Impact of Upward Oxygen Diffusion From the Oceanic Crust on the Magnetostratigraphy and Iron Biomineralization of East Pacific Ridge-Flank Sediments

Recent measurements of pore-water oxygen profiles in ridge flank sediments of the East Pacific Rise revealed an upward-directed diffusive oxygen flux from the hydrothermally active crust into the overlying sediment. This double-sided oxygenation from above and below results in a dual redox transition from an oxic sedimentary environment near the seabed through suboxic conditions at sediment mid-depth back to oxic conditions in the deeper basal sediment. The potential impact of this redox reversal on the paleo- and rock magnetic record was analyzed for three sediment cores from the Clarion-Clipperton-Zone (low-latitude eastern North Pacific). We found that the upward-directed crustal oxygen flux does not impede high quality reversal-based and relative paleointensity-refined magnetostratigraphic dating. Despite low and variable sedimentation rates of 0.1–0.8 cm/kyr, robust magnetostratigraphic core chronologies comprising the past 3.4 resp. 5.2 million years could be established. These age-models support previous findings of significant local sedimentation rate variations that are probably related to the bottom current interactions with the topographic roughness of the young ridge flanks. However, we observed some obvious paleomagnetic irregularities localized at the lower oxic/suboxic redox boundaries of the investigated sediments. When analyzing these apparently remagnetized sections in detail, we found no evidence of physical disturbance or chemical alteration. A sharp increase in single-domain magnetite concentration just below the present lower oxic/suboxic redox boundary suggests secondary magnetite biomineralization by microaerophilic magnetotactic bacteria living as a separate community in the lower, upward oxygenated part of the sediment column. We therefore postulate a two-phased post-depositional remanent magnetization of ridge flank sediments, first by a shallow and later by a deep-living community of magnetotactic bacteria. These findings are the first evidence of a second, deep population of probably inversely oriented magnetotactic bacteria residing in the inverse oxygen gradient zone of ridge flank sediments.

Harmonic fluctuations in the relative paleointensity data?

<p>The existing relative paleointensity (RPI) database allowed the construction of reliable stacking curves for at least the last 1 Myr. Observed fluctuations in the RPI curves suggest both lithologic/climatic influence or geodynamo processes. Stacked power spectra for RPI data from ten North and South Atlantic cores revealed a spectral peak at ~5.3kyr for data covering the last 100 kyr. This signal exhibits a similar phase for most of the series. The observed spectral peak has no apparent correspondence in the benthic O<sup>18</sup> spectra from the same cores, suggesting the RPI signal is free from the climatic influence. Therefore, it may be a real geodynamo feature.</p>

On the relationship between paleomagnetic secular variation and excursions – records from MIS 8 - ODP Leg 172

Summary Paleomagnetic secular variation (PSV) and excursion data obtained across MIS 8 (243–300 ka) from the western North Atlantic Ocean—ODP Sites 1060–1063 show composite high-resolution PSV records (both directions and relative paleointensity) developed for each site and inter-compared. Two methods of chronostratigraphy allow us to date these records. First, we used published results that compared the calcium carbonate records of ODP Leg 172 sediments and tuned them with Milankovich cyclicity. We also compared our paleointensity records with the PISO-1500 global paleointensity record that was dated with oxygen isotope stratigraphy. We prefer the PISO-1500 record to date our cores. Two excursions are preserved in our PSV records—Excursions 8α and 9α. Our revised age estimates for both excursions are 8α (236.7–239.8 ka) and 9α (283.7–286.9 ka). We have compared shipboard measurements of the two excursions with u-channel measurements of selected excursion intervals. Excursion 8α is interpreted as a ‘Class II’ excursion (local reversal) with in-phase inclination and declination changes; Excursion 9α is a ‘Class I’ excursion with 90° out-of-phase inclination and declination changes. Averaged directions (after removal of true excursional directions) and relative paleointensity in 3 ka and 9 ka overlapping intervals show significant PSV directional variability over 104 yr time scales that is regionally correlatable among the four sites. A notable pattern of angular dispersion variability involves most time spent with low (∼10°) dispersion, with three shorter intervals of high (∼25°) dispersion. The relative paleointensity variability also shows significant variability over 104 yr time scales with three notable intervals of low paleointensity in all four records and a direct correspondence between the three low paleointensity intervals and the three intervals of high angular dispersion. The two magnetic field excursions occur in two of the three low-paleointensity/high-dispersion intervals. This suggests that the geomagnetic field operates in two states between reversals, one with regular to high paleointensity and low directional variability and one with low paleointensity and significantly higher directional variability and excursions.

Development of a multi-method chronology spanning the Last Glacial Interval from Orakei maar lake, Auckland, New Zealand

Northern New Zealand is an important site for understanding Last Glacial Interval (LGI) paleoclimate dynamics, since it is influenced by both tropical and polar climate systems which have varied in relative strength and timing of associated changes. The Auckland Volcanic Field maar lakes preserve these climatic influences on the regional paleoenvironment, as well as past volcanic eruptions, in their sedimentary infill. The sediment sequence infilling Orakei maar lake is continuous, laminated, high-resolution and provides a robust archive from which to investigate the dynamic nature of the northern New Zealand climate system over the LGI. Here we present the chronological framework for the Orakei maar sediment sequence. Our chronology was developed combining Bayesian age modelling of combined radiocarbon ages, tephrochronology of known-age rhyolitic tephra marker layers, 40Ar/39Ar-dated eruption age of a local basaltic volcano, luminescence dating (using post infrared-infrared stimulated luminescence, or pIR-IRSL), and the timing of the Laschamp paleomagnetic excursion. We also investigated the application of meteoric (cosmogenic) Beryllium-10 variability to improve the age-depth model by complementing relative paleointensity measurements. However, the results were apparently influenced by some unaccounted catchment process and unable to reach satisfactory interpretation, apart from confirming the presence of the Laschamp excursion, and therefore the 10Be data are not used in the production of the final age model. We have integrated our absolute chronology with tuning of the relative paleointensity record of the Earth’s magnetic field to a global reference curve (PISO-1500). The maar-forming phreatomagmatic eruption of the Orakei maar is now dated to > 130,120 yr (95 % confidence range 128,665 to 131,560 yr). Our new chronology facilitates high-resolution paleoenvironmental reconstruction for northern New Zealand spanning the last ca. 130,000 years for the first time as most NZ records that spall all or parts of the LGI are fragmentary, low-resolution and poorly dated. Providing this chronological framework for LGI climate events inferred from the Orakei sequence is of paramount importance in the context of identification of leads and lags in different components of the Southern Hemisphere climate system as well as identification of Northern Hemisphere climate signals.

Preliminary paleomagnetic results from PS97 cores from the Drake Passage for the past 110 ka

<p>Paleomagnetic records reconstructed from globally distributed marine sediments have greatly improved our understanding of long-term paleosecular variations and geomagnetic excursions. Nevertheless, questions regarding to the development of the geomagnetic field anomaly in the Southern Atlantic Ocean and the asymmetric geomagnetic field between Northern and Southern Hemispheres are not yet satisfactorily resolved. Paleomagnetic data, particularly from the Southern Hemisphere, is needed to better define the global geomagnetic field configurations spanning paleosecular variations and excursions. In this study, three sediment cores (PS97-085, PS97-84, PS97-079) recovered from the Drake Passage, Southern Ocean were subjected to detailed rock magnetic and paleomagnetic investigations. Preliminary age models were obtained by correlating their magnetic susceptibility to the ẟ<sup>18</sup>O master record from Dome C, Antarctica. In addition, rock magnetic records of the studied PS97 cores were further correlated to that of core PS67/197-1 with AMS <sup>14</sup>C age constraints. The results from PS97 cores are thus continuously covering the past about 110 ka. Rock magnetic results indicate titanomagnetite is the dominant magnetic carrier in the studied PS97 cores. Relative paleointensities (RPI) derived from these PS97 cores are comparable with the regional relative paleointensity records and the South Atlantic paleointensity stack (SAPIS). Additionally, anomalous inclinations at about 41 ka and 35 ka, observed in core PS97-085, are coeval with the Laschamps and the Mono Lake excursions, respectively. This study provides new paleomagnetic records from the Southern Ocean, though further age constrains are needed to consolidate the paleomagnetic interpretations. The up to now obtained paleomagnetic records, together with previous studies from the Southern Ocean, are aiming to clarify the asymmetric pattern of non-dipole geomagnetic field between Northern and Southern Hemispheres.</p>