LAST GLACIATION AND MAXIMUM GLACIATION IN THE QINGHAI-XIZANG (TIBET) PLATEAU: A CONTROVERSY TO M. KUHLE,S ICE SHEET HYPOTHESIS

Since the late 1950's, many Chinese scientists have explored the remains of the Quaternary glaciation in the Qinghai-Xizang (Tibet) Plateau and its surrounding mountains. In the main, 3-4 glaciations have been recognized. The largest one occurred in the Late Middle Pleistocene with piedmont glaciers, ice caps and trellis valley glaciers in many high peak regions. But here is no evidence of a unified ice sheet covering the whole plateau as described by M. Kuhle. Due to the further uplifting of the Himalayas and Qinghai-Xizang Plateau the climate became progressively drier, diminishing the extension of glaciers during the Late Pleistocene. The elevation of the snow line during the Last Glaciation was about 4,000 m on the south, east and northeast edges of the plateau and ascended to 5500 m on the hinder northwest of the plateau. The thermal effect of the big plateau massif, the sharp increase of aridity from the southeast rim to the northwest inland area and the abrupt decrease of precipitation during the     

Investigating the mechanisms leading to the deglaciation of past continental northern hemisphere ice sheets with the CLIMBER–GREMLINS coupled model

A coupling procedure between a climate model of intermediate complexity (CLIMBER-2.3) and a 3-dimensional thermo-mechanical ice-sheet model (GREMLINS) has been elaborated. The resulting coupled model describes the evolution of atmosphere, ocean, biosphere, cryosphere and their mutual interactions. It is used to perform several simulations of the Last Deglaciation period to identify the physical mechanisms at the origin of the deglaciation process. Our baseline experiment, forced by insolation and atmospheric CO₂, produces almost complete deglaciation of past northern hemisphere continental ice sheets, although ice remains over the Cordilleran region at the end of the simulation and also in Alaska and Eastern Siberia. Results clearly demonstrate that, in this study, the melting of the North American ice sheet is critically dependent on the deglaciation of Fennoscandia through processes involving switches of the thermohaline circulation from a glacial mode to a modern one and associated warming of the northern hemisphere. A set of sensitivity experiments has been carried out to test the relative importance of both forcing factors and internal processes in the deglaciation mechanism. It appears that the deglaciation is primarily driven by insolation. However, the atmospheric CO₂ modulates the timing of the melting of the Fennoscandian ice sheet, and results relative to Laurentide illustrate the existence of threshold CO₂ values, that can be translated in terms of critical temperature, below which the deglaciation is impeded. Finally, we show that the beginning of the deglaciation process of the Laurentide ice sheet may be influenced by the time at which the shift of the thermohaline circulation from one mode to the other occurs.     

澜沧江云南德钦古水一带第四纪堰塞湖的沉积特征及其环境意义

在云南省西北部德钦县古水一带深切的澜沧江河谷中,发现了一套第四纪湖相沉积物,以纹层状粘土、粉砂质粘土和粉砂的互层组合为特征,构成了第三和第四级阶地的基座.笔者对该湖相剖面进行了U系、孢粉和若干地球化学指标的分析测试,并以这些结果讨论了古湖的形成时代和成因,以及古湖堆积时期的古植被和古气候.剖面顶部、中部和中下部粘土的U系法年龄测定结果分别为52.3±3.4 ka、64.2±5.6 ka和81.9±6.5 ka,说明古水古湖形成于晚更新世早中期的末次间冰期晚期和末次冰期的早冰阶与间冰阶早期,很可能是大型冰川(如下游的明永冰川等)或巨量的冰水沉积物堰塞了澜沧江河谷而造成的结果.     

艾比湖地区冰消期以来气候演化的植物学证据

本文根据植物生态学分析方法，通过对艾比湖ＺＫｏｏＢ孔中孢粉组合及植被生态的定量分析，阐述了北疆内陆干旱区冰消期以来的气候演化状况。孢粉组合特征及其植被生态的定量分析研究表明，受大气降水以及大气和土壤中相对湿度波动变化的影响，艾比湖地区的生态环境特征在最近１５０００ａ中至少经历了１０次比较明显的波动变化，并且与全球气候变化过程基本符合，表明中国西部干旱半干旱地区晚更新世以的气候环境演化过程是在全球变     

Geochemistry and environment evolution of Core E in the Laizhou Bay since last stage of Middle Pleistocene

IwrincrIONOn the evolution of palcoenvironment, salt-water encroachmnt and the distributionof subsurface brine in the LaizhOu Bay area, many researches had been carried out, and muchknowledge abeut the gcolOgical features in this area since Late QUaternary was aCquired' ) (H8nand Wu, l992; Han and Meng, l994; Wen et al. l989). However there was IittIe studyon the sediment geOChemical characteristics since Quaternary. In this Paper, the element strati-graphic characteristics and evolut…     

南海东北部末次冰期以来的沉积环境演变

利用南海东北部上陆坡处所取的D孔柱样进行硅藻分析,结合粒度与碎屑矿物分析结果,探讨该海域末次冰期以来沉积环境演变过程.结果表明：粒度与硅藻分析结果较为吻合,共同显示D孔柱样可分为上下两层.上表层（0～2 cm）的砂质沉积层为冰后期海进过程改造的晚更新世残留沉积层,即变余沉积;下层（2～130 cm）主要是末次冰期形成的浅海沉积.整个柱样可反映出海洋同位素MIS 4期海退至MIS 3期海进与MIS 2期海退至冰后期海进的沉积变化韵律.     

Benthic foraminifers in upper Quaternary sediments of the southern Bering Sea: Distribution and paleoceanographic interpretations

Composition and distribution of benthic foraminifers, being coupled with isotopic-geochemical data on Upper Pleistocene and Holocene sediments from the southern Bering Sea (Core GC-11; 53°31′ N, 178°51′E, water depth 3060 m), demonstrate variations in bottom water properties during the last 54 kyr. Their abundance increased to some extent during short periods corresponding to warm Dansgaard-Oeshger interstadials 14, 12, 8, and 2 of marine isotopic stages (MIS) 3 and 2. The first and second deglaciation phases separated by the Younger Dryas cooling episode are marked by significant abundance peaks of benthic foraminifers (an order magnitude higher than in the glacial period), although their share in community of benthic and planktonic foraminifers taken together decreases. Species typical of stable high-productivity areas gain the dominant position. A significant proportion of agglutinated species in the Holocene sediments is indicative of Ca ions deficiency that accelerates dissolution of carbonate tests up to their disappearance approximately 2.5–3 ka ago.     

Evidence of reworking and resuspension of carbonates during last glacial maximum and early deglacial period along the southwest coast of India

A gravity core collected from the upper slope of southwest of Quilon at a water depth of 776 m (Lat: 8°12′263″N, Long: 76°28′281″E) was analysed for texture (carbonate free), calcium carbonate and organic carbon. Variation in silicic fraction seems to be controlled by silt, i.e., enrichment from 15 ka BP to 10 ka BP and then constant in Holocene. Below 15 ka BP, the silicic fraction gets depleted compared to the Holocene section with a minimum around 21 ka BP. Clay content remains nearly constant except in the Holocene where it shows an enrichment. Carbonate content of less than 63 micron when computed by subtracting coarse fraction content from the total carbonate suggests that the total carbonates are mainly concentrated in the finer fraction. All these carbonate phases show an inverse relationship with silicic fraction except in Holocene. Below 15 ka BP, CaCO₃ dominates in sediments comprising more than 65%, such an increase is also seen in the coarse fraction. Coarse fraction from these sections contains abundant nodular type aggregates encrusting small forams. This period is marked by a high sedimentation rate comparable to Holocene. These parameters suggest that the productivity and precipitation have increased in the Holocene due to the intensification of the southwest monsoon. During the last glacial maximum and early deglacial period the high sedimentation rate indicates redeposition of the carbonates from the existing carbonate lithofacies situated between Quilon and Cape Comorin probably due to the slope instability.     

冰芯记录中末次间冰期-冰期旋回气候突变事件的研究进展

冰芯记录中的气候变化是古气候研究中的重要组成部分. 极地、中低纬度和热带地区的冰芯记录表明, 在冰期间冰期旋回大尺度气候变化背景下, 全球经历了一系列数百年至千年时间尺度的快速气候突变事件, 诸如末次间冰期的干冷事件、末次冰期的DansgaardOeschger事件、 Heinrich事件和Younger Dryas事件等, 虽然这些穿插在冰阶中的暖湿气候事件、间冰阶中的干冷气候事件的成因、机制和影响范围还存在明显的不确定性. 主要介绍不同区域冰芯记录中末次间冰期冰期旋回这些气候突变事件发生的时间、过程和机制等的研究进展.     

Rates of Deglaciation during the Last Glaciation and Holocene in the Cordillera Vilcanota-Quelccaya Ice Cap Region, Southeastern Perú

Moraine chronology is combined with digital topography to model deglacial rates of paleoglacier volumes in both the Huancané Valley on the west side of the Quelccaya Ice Cap and the Upismayo Valley on the northwest side of the Cordillera Vilcanota. The fastest rates of deglaciation (39×10⁻⁵ to 114×10⁻⁵ km³ yr⁻¹ and 112×10⁻⁵ to 247×10⁻⁵ km³ yr⁻¹ for each valley, respectively) were calculated for the most recent paleoglaciers, corresponding to the last few centuries. These results are consistent with observations in the Venezuelan Andes showing high rates of deglaciation since the Little Ice Age. These rates also fall within the range of 20th century rates of deglaciation measured on the Quelccaya Ice Cap (29×10⁻⁵ to 220×10⁻⁵ km³ yr⁻¹, Brecher and Thompson, 1993; Thompson, 2000). These results imply that rates of deglaciation may fluctuate significantly over time and that high rates of deglaciation may not be exclusive to the late 20th century. Equilibrium line altitude (ELA) depressions for the ice volumes of the last glaciation modeled here were computed as 230 m for the Quelccaya Ice Cap and 170 m for the Cordillera Vilcanota. Maximum ELA depressions are lower than previously published: <500 m for the Cordillera Vilcanota and <400 m for the Quelccaya Ice Cap. These lower values could imply a topographic control over paleoglacier extent.