Lateglacial and early Holocene dynamics of adjacent valley glaciers in the Western Swiss Alps

The Alps play a pivotal role for glacier and climate reconstructions within Europe. Detailed glacial chronologies provide important insights into mechanisms of glaciation and climate change. We present 26 ¹⁰Be exposure dates of glacially transported boulders situated on moraines and ice‐moulded bedrock samples at the Belalp cirque and the Great Aletsch valley, Switzerland. Weighted mean ages of ～10.9, 11.1, 11.0 and 9.6 ka for the Belalp, on up to six individual moraine ridges, constrain these moraines to the Egesen, Kartell and Schams stadials during Lateglacial to early Holocene times. The weighted mean age of ～12.5 ka for the right‐lateral moraine of the Great Aletsch correlates with the Egesen stadial related to the Younger Dryas cooling. These data indicate that during the early Holocene between ～11.7 and ～9.2 ka, glaciers in the Swiss Alps seem to have been significantly affected by cold climatic conditions initiated during the Younger Dryas and the Preboreal Oscillation. These conditions resulted in glacier margin oscillations relating to climatic fluctuations during the second phase of the Younger Dryas – and continuing into Boreal times – as supported by correlation of the innermost moraine of the Belalp Cirque to the Schams (early) Holocene stage. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Mid-Holocene variability in the marine C reservoir age for northern coastal Papua New Guinea

Changes in oceanic radiocarbon (¹⁴C) reservoir ages through the deglaciation and Holocene can provide important information on ocean circulation as Earth's climate warmed. Here, we present reservoir ages for the western tropical Pacific that span the mid-Holocene transition from less to more frequent El Niño events. Reservoir ages were calculated using paired U–Th and conventional ¹⁴C dating of eight individual fossil coral samples from Koil and Muschu Islands, northern coastal Papua New Guinea (PNG). AMS ¹⁴C and MC-ICPMS U–Th dating of additional samples from six of the fossil corals were used to confirm the TIMS U–Th and conventional ¹⁴C ages. The combined results show average reservoir ages of 185±30 ¹⁴C yr (n=4) for 7220–5850 yr BP compared to 420 ¹⁴C yr for a modern coral from Muschu Island. From 5850 to 5420 yr BP reservoir ages increase to modern values. The relatively young reservoir ages from 7220 to 5850 yr BP are best explained by greater influx of well-equilibrated sub-tropical water from the southern branch of the South Equatorial Current (SEC). This is consistent with strengthening trade winds (facilitating air–sea exchange) and a more northerly position of the Intertropical Convergence Zone thought to have occurred at this time. The transition to more modern-like reservoir ages from 5850 to 5420 yr BP suggests modern oceanic circulation patterns were established during this interval. The onset of modern El Niño activity around this time would have served to enhance the intrusion of ¹⁴C-depleted equatorial waters via the south equatorial branch of the SEC. Overall, the changes in reservoir age presented here for the western tropical Pacific suggest that Holocene changes in the El Niño–Southern Oscillation state of the tropical Pacific resulted in reorganisation of oceanic circulation in this region.     

泾河中游地区全新世成壤环境演变研究

根据长武ETC全新世土壤剖面的测定分析,探讨了该地区全新世成壤环境演变过程,阐明了先周时代土壤特征及人类耕作对成壤过程的影响。研究结果表明,全新世早期气候温和干燥,沙尘暴明显减弱,风尘堆积速率降低,具有轻微生物风化成壤作用;对应于全新世最适宜期,该地气候温暖湿润,生物风化成壤作用大于风尘堆积作用,为典型的黑垆土成壤期。从3 100 a B.P.开始,季风气候格局发生转变,气候干旱化,沙尘暴加剧,风尘堆积速率大于生物风化成壤速率,土壤资源自然退化,形成弱成壤层和黄土层,两层均属于全新世黄土L₀。先周时期耕作层对应古土壤层的顶部,土壤具有典型的团粒结构。3 100 a B.P.时的季风转变导致的气候干旱化与土壤退化促使了游牧民族南迁和"古公迁岐"事件的发生。     

黄河三角洲地区全新世环境演化及海平面变化

利用钻孔沉积物的粒度、矿物和元素地球化学测试信息,研究了黄河三角洲地区全新世沉积环境、气候及海平面的演化特征。研究表明,本区全新世环境演化分为6个阶段：①早全新世早期,10900～9100aBP,海平面较低,尚未淹没本区,为近岸氧化环境或氧化－还原过渡环境;②早全新世晚期,9100～8000aBP,海水上涨,本区时淹时退,为浅海或潮坪环境,生物钻孔发育;③中全新世主体,8000～4150aBP,海平面快速上升,完全淹没,Fe^2＋／Fe^3＋介于0.7395～1.9123之间,为全新世中最高段,表明还原程度强、全球气候变暖（大暖期）;④中全新世后期,4150～2850aBP,海水有所下降,仍为浅海环境,Fe^2＋／Fe^3＋较高,多在1.0以上;⑤晚全新世,2850～1310aBP,海平面进一步下降,本区时常暴露,其中2150～1310aBP以还原环境为主,为潮下带,2150～2850aBP以氧化还原过渡环境为主,为潮间带;⑥1855AD以来,海平面基本稳定,稍有上升,为现代黄河三角洲沉积时期。本区全新世至少存在5期冷热交替的旋回性气候变化。     

陕西扶风黄土台塬全新世成壤环境变化研究

通过对陕西扶风全新世黄土剖面的土壤学和地层学研究、磁化率、酸碱度和粒度测定分析, 揭示了周原地区全新世成壤环境演变过程。黄土剖面中的埋藏古土壤S₀形成于全新世大暖期的温湿环境中, 古土壤S₀中黄土夹层(L_x)的存在, 表明6000aBP前后季风气候发生转折, 在6000~5000aBP出现一个干旱阶段, 并使得全新世大暖期分裂成为两个主要的温湿阶段。大约从3100aBP开始, 受全球降温过程的影响, 季风气候朝向干旱化方向发展, 全新世大暖期的成壤作用被黄土堆积所取代。现代表土大约从1500aBP开始发育。     

宁夏灵武水洞沟遗址全新世的古气候环境

分析宁夏灵武水洞沟遗址剖面19个样品,将孢粉图式分为Ⅰ、Ⅱ、Ⅲ3个带,分别对应早、中、晚3个时期的孢粉带。Ⅰ带为藜、蒿和毛茛-豆科优势带;Ⅱ带为榆、榛、桦、鹅耳枥、栎优势带;Ⅲ带为藜科优势带。结果表明：早全新世植被为疏林草原、干草原-草甸草原,气候偏干冷-温和半湿润;中全新世早期植被为阔叶乔灌丛草原-针叶乔灌丛草原-阔叶疏林草原,气候温暖较干-寒冷较干-较暖较干;晚期植被为疏林草原,气候相对温暖、稍凉-较温暖;晚全新世植被为干草原,气候寒冷。     

Seeking a Holocene drift ice proxy: non‐clay mineral variations from the SW to N‐central Iceland shelf: trends,regime shifts,and periodicities

Quantitative X‐ray diffraction analysis of the <2 mm sediment fraction was carried out on 1257 samples (from the seafloor and 16 cores) from the Iceland shelf west of 18° W. All but one core (B997‐347PC) were from transects along troughs on the NW to N‐central shelf, an area that in modern and historic times has been affected by drift ice. The paper focuses on the non‐clay mineralogy of the sediments (excluding calcite and volcanic glass). Quartz and potassium feldspars occupy similar positions in an R‐mode principal component analysis, and oligoclase feldspar tracks quartz; these minerals are used as a proxy for ice‐rafted detritus (IRD). Accordingly, the sum of these largely foreign minerals (Q&K) (to Icelandic bedrock) is used as a proxy for drift ice. A stacked, equi‐spaced 100 a record is developed which shows both low‐frequency trends and higher‐frequency events. The detrended stacked record compares well with the flux of quartz (mg cm^?2 a^?1) at MD99‐2269 off N Iceland. The multi‐taper method indicated that there are three significant frequencies at the 95% confidence level with periods of ca. 2500, 445 and 304 a. Regime shift analysis pinpoints intervals when there was a statistically significant shift in the average Q&K weight %, and identifies four IRD‐rich events separated by intervals with lower inputs. There is some association between peaks of IRD input, less dense surface waters (from δ¹⁸O data on planktonic foraminifera) and intervals of moraine building. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Holocene volcanic history of Gran Canaria island: implications for volcanic hazards

Previous published data, combined with our results of 13 new radiocarbon ages and extensive geological fieldwork, indicate that during the past 11 ka 24 monogenetic basaltic eruptions occurred in the north sector of Gran Canaria. These eruptions can be grouped into three periods of eruptive activity: 1900–3200 ¹⁴C a BP; 5700–6000 ¹⁴C a BP; and an older period represented by only one eruption, El Draguillo, dated at 10 610 ± 190 ¹⁴C a BP. Archaeological studies have shown that the more recent eruptions affected prehistoric human settlements on the island. Field studies demonstrate that the eruptions typically built strombolian cones (30–250 m in height) and associated relatively long lava flows (100–10 350 m in length); a few eruptions also produced tephra fall deposits. The total erupted volume of these eruptions is about 0.388 km³ (46.1% as tephra fall, 41.8% as cinder cone deposits and 12.1% as lava flows). The relatively low eruption rate (～0.04 km³ ka^?1) during the past 11 ka is consistent with Gran Canaria's stage of evolution in the regional volcano‐tectonic setting of the Canary Archipelago. The results of our study were used to construct a volcanic hazards map that clearly delimits two sectors in the NE sector of Gran Canaria, where potential future eruptions would pose a substantial risk for densely populated areas. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

QUATERNARY GEOLOGY & GEOMORPHOLOGY

正20141016An Chengbang(Key Laboratory of Western China’s Environmental Systems,Ministry of Education,Lanzhou University,Lanzhou 730000,China);Zhao Yongtao Lake Records during the Last Glacial Maximum from Xinjiang,NW China and Their Climatic Impli-