Late Glacial organic sediments in palaeogeographical reconstructions (cases from the Łódź region)

Late Glacial organic succession is recorded at the Żabieniec and Koźmin Las sites, in the Łódź region. A multiproxy approach provides a palaeogeographical assessment and yields a new insight into the old morainic area of the Polish Lowland. Additionally, the key profile Witów contributes in the reconstruction. It is demonstrated that the Late Glacial organic sediments of the Łódź region contain signs of environmental changes, starting from the first warming just after the Weichselian ice-sheet retreat from the Polish territory. Records at Żabieniec, apart from registering biotic and abiotic conditions which influenced functioning of a peatbog, provides information on the permafrost behaviour throughout the Late Glacial. At Koźmin Las, a unique discovery of the in situ riparian forest accompanied by organic sediments led to a high-resolution study of a series of events taking place on the floodplain during the Younger Dryas

Optical dating and sedimentary record from the terrace depositional profile of the Warta River (Central Poland)

Results of OSL dating and sedimentary studies from the profile of the low alluvial terrace of the middle Warta River are presented. The samples were dated using the single-aliquot regenera-tive method. Dating was used to establish a timing of the Weichselian Late Glacial events in the river valley environment. Stable conditions on the floodplain are expressed by the deposition of organic-rich series radiocarbon dated at 12 900–12 600 cal BP and 11 600–10 770 cal BP. Samples for OSL dating were collected from the mineral material deposited during the intensification of flood events during the Weichselian decline. The results obtained for the alluvia range from 12.78 ± 0.62 ka b2k to 14.33 ± 0.74 ka b2k. Sedimentological criteria allowed to distinguish between particular flood events. Overestimation of OSL ages is probably a result of rapidity of environmental changes in that time.Grant from the National Science Centre, No N N306 788240 “Pal-aeogeographical conditions of existence and destruction of the Late Weichselian forest in the Warta River Valley (the Koło Basin)”

Łódź region and its northern vicinity under Vistulian Glaciation conditions

An overview of palaeogeographical findings of the last glacial period (MIS 5d–MIS 2) has been given for the Łódź region. Processes which influenced the area outside of ice-sheet margin are presented with respect to space and time, as predominantly driven by different types of periglacial environment. Attention was paid to leading accumulative and erosional processes and resulting landforms, still well-pronounced in the landscape. Recently, the picture of the area discussed, during the Vistulian was completed and identified was the mechanism of the LGM ice-sheet advance onto the Płock lobe. Borderline location of the Łódź region offers comprehensive research on the time and processes and determines its significance on the geomorphological map of Poland

Glacial-Interglacial Cycles In Central Poland As Reflected In The Łódź University Geomorphological Scientific Achievements

Published in: Origin of Relief of Central Poland and Its Anthropogenic Transformation in Łódź University Geographical Research, edited by. E.Kobojek, T.MarszałResults of a few decades of investigations on relief evolution of Central Poland in successive morphogenetic cycles were summed up in the monograph by K. Turkowska (2006) and visualised in the Geomorphological map of the Łódź region at a scale of 1:226 000 published in 2012. Recently, the aforementioned problems were widely discussed during the conference “Czynniki różnicowania rzeźby Niżu Polskiego” (Differentiation factors of the Polish Lowland relief) held in Uniejów in June 2012. Some current studies were presented in the anniversary issue of Acta Geographica Lodziensia (no. 100), which is a platform for the exchange of scientific ideas and opinions for 60 years

State of knowledge about the Late Vistulian (Weichselian late glacial) in the Łódź Region)

Artykuł przedstawia stan rozpoznania paleogeograficznego późnego vistulianu w regionie łódzkim. Dla środowisk sedy-mentacyjnych: fluwialnego, stokowego i eolicznego, wyróżniono tendencje przebiegu agradacji i degradacji oraz scharakte-ryzowano zachowane dowody geologiczne i morfologiczne. Procesy morfogenetyczne zostały odniesione do globalnych, szybkich zmian klimatycznych okresu przejściowego plejstocen-holocen i zróżnicowanych warunków lokalnych. Zwrócono uwagę na niejednolitość stosowania terminu „późny vistulian”, zależnie od podziału stratygraficznego bądź dla obszarów glacjalnych, bądź ekstraglacjalnych. Podkreślono postęp, jaki dokonał się w rejestracji świadectw późnego vistulianu. W kontekście przyrastającej ilości danych z badań interdyscyplinarnych rysuje się możliwość konstrukcji regionalnego mo-delu rozwoju środowiska.The article presents the palaeogeographical recognition of the Late Vistulian in the Łódź Region. For three sedi-mentary environments – fluvial, slope and aeolian – tendencies of aggradation and degradation have been identified and preserved geological and morphological evidences have been characterized. Morphogenetic processes have been related to global climatic changes of the Pleistocene-Holocene transition and varying local conditions. Attention was drawn to non-uniformity in the application of the term “Late Vistulian”, depending on the stratigraphical division, or to glacial or extragla-cial areas. The progress that has been made in the registration of the Late Vistulian processes is emphasized. In view of the increasing data of interdisciplinary research, the construction of a regional model for the environmental development is pos-sible in the nearest future

Environmental changes at the Vistulian decline in Central Poland as seen from the Koźmin Las site

Wielokierunkowe wyniki badań w stanowisku Koźmin Las przeanalizowano w aspekcie rozpoznania szybkich naturalnych zmian w geosystemach podczas późnego glacjału. Krótkie zdarzenia, zrekonstruowane na rozległym płaskim dnie doliny dużej nizinnej rzeki w staroglacjalnym obszarze Polski Środkowej, odniesiono do zjawisk o charakterze globalnym. Podkreślono cechy zgodne ze schematem wypracowanym na podstawie rdzeni grenlandzkich i stanowisk stratotypowych lądowego środowiska Polski Środkowej oraz specyfikę wynikającą z uwarunkowań lokalnych. Wskazano cechy osadów, których roz-poznanie poszerzyło wiedzę o ewolucji środowiska regionu łódzkiego i przyczyniło się do wzrostu znaczenia stanowiska.Multidisciplinary investigations carried out at Koźmin Las have been analysed in the aspect of recognition of fast natural climate changes in geosystems during the Vistulian Late Glacial. A series of short events, reconstructed for the exten-sive valley of a large lowland river in the old morainic area of Central Poland, has been related to global changes. Features in accordance with the scheme for Greenland ice core records and with the stratotypes of terrestrial palaeoenvironment of Central Poland have been highlighted. Properties of deposits which contributed to the knowledge of evolution of the Łódź Region have been pointed out

Significance of the Late Vistulian cold periods in relief development in the Łódź Region

The aim of the article is to show the significance of the morphogenetic processes which took place during the reactivation of cold stages during the Late Vistulian in the Łódź Region, in the light of the latest stratigraphical and paleaoenvironmental approach. The processes were activated in slope, fluvial and aeolian environments and operated under conditions of climatic unstability. The transitional nature of this period caused that processes characteristic of the periglacial environment, with the permafrost presence, overlapped with the moderate conditions. The cold periods were potentially favorable for morphogenetic activity, although their records are in the Łódź Region not as common as the effects of the processes that took place during earlier periods of the Vistulian.Celem artykułu jest wykazanie znaczenia rzeźbotwórczej roli okresów cyklicznych powrotów zimna w późnym vistulianie w ewolucji regionu łódzkiego w świetle najnowszych interpretacji stratygraficznych i środowiskowych. Procesy rzeźbotwórcze późnego vistulianu były uruchamiane w środowiskach: stokowym, rzecznym i eolicznym działały w specyficznych warunkach niestabilności klimatycznej. Przejściowość tego okresu powodowała, że zazębiały się procesy charakterystyczne dla środowiska peryglacjalnego, przy udziale zmarzliny oraz dla środowiska umiarkowanego. Zimne fazy potencjalnie sprzyjały aktywności morfogenetycznej, chociaż ich świadectwa nie są w regionie łódzkim tak powszechne jak efekty procesów, które miały miejsce podczas wcześniejszych okresów vistuliańskich