Long-term records of sediment yield from coral skeletons: results from ion beam analyses

Abstract

Results indicate that sediment plumes are generally forced away from areas of coral growth by prevailing winds. Bottom sediment resuspension is a significant source of noise and a sediment yield record in corals will be very sensitive to the location of corals sampled. The PIXE/PIGME technique has spatial resolution suited to high resolution analysis of coral skeleton. However, the low sediment concentrations in the coral skeleton, contamination due to endolithic borers, and the effect of changing skeletal morphology limit the usefulness of this analytical technique. -from Author