Holocene relative sea-level changes in the Qaqortoq area, southern Greenland

We present results from an investigation of relative sea-level changes in the Qaqortoq area in south Greenland from c. 11 000 cal. yr BP to the present. Isolation and transgression sequences from six lakes and two tidal basins have been identified using stratigraphical analyses, magnetic susceptibility, XRF and macrofossil analyses. Macrofossils and bulk sediments have been dated by AMS radiocarbon dating. Maximum and minimum altitudes for relative sea level are provided from two deglaciation and marine lagoon sequences. Initially, relative sea level fell rapidly and reached present-day level at ∼9000 cal. yr BP and continued falling until at least 8800 cal. yr BP. Between 8000 and 6000 cal. yr BP, sea level reached its lowest level of around 6-8m below highest astronomical tide (h.a.t.). At around 3750 cal. yr BP, sea level has reached above 2.7m below h.a.t. and continued to rise slowly, reaching the present-day level between ∼2000 cal. yr BP and the present. As in the Nanortalik area further south, initial isostatic rebound caused rapid isolation of low elevation basins in the Qaqortoq area. Distinct isolation contacts in the sediments are observed. The late Holocene transgression is less well defined and occurred over a longer time interval. The late Holocene sea-level rise implies reloading by advancing glaciers superimposed on the isostatic signal from the North American Ice Sheet. One consequence of this transgression is that settlements of Palaeo-Eskimo cultures from ∼4000 cal. yr BP may have been transgressed by the sea

Towards a Holocene tephrochronology for the Faroe Islands, North Atlantic

The Faroe Islands hold a key position in the North Atlantic region for tephra studies due to their relative proximity to Iceland. Several tephras have been described over the last 50 years in peat and lake sediment sequences, including the type sites for the Saksunarvatn and Mjáuvøtn tephras. Here we present a comprehensive overview of Holocene tephras found on the Faroe Island. In total 23 tephra layers are described including visible macrotephras such as the Saksunarvatn and Hekla 4 tephras and several cryptotephras. The importance of tephras originally described from the Faroe Islands is highlighted and previously unpublished results are included. In addition, full datasets for several sites are published here for the first time. The Saksunarvatn Ash, now considered to be the result of several eruptions rather than one major eruption, can be separated into two phases on the Faroe Islands; one early phase with two precursor eruptions with lower MgO concentrations (4.5–5.0 wt%) than the main eruption and a later phase with higher MgO concentrations (5.5–6.0 wt%), including the visible Saksunarvatn Ash. The Tjørnuvík Tephra, previously considered to be a primary deposit, is now interpreted as a reworked tephra with material from at least two middle Holocene eruptions of Hekla. Several of the tephras identified on the Faroe Islands provide useful isochrons for climate events during the Holocene

Estimates of South Greenland late-glacial ice limits from a new relative sea level curve

Marine-lacustrine isolation contacts from seven basins in the Nanortalik area, South Greenland have been analysed and dated. The basins were isolated from the sea as a consequence of isostatic rebound following deglaciation. The isolation contacts were identified with litho- and biostratigraphical analyses, especially sedimentary changes, grey scale analyses and analyses of macroscopical remains of plants and animals. Dating was performed by analytical mass spectroscopy radiocarbon dating of macrofossils and bulk sediment samples. A slow initial relative sea level fall that begins at 13.8 cal ka BP changes to a rapid relative sea level fall before the sea level fell below the present-day sea level just prior to 10 cal ka BP. The emergence curve goes further back in time than any previous emergence curve constructed from Greenland, which reflects the early deglaciation of the studied region. The glacio-isostatic crustal rebound following deglaciation was around 110 m. The sea level history indicates that the margin of the Greenland ice sheet probably extended out to the shelf margin during the Last Glacial Maximum, and that the ice thickness must have been at least 1500 m over the outer coast. Thus the highest coastal mountains would have been ice-covered, which is surprising given their alpine character. In addition, the major part of the recession of the ice must have occured relatively late and quickly, maybe from 14 to 12 cal ka BP. The late Holocene transgression may, at least in part, be due to increased isostatic loading as a consequence of advancing glaciers during the Neoglaciation

Uranium-series isotopes from Eemian lake deposits, Hollerup, Denmark

We report the results of a U-series isotope Study oil Eemian lake sediments from Hollerup, western Denmark. The purpose is to examine the possibility of dating these. and similar, sediments With the U-238-Th-230 method. Two sedimentary facies were studied carbon ate - present, and virtually carbonate-free but organic-rich sediments. All carbonate-present sediments (5-95%) have (Th-230/U-238) Values higher than unity and relatively radiogenic (Th-230/Th-232) values between 2 and 6.5. indicating postdeposition removal of U, probably by percolation of ground water. Carbonate-free sediments, but with high organic content (40-60%) had (Th-230/U-238) values lower than 1 and 'model ages' between 89 and 199 ky. The large spread in ages and variation in U content for these sediment samples that were deposited over a much shorter time interval, indicate a complex postdepositional migration pattern of U, probably involving several episodes of leaching and absorption of U from ground water. Our result suggest that lake sediments. such as those found in Hollerup. are Vulnerable to mobilization of U and its decay products and care should be taken when interpreting U-series disequilibrium data from such sediments. Future studies will concentrate oil sediments that have been more deeply buried and/or are less compacted and sealed from percolation of oxidized groundwater.</p

Relative sea-level changes since 15000 cal.yr BP in the Nanortalik area, southern Greenland

We present new results for relative sea-level change for southern Greenland for the interval from 9000 cal. yr BP to the present. Together with earlier work from the same region this yields a nearly complete record from the time of deglaciation to the present. Isolation and/or transgression sequences in one lake and five tidal basins have been identified using lithostratigraphic analyses, sedimentary characteristics, magnetic susceptibility, saturated induced remanent magnetisation (SIRM), organic and carbonate content, and macrofossil analyses. AMS radiocarbon dating of macrofossils and bulk sediment samples provides the timescale. Relative sea level fell rapidly and reached present-day level at ∼ 9300 cal. yr BP and continued falling until at least 9000 cal. yr BP. Between 8000 and 6000 cal. yr BP sea level reached its lowest level of around ∼ 10 m below highest astronomical tide. At around 5000 cal. yr BP, sea level had reached above 7.8 m below highest astronomical tide and slowly continued to rise, not reaching present-day sea level until today. The isostatic rebound caused rapid isolation of the basins that are seen as distinct isolation contacts in the sediments. In contrast, the late Holocene transgressions are less well defined and occurred over longer time intervals. The late Holocene sea-level rise may be a consequence of isostatic reloading by advancing glaciers and/or an effect of the delayed response to isostatic rebound of the Laurentide ice sheet. One consequence of this transgression is that settlements of Palaeo-Eskimo cultures may be missing in southern Greenland

Is palynology a credible climate proxy in the Subantarctic?

International audiencePollen and spore analysis is the most successfully used palaeobotanical discipline for reconstructing Holocene vegetation and climate history throughout the world. Subantarctic islands are very specific areas. They are located in the circum-Antarctic Southern Ocean in latitudes that are under strong influence of the southern westerly winds, and are characterised by a treeless, phanerogam-poor flora. Palynological research on many of these islands has resulted in diverging conclusions about how to infer climate history from pollen data. In this study we compare pollen data with macrofossil data on the one hand, and the palaeoenvironmental history based on a multiproxy record on the other hand, of two peat sequences from two different subantarctic islands, South Georgia and Île de la Possession (Îles Crozet). We conclude that palynology must be used with caution as a proxy for climate change on these islands, especially when no other proxy data are available. The upland-lowland principle, as it has been applied in pollen studies in the South Indian Ocean islands, results in erroneous conclusions about climate change on Île de la Possession. More palaeoclimatic multiproxy and pollen studies, in combination with pollen-vegetation relationship studies, can, however, contribute to a more reliable model of how to interpret pollen data in the Subantarctic. We want to stress that our conclusions are only based on Holocene records. Consequently, the question remains if palynology can be used as a palaeoclimatic proxy when climatic changes were more pronounced such as during the last glacial-interglacial transition

The last termination in the central South Atlantic

International audienc

Holocene relative sea-level changes in the inner Bredefjord area, southern Greenland

In this paper we present new relative sea-level data from southern Greenland, a key area for understanding the Greenland Ice Sheet (GIS) response to climate change. Within fourteen lakes and marine lagoons from the inner part of Bredefjord (Nordre Sermil

Stratigraphic and paleoclimatic studies of a 5500-Year-old moss bank on Elephant Island, Antarctica

Analyses of a core from the deepest known moss peat bank in Antarctica, on Elephant Island, South Shetlands, show that this Chorisodontium aciphyllum-dominated bank began to grow ca. 5500 14C yr BP. Combined with other studies in the region the present study indicates more extensive glaciation before 5000 to 6000 BP than today on some of the South Shetland Islands. The main hypothesis is that these frozen moss banks contain important paleoclimatic information. The stratigraphic parameters analyzed included degree of humification, organic and mineral matter content, bulk density, chronology, volumetric growth and organic accumulation rates, carbon and nitrogen concentrations, C/N ratios, nitrogen accumulation rates, and finally magnetic analyses to detect tephra horizons. A discussion of the interrelationships between these parameters is followed by theoretical calculations of annual net primary productivity combined with multivariate analysis of the data set. Results of the analysis show that three calculated productivity peaks coincide with three periods of milder and more humid summers, at 4150-3900, 3180-3030, and 2030-1840 BP. However, the period with possibly the warmest summers, 3180-3030 BP, is interpreted also to have been characterized by cold winters. The data suggest that the periods with the coldest summers (and possibly also winters) prevailed at the earliest stage of the moss bank development, at ca. 3500 BP, and 2500 BP