Lac du Bouchet maar, France and along the Portuguese margin reveal what may be a "post-Blake" excursion at about 105−95 ka. The excursional directions are associated with a prominent paleointensity minimum between about 125 and 95 ka in global stacked records. Lava flow recordings of the Blake excursion(s) have, however, been questionable because precise ages required for correlation with these sediment records are lacking. To establish new, independent records of the Blake excursion, and link these into a larger Quaternary GITS, we have undertaken ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar incremental heating and unspiked K-Ar experiments on groundmass from the transitionally magnetized Inzolfato flow on Lipari Island. We also obtained ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar incremental heating results for a lava flow on Amsterdam Island originally thought to record the Mono Lake excursion and from the transitionally magnetized El Calderon basalt flow, New Mexico that was K-Ar dated by Champion et al. (1988) at 128 ± 66 ka.Unspiked K-Ar ages of four samples from the Inzolfato flow are 102.5 ± 4.7, 101.3 ± 3.3, 97.1 ± 2.6, and 96.8 ± 3.1 ka and thus indistinguishable from one another. ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar results are more complex, with three samples yielding discordant age spectra. Based on incremental heating data obtained in both the UW-Madison and Gif-sur-Yvette ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar laboratories, a fourth sample yields six concordant age plateaus and a weighted mean age of 105.2 ± 1.4 ka that we take as the best estimate of time since the flow erupted. Five ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar incremental heating experiments on the Amsterdam Island lava yield a plateau age of 120 ± 12 ka, whereas ages from two sites in the Calderon flow are 112 ± 23 and 101 ± 14 ka, together giving a weighted mean of 104 ± 12 ka. The age of 120 ± 12 ka from Amsterdam Island, though imprecise, correlates with the Blake excursion. In contrast, the 104–105 ka age obtained from both Lipari and New Mexico indicates that these lavas record a younger period of dynamo instability, most probably associated with the post-Blake excursion. These radioisotopic ages are consistent with the astronomical ages of two paleointensity minima in the PISO-1500 global stack. Our findings indicate that the Blake and post-Blake excursions are both global features of past geodynamo behavior and support the hypothesis that Brunhes chron excursions are temporally clustered into two groups of at least a half-dozen each spanning over 220 to 30 ka and 720 to 520 ka.     

Age comparison by luminescence using quartz and feldspar on core HPQK01 from the Pearl River delta in China

Reliable chronology is critical for reconstructing estuarine delta process. In this study, detailed chronological framework has been performed on a core HPQK01 (52 m in depth) from the central Pearl River delta (PRD) of China. Both quartz OSL and feldspar post-IR IRSL (pIRIR) methods for late Pleistocene sediments, as well as radiocarbon dating for Holocene sediments, were applied to date the core. Results show that quartz OSL ages range from 125 ± 18 ka to 58 ± 6 ka, and that all of them were minimum ages due to the OSL signal saturation. Feldspar pIR₂₀₀IR₂₉₀ protocol shows some overestimation in dose recovery test, with the recovered to the given ratio of 1.2, while a ratio of around 1 was obtained for feldspar pIR₅₀IR₂₅₀ signals. Robust ages have been obtained from feldspar fading corrected pIR₅₀IR₂₅₀ dating with ages ranging from 150 ± 17 ka to 98 ± 12 ka. AMS ¹⁴C results suggest that subtidal-intertidal zone was deposited during the middle Holocene from 8.21 ± 0.19 cal ka BP to 4.99 ± 0.25 cal ka BP. The sedimentology of core HPQK01 record two marine transgressive-regressive cycles. Based on the dating results, the lower fluvial sediment unit (T2) could be correlated to marine isotope stage (MIS) 6, and the lower marine unit (M2) was deposited during MIS 5. A sedimentary hiatus occurred with age range of from MIS 4 to MIS 2. Since middle Holocene, another marine stratum (M1) has been accumulated. Overall, our findings suggest that feldspar pIRIR dating method has the potential to establish the Quaternary chronostratigraphic framework of the PRD for samples with ages within 150 ka.