| 1. |
- Czymzik, Markus, et al.
(author)
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Synchronizing the Western Gotland Basin (Baltic Sea) and Lake Kälksjön (central Sweden) sediment records using common cosmogenic radionuclide production variations
- 2024
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In: Holocene. - 0959-6836.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Multi-archive studies of climate events and archive-specific response times require synchronous time scales. Aligning common variations in the cosmogenic radionuclide production rate via curve fitting methods provides a tool for the continuous synchronization of natural environmental archives down to decadal precision. Based on this approach, we synchronize 10Be records from Western Gotland Basin (WGB, Baltic Sea) and Lake Kälksjön (KKJ, central Sweden) sediments to the 14C production time series from the IntCal20 calibration curve during the Mid-Holocene period ~6400 to 5200 a BP. Before the synchronization, we assess and reduce non-production variability in the 10Be records by using 10Be/9Be ratios and removing common variability with the TOC record from KKJ sediments based on regression analysis. The synchronizations to the IntCal20 14C production time scale suggest decadal to multi-decadal refinements of the WGB and KKJ chronologies. These refinements reduce the previously centennial chronological uncertainties of both archives to about ± 20 (WGB) and ±40 (KKJ) years. Combining proxy time series from the synchronized archives enables us to interpret a period of ventilation in the deep central Baltic Sea basins from ~6250 to 6000 a BP as possibly caused by inter-annual cooling reducing vertical water temperature gradients allowing deep water formation during exceptionally cold winters.
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| 2. |
- Chen, Peng, et al.
(author)
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Holocene monsoon dynamics at Kunlun Pass on the northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau
- 2021
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In: Science of the Total Environment. - : Elsevier. - 0048-9697 .- 1879-1026. ; 771
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Various proxy records have been used for the understanding of environmental and climate variations during the Holocene. Here, for the first time, we use meteoric Be-10 isotope measurements performed on sediments from a drill core collected at the Kunlun Pass (KP) on the northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (NETP) to investigate hydroclimate changes during the Holocene. The Be-10 flux suggests relative low levels in the Early Holocene, followed by a sharp increase to high values at around 4 ka BP (4 ka BP - 4000 years before present). Afterwards, the Be-10 flux remains on a high level during the Late Holocene, but decreases slightly towards today. These Be-10 deposition patterns are compared to moisture changes in regions dominated by the Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM), East Asian Summer Monsoon (EASM), and the Westerlies. Different from the gradual changes in monsoon patterns, the Be-10 data reveal low levels during the Early Holocene until similar to 4 ka BP when an obvious increase is indicated and a relative high level continues to this day, which is relatively more in agreement with patterns of the Westerlies. This finding provides a new evidence fora shift in the dominant pattern of atmospheric circulation the KP region from a more monsoonal one to one dominated by the Westerlies. Our results improve the understanding of non-stationary interactions and spatial relevance of the EASM, the ISM and the Westerlies on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
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| 3. |
- Chen, Peng, et al.
(author)
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Relationship between precipitation and Be-10 and impacts on soil dynamics
- 2020
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In: Catena (Cremlingen. Print). - : Elsevier BV. - 0341-8162 .- 1872-6887. ; 195
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Meteoric beryllium-10 (Be-10) is commonly used as a proxy of landscape dynamics (erosion and sedimentation rates) and soil development. Soil represents the first-stage reservoir of meteoric Be-10, and variability in the concentration of the isotope in soils may be affected by soil properties and atmospheric deposition. Although many investigations have targeted this issue, there are still problems in estimating the atmospheric input of the isotope in different soil environments. Here, we used Be-10 data measured in soils distributed across China to explore the potential influence of meteorological and pedological conditions on the isotope concentration and related applications. In addition, to determine the mechanisms controlling Be-10 concentrations in topsoil on a regional scale, the soil samples were sub-divided into 18 different catchments according to fluvial systems. The results indicated that there were significant negative correlations between precipitation and the soil Be-10 concentration in high-precipitation regions (> 1200 mm.y(-1)) and significant positive correlations for soils in low precipitation regions (< 1200 mm.y(-1)). The data also revealed that precipitation is the most important variable controlling the Be-10 concentration in soils of China when compared with the effects of soil properties such as grain size, mineralogy, pH, and cation exchange capacity. Land use and soil erosion may have limited impacts on the distribution of Be-10 in soils.
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| 4. |
- Chen, Peng, et al.
(author)
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Tendency of soil erosion dynamics by coupling radioisotopes and RUSLE model on the Southeastern Tibetan Plateau in response to climate warming and human activity
- 2023
-
In: Catena. - : Elsevier BV. - 0341-8162. ; 223
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Soil erosion has created landscape problems in many parts of the world and in particular in cold regions where the sensitive permafrost conditions have changed due to climate warming. Such a case occurred in the Tibetan Plateau (TP), which has been strongly affected by global warming and human activities. Monitoring technologies, like remote sensing and field surveys were used to explore soil erosion rates in the TP, but they were limited by the resolution and meteorological disturbance factors or the spatial and time scales. Here, we present for the first time 210Pbex (excess lead-210) and 137Cs (caesium-137) data of soils from the southeastern TP (SETP) covering an area of 640,000 km2. In the permafrost-dominant areas, the results show mean soil-erosion rates in the last 56–100 years that were relatively higher (1891 t·km−2·a-1) based on 210Pbex than those based on 137Cs (1623 t·km−2·a-1). Modelling results from the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) indicate relatively high mean soil erosion rates of 4363 and 4394 t·km−2·a-1 using a period covering the last 40 or 10 years respectively. Our data suggest accelerating erosion rates on the SETP that are linked to permafrost degradation, and glacier and snow melting due to accelerating global climate warming. The increase in ground surface temperature of ∼2 °C in the last four decades has further shifted the regional hydrology, affecting the degeneration of vegetation cover and a further increase in soil-erosion rates. However, our radionuclides data also expose low erosion rates in the seasonally frozen ground at some sampling sites which indicates the complex nature of erosion trends in cold regions that require careful adaptation of soil management.
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| 5. |
- Czymzik, Markus, et al.
(author)
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A varved lake sediment record of the Be-10 solar activity proxy for the Lateglacial-Holocene transition
- 2016
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In: Quaternary Science Reviews. - : Elsevier BV. - 0277-3791 .- 1873-457X. ; 153, s. 31-39
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Solar modulated variations in cosmogenic radionuclide production provide both information on past changes in the activity of the Sun and a global synchronization tool. However, to date the use of cosmogenic radionuclides for these applications is almost exclusively based on Be-10 records from ice cores and C-14 time-series from tree rings, all including archive-specific limitations. We present the first Be-10 record from annually laminated (varved) lake sediments for the Lateglacial-Holocene transition from Meerfelder Maar. We quantify environmental influences on the catchment and, consequently, Be-10 deposition using a new approach based on regression analyses between our Be-10 record and environmental proxy time-series from the same archive. Our analyses suggest that environmental influences contribute to up to 37% of the variability in our Be-10 record, but cannot be the main explanation for major Be-10 excursions. Corrected for these environmental influences, our Be-10 record is interpreted to dominantly reflect changes in solar modulated cosmogenic radionuclide production. The preservation of a solar production signal in Be-10 from varved lake sediments highlights the largely unexplored potential of these archives for solar activity reconstruction, as global synchronization tool and, thus, for more robust paleoclimate studies.
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| 6. |
- Czymzik, Markus, et al.
(author)
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Delayed Western Gotland Basin (Baltic Sea) ventilation in response to the onset of a Mid-Holocene climate oscillation
- 2021
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In: Quaternary Science Reviews. - : Elsevier BV. - 0277-3791. ; 273
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The marine-terrestrial Baltic ecosystem is sensitive to a range of environmental forcing and thresholds. Multi-archive investigations of its evolution require a precise synchronization of the considered archives. Here, we apply globally common cosmogenic radionuclide production rate variations to synchronize 10Be records from brackish Western Gotland Basin (Baltic Sea) and terrestrial lake Tiefer See (NE Germany) sediments to the atmospheric 14C time-scale and investigate phase-relationships in proxy responses in the southern Baltic realm associated with the onset of a centennial Mid-Holocene climate oscillation ∼5800 a BP. Based on paired molybdenum and titanium records, we identify a 98 ± 81-year delay in Western Gotland Basin ventilation, compared to the terrestrial response at the onset of the recorded Mid-Holocene climate oscillation. Most plausible mechanism for this delay is strengthened stratification in response to enhanced freshwater input during the first decades of the oscillation.
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| 7. |
- Czymzik, Markus, et al.
(author)
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Lagged atmospheric circulation response in the Black Sea region to Greenland Interstadial 10
- 2020
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In: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. - : Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. - 1091-6490. ; 117:46, s. 28649-28654
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Northern Hemispheric high-latitude climate variations during the last glacial are expected to propagate globally in a complex way. Investigating the evolution of these variations requires a precise synchronization of the considered environmental archives. Aligning the globally common production rate variations of the cosmogenic radionuclide 10Be in different archives provides a tool for such synchronizations. Here, we present a 10Be record at <40-y resolution along with subdecadal proxy records from one Black Sea sediment core around Greenland Interstadial 10 (GI-10) ∼41 ka BP and the Laschamp geomagnetic excursion. We synchronized our 10Be record to that from Greenland ice cores based on its globally common production rate variations. The synchronized environmental proxy records reveal a bipartite climate response in the Black Sea region at the onset of GI-10. First, in phase with Greenland warming, reduced sedimentary coastal ice rafted detritus contents indicate less severe winters. Second, and with a lag of 190 (± 44) y, an increase in the detrital K/Ti ratio and authigenic Ca precipitation point to enhanced regional precipitation and warmer lake surface temperatures. We explain the lagged climatic response by a shift in the dominant mode of atmospheric circulation, likely connected with a time-transgressive adjustment of the regional thermal ocean interior to interstadial conditions.
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| 8. |
- Czymzik, Markus, et al.
(author)
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Mid-Holocene humid periods reconstructed from calcite varves of the Lake Woserin sediment record (north-eastern Germany)
- 2016
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In: Holocene. - : SAGE Publications. - 0959-6836. ; 26:6, s. 935-946
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Time-series of varve properties and geochemistry were established from varved sediments of Lake Woserin (north-eastern Germany) covering the recent period AD 2010–1923 and the mid-Holocene time-window 6400–4950 varve years before present (vyr BP) using microfacies analyses, x-ray fluorescence (µ-XRF) scanning, microscopic varve chronology, and 14C dating. The microscopic varve chronology was compared with a macroscopic varve chronology for the same sediment interval. Calcite layer thickness during the recent period is significantly correlated to increases in local annual precipitation (r = 0.46, p = 0.03) and reduced air-pressure (r = −0.72, p < 0.0001). Meteorologically consistent with enhanced precipitation at Lake Woserin, a composite 500 hPa anomaly map for years with >1 standard deviation calcite layer thickness depicts a negative wave train air-pressure anomaly centered over southern Europe, with north-eastern Germany at its northern frontal zone. Three centennial-scale intervals of thicker calcite layers around the mid-Holocene periods 6200–5900, 5750–5400, and 5300–4950 vyr BP might reflect humid conditions favoring calcite precipitation through the transport of Ca2+ ions into Lake Woserin, synchronous to wetter conditions in Europe. Calcite layer thickness oscillations of about 88 and 208 years resemble the solar Gleissberg and Suess cycles suggesting that the recorded hydroclimate changes in north-eastern Germany are modified by solar influences on synoptic-scale atmospheric circulation. However, parts of the periods of thicker calcite layers around 5750–5400 and 5200 vyr BP also coincide with enhanced human catchment activity at Lake Woserin. Therefore, calcite precipitation during these time-windows might have further been favored by anthropogenic deforestation mobilizing Ca2+ ions and/or lake eutrophication.
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| 9. |
- Czymzik, Markus, et al.
(author)
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Solar cycles and depositional processes in annual Be-10 from two varved lake sediment records
- 2015
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In: Earth and Planetary Science Letters. - : Elsevier BV. - 1385-013X .- 0012-821X. ; 428, s. 44-51
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Beryllium 10 concentrations (Be-10(con)) were measured at annual resolution from varved sediment cores of Lakes Tiefer See (TSK) and Czechowskie (JC) for the period 1983-2009 (similar to solar cycles 22 and 23). Calibrating the Be-10(con) time-series against complementing proxy records from the same archive as well as local precipitation and neutron monitor data, reflecting solar forced changes in atmospheric radionuclide production, allowed (i) identifying the main depositional processes and (ii) evaluating the potential for solar activity reconstruction. Be-10(con) in TSK and JC sediments are significantly correlated to varying neutron monitor counts (TSK: r = 0.5, p = 0.05, n = 16; JC: r = 0.46, p = 0.03, n = 22). However, the further correlations with changes in organic carbon contents in TSK as well as varying organic carbon and detrital matter contents in JC point to catchment specific biases in the 10Be(con) time-series. In an attempt to correct for these biases multiple regression analysis was applied to extract an atmospheric Be-10 production signal (Be-10(atmosphere)). To increase the signal to noise ratio a Be-10 composite record (Be-10(composite)) was calculated from the TSK time-series. Be-10(composite) and JC Be-10(atmosphere) is significantly correlated to variations in the neutron monitor record (r = 0.49, p = 0.01, n = 25) and matches the expected amplitude changes in 10Be production between solar cycle minima and maxima. This calibration study on 10Be from two sites indicates the large potential but also, partly site-specific, limitations of Be-10 in varved lake sediments for solar activity reconstruction. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 10. |
- Czymzik, Markus, et al.
(author)
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Solar modulation of flood frequency in central Europe during spring and summer on interannual to multi-centennial timescales
- 2016
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In: Climate of the Past. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 1814-9324 .- 1814-9332. ; 12:3, s. 799-805
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Solar influences on climate variability are one of the most controversially discussed topics in climate research. We analyze solar forcing of flood frequency in central Europe during spring and summer on interannual to multi-centennial timescales, integrating daily discharge data of the River Ammer (southern Germany) back to AD1926 (∼solar cycles 16-23) and the 5500-year flood layer record from varved sediments of the downstream Ammersee. Flood frequency in the River Ammer discharge record is significantly correlated to changes in solar activity when the flood record lags the solar signal by 2-3 years (2-year lag: r = -0:375, p = 0:01; 3-year lag: r = -0:371, p = 0:03). Flood layer frequency in the Ammersee sediment record depicts distinct multi-decadal variations and significant correlations to a total solar irradiance reconstruction (r = -0:4, p <0.0001) and 14C production rates (r = 0:37, p <0.0001), reflecting changes in solar activity. On all timescales, flood frequency is higher when solar activity is reduced. In addition, the configuration of atmospheric circulation associated with periods of increased River Ammer flood frequency broadly resembles that during intervals of reduced solar activity, as expected to be induced by the so-called solar top-down mechanism by model studies. Both atmospheric patterns are characterized by an increase in meridional airflow associated with enhanced atmospheric blocking over central Europe. Therefore, the significant correlations as well as similar atmospheric circulation patterns might provide empirical support for a solar influence on hydroclimate extremes in central Europe during spring and summer by the so-called solar top-down mechanism.
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| 11. |
- Czymzik, Markus, et al.
(author)
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Synchronizing 10Be in two varved lake sediment records to IntCal13 14C during three grand solar minima
- 2018
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In: Climate of the Past. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 1814-9324 .- 1814-9332. ; 14:5, s. 687-696
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Timescale uncertainties between paleoclimate reconstructions often inhibit studying the exact timing, spatial expression and driving mechanisms of climate variations. Detecting and aligning the globally common cosmogenic radionuclide production signal via a curve fitting method provides a tool for the quasi-continuous synchronization of paleoclimate archives. In this study, we apply this approach to synchronize Be-10 records from varved sediments of Tiefer See and Lake Czechowskie covering the Maunder, Homeric and 5500 a BP grand solar minima with C-14 production rates inferred from the IntCal13 calibration curve. Our analyses indicate best fits with C-14 production rates when the Be-10 records from Tiefer See were shifted for 8 (-12/+4) (Maunder Minimum), 31 (-16/+12) (Homeric Minimum) and 86 (-22/+18) years (5500 a BP grand solar minimum) towards the past. The best fit between the Lake Czechowskie Be-10 record for the 5500 a BP grand solar minimum and C-14 production was obtained when the Be-10 time series was shifted 29 (-8/+7) years towards present. No significant fits were detected between the Lake Czechowskie Be-10 records for the Maunder and Homeric minima and C-14 production, likely due to intensified in-lake sediment resuspension since about 2800 a BP, transporting "old" Be-10 to the coring location. Our results provide a proof of concept for facilitating Be-10 in varved lake sediments as a novel synchronization tool required for investigating leads and lags of proxy responses to climate variability. However, they also point to some limitations of Be-10 in these archives, mainly connected to in-lake sediment resuspension processes.
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| 12. |
- Feeser, Ingo, et al.
(author)
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A mid-Holocene annually laminated sediment sequence from Lake Woserin : The role of climate and environmental change for cultural development during the Neolithic in Northern Germany
- 2016
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In: Holocene. - : SAGE Publications. - 0959-6836. ; 26:6, s. 947-963
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Annually laminated sediments of Lake Woserin in north-eastern Germany are investigated using sedimentological and palynological methods. They facilitate high-resolution reconstruction of environmental and land-use change during ca. 7000–4000 cal. BP. Between 6100 and 5800 cal. BP, changes in woodland composition and structure are evident which coincide with a change in subsistence strategy, that is, the adoption of animal husbandry. For the remaining period, eight phases of enhanced human impact (5750–5390, 5270–5150, 4890–4750, 4670–4600, 4520–4450, 4390–4350, 4250–4170 and 4070–3930 cal. BP) are identified. Hereby, the first phase relates to an opening of the landscape in connection with the adoption of large-scale, extensive cereal cultivation. Phases of decreased human impact are generally characterised by woodland regeneration. Over-regional comparison of the results reveals similar and synchronous fluctuation of human impact in the young moraine area of the south-western Baltic region and hints at a large-scale driver. In order to evaluate the role of environmental change for human activity, evidence for coinciding shifts in palaeoclimate records and their potential implication for human–environment interactions are discussed and generally support the idea that environmental changes played an important role for the cultural development during the Neolithic in Northern Germany. Hereby, climate change probably favoured the adoption of new subsistence strategies during the early Neolithic (6100–5350 cal. BP). Furthermore, the fluctuating human impact during Middle and Younger Neolithic (5350–4100 cal. BP) could indicate a socio-economic system susceptible for short-termed climatic fluctuation.
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| 13. |
- Labuhn, Inga, et al.
(author)
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Holocene Hydroclimate Variability in Central Scandinavia Inferred from Flood Layers in Contourite Drift Deposits in Lake Storsjön
- 2018
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In: Quaternary. - : MDPI AG. - 2571-550X. ; 1:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Despite the societal importance of extreme hydroclimate events, few palaeoenvironmental studies of Scandinavian lake sediments have investigated flood occurrences. Here we present a flood history based on lithological, geochemical and mineral magnetic records of a Holocene sediment sequence collected from contourite drift deposits in Lake Storsjön (63.12° N, 14.37° E). After the last deglaciation, the lake began to form around 9800 cal yr BP, but glacial activity persisted in the catchment for ~250 years. Element concentrations and mineral magnetic properties of the sediments indicate relatively stable sedimentation conditions during the Holocene. However, human impact in the form of expanding agriculture is evident from about 1100 cal yr BP, and intensified in the 20th century. Black layers containing iron sulphide appear irregularly throughout the sequence. The increased influx of organic matter during flood events led to decomposition and oxygen consumption, and eventually to anoxic conditions in the interstitial water preserving these layers. Elevated frequencies of black layer occurrence between 3600 and 1800 cal yr BP reflect vegetation changes in the catchment as well as large-scale climatic change. Soil erosion during snowmelt flood events increased with a tree line descent since the onset of the neoglacial period (~4000 cal yr BP). The peak in black layer occurrence coincides with a prominent solar minimum ~2600 cal yr BP, which may have accentuated the observed pattern due to the prevalence of a negative NAO index, a longer snow accumulation period and consequently stronger snowmelt floods
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| 14. |
- Mekhaldi, Florian, et al.
(author)
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Radionuclide wiggle matching reveals a nonsynchronous early Holocene climate oscillation in Greenland and western Europe around a grand solar minimum
- 2020
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In: Climate of the Past. - : COPERNICUS GESELLSCHAFT MBH. - 1814-9324 .- 1814-9332. ; 16:4, s. 1145-1157
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Several climate oscillations have been reported from the early Holocene superepoch, the best known of which is the Preboreal oscillation (PBO). It is still unclear how the PBO and the number of climate oscillations observed in Greenland ice cores and European terrestrial records are related to one another. This is mainly due to uncertainties in the chronologies of the records. Here, we present new, high-resolution Be-10 concentration data from the varved Meerfelder Maar sediment record in Germany, spanning the period 11 310-11 000 years BP. These new data allow us to synchronize this well-studied record, as well as Greenland ice core records, with the IntCal13 timescale via radionuclide wiggle matching. In doing so, we show that the climate oscillations identified in Greenland and Europe between 11 450 and 11 000 years BP were not synchronous but terminated and began, respectively, with the onset of a grand solar minimum. A similar spatial anomaly pattern is found in a number of modeling studies on solar forcing of climate in the North Atlantic region. We further postulate that freshwater delivery to the North Atlantic would have had the potential to amplify solar forcing through a slowdown of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) reinforcing surface air temperature anomalies in the region.
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| 15. |
- Nantke, Carla K.M., et al.
(author)
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Human influence on the continental Si budget during the last 4300 years : δ30Sidiatom in varved lake sediments (Tiefer See, NE Germany)
- 2021
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In: Quaternary Science Reviews. - : Elsevier BV. - 0277-3791. ; 258
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The continental silicon (Si) cycle, including terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems (lakes, rivers, estuaries), acts as a filter and modulates the amount of Si transported to the oceans. In order to link the variation in the terrestrial Si cycle to aquatic ecosystems, knowledge on changes in vegetation cover, soil disturbance and the impact of human activity are required. This study on varved lake sediments from Tiefer See near Klocksin (TSK) in northeastern Germany investigates Si isotope variations in diatom frustules (δ30Sidiatom) over the last ∼4300 years. δ30Sidiatom values vary between 0.37 and 1.63‰. The isotopic signal measured in centric (mostly planktonic) and pennate (mostly benthic) diatoms shows the same trend through most of the record. A decrease in δ30Sidiatom coinciding with early deforestation between 3900 and 750 a BP in the catchment area, points to an enhanced export of isotopically light dissolved silica (DSi) from adjacent soils to the lake. The burial flux of biogenic silica (BSi) observed in the lake sediments increases with cultivation due to enhanced nutrient supply (N, P and Si) from the watershed and nutrient redistribution caused by wind-driven increased water circulation. When the cultivation intensifies, we observe a shift to higher δ30Sidiatom values that we interpret to reflect a diminished Si soil pool and the preferential removal of the lighter 28Si by crop harvesting. Human activity influences the DSi supply from the catchment and appears to be the primary driver controlling the Si budget in TSK. Our data shows how land use triggers variations in continental Si cycling on centennial timescales and provides important information on the underlying processes.
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| 16. |
- Nantke, Carla K.M., et al.
(author)
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Si cycling in transition zones : a study of Si isotopes and biogenic silica accumulation in the Chesapeake Bay through the Holocene
- 2019
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In: Biogeochemistry. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0168-2563 .- 1573-515X. ; 146:2, s. 145-170
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Si fluxes from the continents to the ocean are a key element of the global Si cycle. Due to the ability of coastal ecosystems to process and retain Si, the ‘coastal filter’ has the potential to alter Si fluxes at a global scale. Coastal zones are diverse systems, sensitive to local environmental changes, where Si cycling is currently poorly understood. Here, we present the first palaeoenvironmental study of estuarine biogenic silica (BSi) fluxes and silicon isotope ratios in diatoms (δ30Sidiatom) using hand-picked diatom frustules in two sediment cores (CBdist and CBprox) from the Chesapeake Bay covering the last 12000 and 8000 years, respectively. Constrained by the well-understood Holocene evolution of the Chesapeake Bay, we interpret variations in Si cycling in the context of local climate, vegetation and land use changes. δ30Sidiatom varies between + 0.8 and + 1.7‰ in both sediment cores. A Si mass balance for the Chesapeake Bay suggests much higher rates of Si retention (~ 90%) within the system than seen in other coastal systems. BSi fluxes for both sediment cores co-vary with periods of sea level rise (between 9500 and 7500 a BP) and enhanced erosion due to deforestation (between 250 and 50 a BP). However, differences in δ30Sidiatom and BSi flux between the sites emphasize the importance of the seawater/freshwater mixing ratios and locally variable Si inputs from the catchment. Further, we interpret variations in δ30Sidiatom and the increase in BSi fluxes observed since European settlement (~ 250 a BP) to reflect a growing human influence on the Si cycle in the Chesapeake Bay. Thereby, land use change, especially deforestation, in the catchment is likely the major mechanism.
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| 17. |
- Rimbu, Norel, et al.
(author)
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Atmospheric circulation patterns associated with the variability of River Ammer floods : Evidence from observed and proxy data
- 2016
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In: Climate of the Past. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 1814-9324 .- 1814-9332. ; 12:2, s. 377-385
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The relationship between the frequency of River Ammer floods (southern Germany) and atmospheric circulation variability is investigated based on observational Ammer River discharge data back to 1926 and a flood layer time series from varved sediments of the downstream Lake Ammer for the pre-instrumental period back to 1766. A composite analysis reveals that, at synoptic timescales, observed River Ammer floods are associated with enhanced moisture transport from the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean towards the Ammer region, a pronounced trough over western Europe as well as enhanced potential vorticity at upper levels. We argue that this synoptic-scale configuration can trigger heavy precipitation and floods in the Ammer region. Interannual to multidecadal increases in flood frequency, as detected in the instrumental discharge record, are associated with a wave train pattern extending from the North Atlantic to western Asia, with a prominent negative center over western Europe. A similar atmospheric circulation pattern is associated with increases in flood layer frequency in the Lake Ammer sediment record during the pre-instrumental period. We argue that the complete flood layer time series from Lake Ammer sediments covering the last 5500 years contains information about atmospheric circulation variability on interannual to millennial timescales.
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