Extreme Mediterranean rainfall impact on sedimentary routing systems: what can we learn from Storm Alex using in situ detrital 10Be?

Abstract

Understanding how extreme meteorological events influence sediment transport is critical for predicting landscape evolution under a changing climate. Detrital cosmogenic 10Be can provide insights into sediment dynamics following extreme rainfall, but high-resolution datasets tracking 10Be variations before and after a storm, alongside long-term records, remain rare. The Var catchment (French Southern Alps) presents a unique case study, as its 10Be signal was well-documented before the October 2020 Storm Alex (>500 mm of rainfall/24 h), which triggered flash floods, mobilized large sediment volumes, and formed a 10 km-long sediment plume in the Mediterranean Sea. We compare 10Be concentrations in river sediments collected pre-storm (2016–2018), and at +7 days, +21 days, +4 months, and +7 months post-storm. We also use a historical offshore sample and contextualize these results with a 75 ka-long 10Be record from deep-sea sediment cores. At the Var outlet, 10Be concentrations initially increased by ~25 % at +7 and +21 days, attributed to the mobilization of 10Be-rich sediments from the upstream Var and Tinée sub-catchments. Concentrations returned to pre-storm levels within four months, primarily due to dilution with 10Be-poor sediments from the Vésubie sub-catchment fluvioglacial terraces. While short-term 10Be fluctuations at the Var outlet reflect complex sediment sourcing, our comparison with the 0–75 ka record confirms that major glaciation events and potential anthropic influences remain distinguishable, demonstrating that 10Be is a robust proxy of denudation changes, even when extreme events are involved