河西走廊末次冰期芒硝和砂楔与古气候重建

芒硝和砂楔是冷干气候环境的典型标志。河西走廊砂楔主要形成在晚更新世冲洪积砾石层中 ,楔体内充填的风成砂14 C年龄证明其是末次冰期的产物 ,古砂楔所对应的年均气温为- 5 6℃左右。芒硝主要分布在内陆河终端的盐湖中 ,花海芒硝矿粘土夹层中的陆生树枝残条普通14 C和AMS14 C年龄分别为 (116 0 0± 2 80 )aB .P .和 (11181± 54)aB .P .,证明芒硝层为末次盛冰期 (LGM )和新仙女木期 (YD)异常冷干气候的产物。计算表明 ,该区LGM年均气温较现在低 11～ 15℃ ,YD年均气温比现代低约 6～ 8℃。这一降温幅度与中国北方根据孢粉、砂楔、冰芯等所推测的气温下降值大体一致 ,亦与最近有关北半球高、中纬度冰期降温幅度的研究相符合     

Deglacial meltwater drainage and glaciodynamics: inferences from Laurentide eskers, Canada

This paper evaluates current knowledge of Laurentide eskers in Canada in the light of developments in glacier hydrology and glacial sedimentology. Questions regarding the morpho-sedimentary relations of eskers, the synchroneity and operation of R-channel systems, the role of supraglacial meltwater input and proglacial water bodies, the controls on esker pattern, and the glaciodynamic condition of the ice sheet at the time of esker formation are discussed. A morphologic classification of eskers is proposed. Five types of eskers are identified and investigated. Type I eskers likely formed in extensive, synchronous, dendritic R-channel networks under regionally stagnant ice that terminated in standing water. Type II eskers likely formed in short, subaqueously terminating R-channels or reentrants close to an ice front or grounding line that may have actively retreated during esker sedimentation. Type III eskers plausibly formed in short R-channels that drained either to interior lakes in, or tunnel channels under, regionally stagnant ice. Type IV eskers may have formed as time-transgressive segments in short, subaerially terminating R-channels (or reentrants) that developed close to the ice margin as the ice front underwent stagnation-zone retreat or downwasted and backwasted regionally (stagnant ice); however, formation in synchronous R-channels cannot be discounted on the basis of reported observations. Type V eskers may have formed in H-channels that terminated subaerially. The spatial distribution of these esker types is discussed. The factors that determined Laurentide R-channel pattern and operation were likely a complex combination of (i) supraglacial meltwater discharge, (ii) the number and location of sink holes, (iii) the ice surface slope, thickness and velocity, and (iv) the permeability, topography and rigidity of the bed. These factors cause and respond to changes in ice dynamics and thermal regime over the glacial cycle.     

The Little Ice Age in the Canadian Rockies

This paper reviews the evidence and history of glacier fluctuations during the Little Ice Age (LIA) in the Canadian Rockies. Episodes of synchronous glacier advance occurred in the 12th–13th, early 18th and throughout the 19th centuries. Regional ice cover was probably greatest in the mid-19th century, although in places the early 18th century advance was more extensive. Glaciers have lost over 25% of their area in the 20th century. Selective preservation of the glacier record furnishes an incomplete chronology of events through the 14th–17th centuries. In contrast, varve sequences provide continuous, annually resolved records of sediments for at least the last millennium in some highly glacierized catchments. Such records have been used to infer glacier fluctuations. Evaluation of recent proxy climate reconstructions derived from tree-rings provides independent evidence of climate fluctuations over the last millennium. Most regional glacier advances follow periods of reduced summer temperatures, reconstructed from tree rings particularly ca. 1190–1250, 1280–1340, 1690s and the 1800s. Reconstructed periods of higher precipitation at Banff, Alberta since 1500 are 1515–1550, 1585–1610, 1660–1680 and the 1880s. Glacier advances in the early 1700s, the late 1800s and, in places, the 1950–1970s reflect both increased precipitation and reduced summer temperatures. Negative glacier mass balances from 1976 to 1995 were caused by decreased winter balances. The glacier fluctuation record does not contain a simple climate signal: it is a complex response to several interacting factors that operate at different timescales. Evaluation of climate proxies over the last millennium indicates continuous variability at several superimposed timescales, dominated by decade–century patterns. Only the 19th century shows a long interval of sustained cold summers. This suggests that simplistic concepts of climate over this period should be abandoned and replaced with more realistic records based on continuous proxy data series. The use of the term LIA should be restricted to describing a period of extended glacier cover rather than being used to define a period with specific climate conditions.     

小冰期气候的研究进展

小冰期是近2ka来的一个重要气候事件,又是目前全球变暖的背景事件,已成为古气候和古环境研究的热点。对此,科学工作者已经做了大量的研究。本文广泛综合前人研究的成果,介绍了小冰期的概况,认为1450-1890年是小冰期的时限,在此期间有三次冷期和两次暖期。冷期发生在1450-1510年、1560-1690年和1790-1890年,其中第二次冷期表现最甚;暖期发生在1510-1560年和1690-1790年。太阳活动和火山活动是小冰期气候变化的主要因素。并重点从冰芯、树轮、湖泊沉积、历史文献和沙漠地层等方面综述了近年来国内外对小冰期气候变化的研究现状。     

Hunter‐gatherer response to late Holocene climatic variability in northern and central Australia

Sum probability analysis of 1275 radiometric ages from 608 archaeological sites across northern and central Australia demonstrates a changing archaeological signature that can be closely correlated with climate variability over the last 2 ka. Results reveal a marked increase in archaeological records across northern and central Australia over the last 2 ka, with notable declines in western and northern Australia between ca. AD 700 and 1000 and post‐AD 1500 – two periods broadly coeval with the Medieval Climatic Anomaly and the Little Ice Age as they have been documented in the Asia–Pacific region. Latitudinal and longitudinal analysis of the dataset suggests the increase in archaeological footprint was continent wide, while the declines were greatest from 9 to 20° S, 110 to 135° E and 143 to 150° E. The change in the archaeological data suggests that, combined with an increase in population over the late Holocene, a disruption or reorganisation of pre‐European resource systems occurred across Australia between ca. AD 700 and 1000 and post‐AD 1500. These archaeological responses can be broadly correlated with transitions of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) mean state on a multi‐decadal to centennial timescale. The latter involve a shift towards the La Niña‐like mean state with wetter conditions in the Australian region between AD 700 and 1150. A transition period in ENSO mean state occurred across Australia during AD 1150–1300, with persistent El Niño‐like and drier conditions to ca. AD 1500, and increasing ENSO variability post‐AD 1500 to the present. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Cosmogenic 10Be and 26Al Chronology of the Last Glaciation of the Palaeo-Daocheng Ice Cap, Southeastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

The glacial landforms of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau(QTP) provide a unique opportunity to research hemispheric and global environmental changes. In this study,we focus on the glacial history of the palaeo-Daocheng Ice Cap(p-DIC) in the southeastern QTP during the last glacial cycle. Based on field investigations,morphostratigraphy,and surface exposure dating of roche moutonnée,polished surface and moraine debris through the terrestrial cosmogenic nuclides(TCN) 10 Be and 26 Al. We identify glacial deposits of the last deglaciation,with minimum ages of 14.9±1.3–18.7±1.7 ka,the Last Glacial Maximum(LGM) of 24.7±2.2 ka,and the early part of the last glacial period(marine oxygen isotope stage(MIS) 3) of 37.1±3.4–45.2±3.9 ka. Our results show that in this region,the extent of the glacial advance during MIS 3 was larger than that during the traditional LGM(MIS 2). These ages are consistent with prior chronologies,and the 10 Be age is consistent with the 26 Al age for the same sample. Thus,these data provide reliable constraints on climate change in the QTP,during the last glaciation.