The Croonian Lecture - Radiocarbon dating and Quaternary history in Britain

1961 ◽  
Vol 153 (952) ◽  
pp. 287-320 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Late Glacial ◽  
Climatic Changes ◽  
Complex Interaction ◽  
Quaternary Period ◽  
Climatic Oscillation ◽  
Last Glaciation ◽  
Quaternary History ◽  
Glacial Time ◽  
Raised Beaches

The lecture is an attempt to show the way in which research upon the Quaternary Period in Britain is being affected by the application to it of radiocarbon dating. Mild interstadial periods during the last glaciation can be distinguished, set in sequence and related to similar European interstadials. It is shown that a brief climatic oscillation occurs widely in the Late-glacial transition from Full-glacial to Post-glacial time, and that the vegetational changes registered in pollen zonations of the Post-glacial Period are to some degree synchronous. They reflect widespread climatic changes, as do major horizons in bog stratigraphy that can also be correlated by radiocarbon dating. The method has a most powerful application to archaeology and it promises some resolution of the complex interaction of eustatic, isostatic and tectonic factors that have affected those relative movements of land and sea level recorded by the submerged forests, estuarine formations and raised beaches of the British Isles. Between the results of British Quaternary study in these and other fields there is developing considerable consistency of pattern , as also between British Quaternary History and that of other parts of the world.

scholarly journals Some aspects of the last glaciation in the Mazury Lake District (north-eastern Poland)

2013 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Pochocka-Szwarc
Keyword(s):  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Late Glacial ◽  
Climatic Changes ◽  
Lake District ◽  
Last Glaciation ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
Melt Water ◽  
History Of ◽  
Organic Sediments ◽  
Late Glacial And Holocene

ABSTRACT The morphology of the Mazury Lake District (north-eastern Poland) dates from 24-19 ka (main stadial of the youngest Vistulian glaciation). During this last glacial maximum (MIS 2) a belt with lacustrine basins was formed when the ice sheet retreated at the end of the Pomeranian phase. The ice-sheet retreat is morphologically also expressed by the occurrence of end moraines. The study area is situated in the Skaliska Basin, in the northern part of the Lake District (near the Polish/ Russian border), at the periphery of zone with end moraines. Originally the basin was an ice-dammed depression filled with melt water; the water flowed out into the developing Pregoła valley when the ice retreated and did no longer dam off the depression. The basin, which is surrounded by hill-shaped moraines, is filled now with Late Glacial and Holocene glaciolacustrine sediments. The organic sediments of the basin record the history of the Late Glacial and Holocene climatic changes in this region.

A Reassessment of U-Th and14C Ages for Late-Glacial High-Frequency Hydrological Events at Searles Lake, California

1998 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jo C. Lin ◽  
Wallace S. Broecker ◽  
Sidney R. Hemming ◽  
Irena Hajdas ◽  
Robert F. Anderson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Frequency ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Age Determination ◽  
Ice Cores ◽  
Close Correlation ◽  
Late Glacial ◽  
Radiocarbon Age ◽  
Abrupt Changes ◽  
Dry Conditions ◽  
Glacial Time

U-Th isochron ages of tufas formed on shorelines suggest that the last pluvial event in Lake Lahontan and Searles Lake was synchronous at about 16,500 cal yr B.P. (equivalent to a radiocarbon age of between 14,000 and 13,500 yr B.P.), whereas the timing of this pluvial event determined by radiocarbon dating is on the order of 1000 yr younger. The timing of seven distinct periods of near desiccation in Searles Lake during late-glacial time has been reinvestigated for U-Th age determination by mass spectrometry. U-Th dating of evaporite layers in the interbedded mud and salt unit called the Lower Salt in Searles Lake was hampered by the uncertainty in assessing the initial 230Th/232Th of the samples. The resulting ages, corrected by a conservative range of initial 230Th/232Th ratios, suggest close correlation of the abrupt changes recorded in Greenland ice cores (Dansgaard-Oeschger events) and wet–dry conditions in Searles Lake between 35,000 and 24,000 cal yr B.P.

A CARBON-DATED POLLEN DIAGRAM FROM THE CAPE BRETON PLATEAU, NOVA SCOTIA

1967 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 339-359 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. A. Livingstone ◽  
A. H. Estes
Keyword(s):  
Nova Scotia ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Late Glacial ◽  
Pollen Diagram ◽  
Cape Breton ◽  
Poplar Trees ◽  
Glacial Time ◽  
Nova Scotian

Organic sedimentation in a lake near the southwestern edge of the Cape Breton Plateau began about 9000 years ago. Before that time the vegetation was an open tundra, probably with scattered conifer and poplar trees. Since then the vegetation has been dominated by closed fir forest of a variety of types not dissimilar to forests growing in various parts of Nova Scotia today. Organic sedimentation and the establishment of forest, and by implication deglaciation, began more recently at Wreck Cove Lake than at any other Nova Scotian locality that has been investigated. The establishment of forest occurred 1300 years sooner in part of lowland Cape Breton, and 1800 years sooner in part of mainland Nova Scotia, than it did on the Cape Breton Plateau. The length of postglacial, preforest time, which cannot be measured by radiocarbon dating, appears to have been much shorter at Wreck Cove than it was in lowland Cape Breton. The Cape Breton Plateau was not, as some phytogeographers have suggested, a nunatak during glacial time. It may have been a center of late-glacial readvance.

Lake-Level Chronology on the Southern Bolivian Altiplano (18°–23°S) During Late-Glacial Time and the Early Holocene

1999 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 54-66 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florence Sylvestre ◽  
Michel Servant ◽  
Simone Servant-Vildary ◽  
Christiane Causse ◽  
Marc Fournier ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lake Level ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Late Glacial ◽  
Climatic Changes ◽  
Early Holocene ◽  
Late Glacial Period ◽  
High Lake Level ◽  
Tropical Areas ◽  
Bolivian Altiplano ◽  
Glacial Time

AbstractStratigraphic analyses of outcrops, shorelines, and diatoms from the southern Bolivian Altiplano (Uyuni-Coipasa basin) reveal two major lacustrine phases during the late-glacial period and the early Holocene, based on a chronology established by radiocarbon and U/Th control. A comparison of14C and230Th/234U ages shows that during times of high lake level, radiocarbon ages are valid. However, during low-water periods,14C ages must be corrected for a reservoir effect. The lacustrine Tauca phase started a little before 16,00014C yr B.P., and the lake level reached its maximum between 13,000 and 12,00014C yr B.P. A dry event (Ticaña) occurred after ca. 12,000 and before 950014C yr B.P. A moderate lacustrine oscillation (Coipasa event) occurred between ca. 9500 and 850014C yr B.P., using a reservoir-corrected conventional14C chronology. Comparisons between the lake-level chronology in the Uyuni-Coipasa basin and data from other southern tropical areas of South America suggest that the lacustrine evolution may reflect large-scale climatic changes.

Late-Glacial History of Lago Argentino, Argentina, and Age of the Puerto Bandera Moraines

2000 ◽  
Vol 54 (3) ◽  
pp. 339-347 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorge A. Strelin ◽  
Eduardo C. Malagnino
Keyword(s):  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Younger Dryas ◽  
Late Glacial ◽  
The West ◽  
Middle Holocene ◽  
Last Glaciation ◽  
Western Area ◽  
History Of ◽  
A Minor ◽  
Northern Branch

In the west-central part of Lago Argentino, the Puerto Bandera moraines are clearly detached from longer, more prominent moraines of the last glaciation and from shorter and smaller Neoglacial moraines. Scientists have long speculated about the age of the Puerto Bandera moraines. Detailed geomorphologic studies in the western area of Lago Argentino, including stratigraphic profiles at Bahı́a del Quemado in the northern branch (Brazo Norte), indicate that the Puerto Bandera moraines were deposited by three pulses of ice. Each of the three pulses is represented by single moraine ridges and belts of tightly arranged ridges. The timing of the three glacier advances was established by radiocarbon dating, including data published by John Mercer. The oldest moraine system, formed during the Puerto Bandera I substade, was deposited ca. 13,000 14C yr B.P. Moraines of the Puerto Bandera II substade were deposited ca. 11,000 14C yr B.P. The youngest moraine system was deposited during a minor readvance, shortly before 10,390 C14 yr B.P., and thus appears to have occurred some time during the European Younger Dryas interval. After this third substade, the ice tongues retreated into the interior branches of Lago Argentino and have remained there since. Evidence found at Bahı́a del Quemado, together with data provided by other authors, attests to a significant climatic change by the middle Holocene, which we believe occurred during the Herminita advance, the first Holocene glacial readvance recognized within the area.

Glacial and Postglacial Pollen Records from the Ecuadorian Andes and Amazon

1997 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul A. Colinvaux ◽  
Mark B. Bush ◽  
Miriam Steinitz-Kannan ◽  
Michael C. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Late Glacial ◽  
Amazon Rainforest ◽  
San Juan ◽  
Temperature Sensitive ◽  
Pollen Record ◽  
Sensitive Species ◽  
The Andes ◽  
Plant Associations ◽  
Last Glaciation ◽  
Glacial Time

A long pollen record is derived from sediments of a lake dammed behind a low moraine of the last glaciation at 3°S latitude in the Ecuadorian Andes and is compared with a glacial age pollen record from the Amazon rainforest immediately below. Lake Surucucho (Llaviucu) lies at 3180 m on the Amazonian flank of the Andes and above the glacial age pollen record from San Juan Bosco at 970 m. The Surucucho pollen record is interpreted as showing treeless vegetation in glacial times, advance of treeline in late-glacial time, and Holocene development of modern Andean forests. Combining the Surucucho and San Juan Bosco records shows that Andean vegetation was affected by glacial cooling at all elevations. Vegetation did not move up and down slope as belts. Rather, plant associations were reformed as temperature-sensitive species found different centers of distribution with changing temperature.

scholarly journals XIX.—The Bone-Cave in the Valley of Allt nan Uamh (Burn of the Caves), near Inchnadamff, Assynt, Sutherlandshire

1918 ◽  
Vol 37 ◽  
pp. 327-349 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. N. Peach ◽  
J. Horne ◽  
E. T. Newton
Keyword(s):  
Characteristic Feature ◽  
Late Glacial ◽  
Early History ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Geological History ◽  
Collateral Evidence ◽  
History Of ◽  
Glacial Time

A characteristic feature of the plateau of Cambrian Limestone in the neighbourhood of Inchnadamff is the occurrence in it of swallow-holes, caves, and subterranean channels which are intimately associated with the geological history of the region. The valley of Allt nan Uamh (Burn of the Caves), locally known as the Coldstream Burn, furnishes striking examples of these phenomena. One of the caves in this valley yielded an interesting succession of deposits, from which were collected abundant remains of mammals and birds. The discovery of bones of the Northern Lynx, the Arctic Lemming, and the Northern Vole among these relics, and the collateral evidence of the materials forming some of these layers, seem to link the early history of this bone-cave with late glacial time, or at least with a period before the final disappearance of local glaciers in that region.

scholarly journals Paleoclimatic Implications of Radiocarbon Dating Of Speleothems from the Cracow-Wieluń Upland, Southern Poland

Radiocarbon ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 103-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Pazdur ◽  
Mieczysław F. Pazdur ◽  
Jacek Pawlyta ◽  
Andrzej Górny ◽  
Michał Olszewski
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Study ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Karst Region ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Preliminary Results ◽  
Last Glaciation ◽  
Geological Museum ◽  
Paleoclimatic Records ◽  
Age Range

We report preliminary results of a long-term systematic study intended to gather paleoclimatic records from precisely dated speleothems. The research project is limited to speleothems deposited in caves of the Cracow-Wieluń Upland, the largest and best-explored karst region in Poland, covering ca. 2900 km2 with >1000 caves. Speleothem samples were selected from collections of the Geological Museum of the Academy of Mining and Metallurgy in Cracow. Radiocarbon dates of these samples from ca. 45–20 ka bp almost exactly coincide with age range of the Interplenivistulian. A break in speleothem formation between ca. 20 and 10 ka bp may be interpreted as a result of serious climatic deterioration associated with the maximum extent of the last glaciation. We observed differences among 14C, U/Th and AAR dating results. Changes of δ13C and δ18O in speleothems that grew between ca. 30 and 20 ka bp may be interpreted as changes of paleoclimatic conditions.

scholarly journals Die spät- und frühpostglaziale Vegetationsentwicklung im Umkreis der Alpen. Bemerkungen zur Arbeit von H. Zoller: „Pollenanalystische Untersuchungen zur Vegetationsgeschichte der insurbischen Schweiz“, 1960

1962 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-17
Author(s):  
Gerhard Lang
Keyword(s):  
Younger Dryas ◽  
Late Glacial ◽  
Climatic Oscillation ◽  
Northern Border ◽  
The Alps ◽  
Southern Border

Abstract. Based upon newer papers a brief summary is given on Late-glacial and Pre-boreal vegetational history at the western and northern border of the Alps; the effects of the Bölling- and especially the Alleröd-oscillation are demonstrated. Proceeding of that the different results by H. Zoller (I960) in Southern Switzerland are examined and the arguments for another dating of his two Late-glacial pollen diagramms are discussed. According to that the first afforestation in the lowlands at the southern border of the Alps occured not in the Allerod but already in the Boiling period; the „Piottino-oscillation", associated with the Gschnitz-Stadium, is probably not a new discovered Pre-boreal climatic oscillation, but corresponds to the Alleröd-oscillation. Therefore it seems not necessary to doubt the synchronism of Younger Dryas and Schlußvereisung in the Alps.

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