Pub Date : 2026-01-01DOI: 10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100312
Brian M. Chase , Andrew S. Carr , Arnoud Boom , Manuel Chevalier , Maarten Blaauw , Michael E. Meadows
Understanding regional-scale patterns of long-term climate variability is essential for identifying the drivers of past environmental change. In southern Africa, the continent is often divided into three rainfall zones—summer, winter, and aseasonal—but this framework fails to capture the finer dynamics of transitional areas where tropical, subtropical, and temperate systems converge. This study examines Holocene climate variability along the western margin of the southern African monsoon region using a new 7300-year nitrogen isotope record from rock hyrax middens at Omanyne-4 in northern Namibia. Unlike other Namib Desert records that indicate progressive aridification through the Holocene, the Omanyne-4 sequence shows a long-term trend toward increasing humidity, consistent with insolation-driven enhancement of tropical and Indian Ocean moisture advection. Comparisons with records from northern Namibia, Botswana, and western Zambia reveal a coherent pattern of mid-to late Holocene humidification across the northwestern interior, in contrast to coastal aridification. Periods of both in-phase and antiphase variability with other regional records highlight the role of the Angola–Benguela Front and associated upwelling dynamics in modulating Namibian hydroclimate. These results delineate distinct Holocene climate response regions in northern Namibia and Botswana and demonstrate the non-linear nature of regional responses to insolation forcing and underscore the importance of coastal–inland atmospheric interactions in shaping long-term hydroclimate variability in southwestern Africa.
{"title":"Interacting drivers of Holocene climate change in southwestern Africa: the influence of insolation, rainbelt dynamics and upwelling","authors":"Brian M. Chase , Andrew S. Carr , Arnoud Boom , Manuel Chevalier , Maarten Blaauw , Michael E. Meadows","doi":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100312","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100312","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Understanding regional-scale patterns of long-term climate variability is essential for identifying the drivers of past environmental change. In southern Africa, the continent is often divided into three rainfall zones—summer, winter, and aseasonal—but this framework fails to capture the finer dynamics of transitional areas where tropical, subtropical, and temperate systems converge. This study examines Holocene climate variability along the western margin of the southern African monsoon region using a new 7300-year nitrogen isotope record from rock hyrax middens at Omanyne-4 in northern Namibia. Unlike other Namib Desert records that indicate progressive aridification through the Holocene, the Omanyne-4 sequence shows a long-term trend toward increasing humidity, consistent with insolation-driven enhancement of tropical and Indian Ocean moisture advection. Comparisons with records from northern Namibia, Botswana, and western Zambia reveal a coherent pattern of mid-to late Holocene humidification across the northwestern interior, in contrast to coastal aridification. Periods of both in-phase and antiphase variability with other regional records highlight the role of the Angola–Benguela Front and associated upwelling dynamics in modulating Namibian hydroclimate. These results delineate distinct Holocene climate response regions in northern Namibia and Botswana and demonstrate the non-linear nature of regional responses to insolation forcing and underscore the importance of coastal–inland atmospheric interactions in shaping long-term hydroclimate variability in southwestern Africa.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34142,"journal":{"name":"Quaternary Science Advances","volume":"21 ","pages":"Article 100312"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145927156","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-17DOI: 10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100309
Jinrong Hu , Gang Wang , Fuyuan An , Li Yan , Xue Min , Yan Wang
The northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (NQTP) is a region highly sensitive to climate fluctuations. However, detailed evidence regarding the timing and processes of its Quaternary glaciations remains limited in many subregions. Here, we systematically identify, quantify, and date glacial landforms in the Chaka North Mountains using an integrated approach that combines high-resolution remote sensing, digital elevation model (DEM) morphometric analysis, and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating, supplemented by field mapping. Our morphometric results demonstrate that cirques, U-shaped valleys, and distinctive moraine ridges are widely distributed throughout the region, providing evidence of significant Quaternary glacial activity. OSL dating of sediments mantling frontal moraines provides minimum stabilization ages of 111.5 ± 9.3 ka and 110.7 ± 11.2 ka, indicating a major glaciation during the penultimate glacial period (Marine Isotope Stage 6, MIS 6). Additional OSL ages of 112.7 ± 23.6 ka and 74.9 ± 11.5 ka from glacial lacustrine sediments indicate two distinct phases of lacustrine sedimentation: one during MIS 6 and the other during late MIS 5a. These findings suggest that the Chaka North Mountains experienced more extensive glaciation during MIS 6 than during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), as reflected by a significantly lower equilibrium line altitude (ELA). Our study provides a foundational chronostratigraphic framework for a key transitional region, offering critical constraints on the spatiotemporal evolution of the Quaternary cryosphere and the drivers of glacial asynchrony in the NQTP.
{"title":"Geomorphological and chronological evidence of middle to Late Pleistocene glaciation in the Chaka North Mountains, northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau","authors":"Jinrong Hu , Gang Wang , Fuyuan An , Li Yan , Xue Min , Yan Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100309","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100309","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (NQTP) is a region highly sensitive to climate fluctuations. However, detailed evidence regarding the timing and processes of its Quaternary glaciations remains limited in many subregions. Here, we systematically identify, quantify, and date glacial landforms in the Chaka North Mountains using an integrated approach that combines high-resolution remote sensing, digital elevation model (DEM) morphometric analysis, and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating, supplemented by field mapping. Our morphometric results demonstrate that cirques, U-shaped valleys, and distinctive moraine ridges are widely distributed throughout the region, providing evidence of significant Quaternary glacial activity. OSL dating of sediments mantling frontal moraines provides minimum stabilization ages of 111.5 ± 9.3 ka and 110.7 ± 11.2 ka, indicating a major glaciation during the penultimate glacial period (Marine Isotope Stage 6, MIS 6). Additional OSL ages of 112.7 ± 23.6 ka and 74.9 ± 11.5 ka from glacial lacustrine sediments indicate two distinct phases of lacustrine sedimentation: one during MIS 6 and the other during late MIS 5a. These findings suggest that the Chaka North Mountains experienced more extensive glaciation during MIS 6 than during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), as reflected by a significantly lower equilibrium line altitude (ELA). Our study provides a foundational chronostratigraphic framework for a key transitional region, offering critical constraints on the spatiotemporal evolution of the Quaternary cryosphere and the drivers of glacial asynchrony in the NQTP.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34142,"journal":{"name":"Quaternary Science Advances","volume":"21 ","pages":"Article 100309"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-12-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145791725","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-01DOI: 10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100306
Mauro Brilli , Francesca Giustini , Nicolas Guyennon , Francesca Marchegiani , Stefano Nisi
Endogenous travertines are related to fault deformations and climatic conditions which both exert an important control on their deposition. Their study allows us to show the connections between tectonics and climate. The accumulation rates during the MIS 3 time interval (60-30 ka) of three morphologically different deposits of thermogenic travertines from the western sector of central Italy were compared: two large plateaus, Tivoli and Canino, and a much smaller travertine, named Prima Porta Travertine, unearthed in their vicinity. Their chronology was obtained from literature U-Th data. The accumulation rate of these different travertines seems remarkably comparable showing a maximum during 55–46 ka and a sharp decline after 46 ka, which persisted until the end of MIS 3, indicating that it may have been at least a regional-scale event.
The Prima Porta travertine was here sampled for a high resolution chemical and isotope stratigraphy and 87Sr/86Sr ratios. These data partly strengthened previous results, showing that a sharp, well-defined shift in elemental chemistry is connected to the reduction in the accumulation rate. The C and Sr isotopes showed deep carbon provenance but negligible contribution of deep waters in travertine development. It is argued that the elemental change originates from a decrease in the aquifer recharge rates, following the gradual climate transition to an arid and cold stage. This, in turn, had a clear impact on the hydraulic conductivity of faults and fractures and on the upward migration of deep CO2 fluids, thus removing the conditions necessary for the carbonate precipitation.
{"title":"The travertine deposition of central Italy: The accumulation rate reduction under cooling climate during MIS 3","authors":"Mauro Brilli , Francesca Giustini , Nicolas Guyennon , Francesca Marchegiani , Stefano Nisi","doi":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100306","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100306","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Endogenous travertines are related to fault deformations and climatic conditions which both exert an important control on their deposition. Their study allows us to show the connections between tectonics and climate. The accumulation rates during the MIS 3 time interval (60-30 ka) of three morphologically different deposits of thermogenic travertines from the western sector of central Italy were compared: two large plateaus, Tivoli and Canino, and a much smaller travertine, named Prima Porta Travertine, unearthed in their vicinity. Their chronology was obtained from literature U-Th data. The accumulation rate of these different travertines seems remarkably comparable showing a maximum during 55–46 ka and a sharp decline after 46 ka, which persisted until the end of MIS 3, indicating that it may have been at least a regional-scale event.</div><div>The Prima Porta travertine was here sampled for a high resolution chemical and isotope stratigraphy and <sup>87</sup>Sr/<sup>86</sup>Sr ratios. These data partly strengthened previous results, showing that a sharp, well-defined shift in elemental chemistry is connected to the reduction in the accumulation rate. The C and Sr isotopes showed deep carbon provenance but negligible contribution of deep waters in travertine development. It is argued that the elemental change originates from a decrease in the aquifer recharge rates, following the gradual climate transition to an arid and cold stage. This, in turn, had a clear impact on the hydraulic conductivity of faults and fractures and on the upward migration of deep CO<sub>2</sub> fluids, thus removing the conditions necessary for the carbonate precipitation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34142,"journal":{"name":"Quaternary Science Advances","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100306"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145614772","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-01DOI: 10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100308
Zhichao Huang , Mingshan Wu , Jiangxia Ye , Ruliang Zhou , Wenlong Yang , Shenghao Li , Bingjie Han , Mengting Xue , Shuai He , Xinkun Zhu
Accurate geomorphological classification is essential for understanding complex terrains and their influence on wildfire behavior. However, conventional methods based on arbitrarily scaled Topographic Position Index (TPI) often fail to capture multi-scale topographic heterogeneity, limiting insight into terrain–fire relationships. This study introduces an optimized dual-scale TPI framework to improve geomorphological mapping and better quantify topographic controls on burn severity. Using a 30 m DEM from southwestern China's challenging plateau-mountain region, we identified optimal TPI scale pairs (21, 23) and (53, 55) via the mean change-point method. Three machine learning models—Random Forest (RF), XGBoost, and DNN—were evaluated, with RF achieving superior accuracy (Acc = 87 %, AUC = 0.93). Feature importance analysis highlighted TPI, surface cutting depth, and slope as key factors. The quantitative analysis of burn severity across landform categories shows that mid-slope ridges exhibit the highest median RdNBR values, whereas deeply incised canyons and upland river-source areas remain within the low-severity range. This research provides a scalable method for optimal TPI selection, significantly enhancing landform classification and offering actionable insights for wildfire risk assessment and management in complex terrains.
准确的地貌分类对于理解复杂地形及其对野火行为的影响至关重要。然而，基于任意比例地形位置指数（TPI）的传统方法往往无法捕捉多尺度地形异质性，限制了对地形-火灾关系的深入了解。本研究引入了一个优化的双比例尺TPI框架，以改进地貌制图和更好地量化地形对烧伤严重程度的控制。利用中国西南高原山区30 m DEM，通过平均变点法确定了最佳TPI尺度对（21,23）和（53,55）。对随机森林（random Forest， RF）、XGBoost和dnn这三种机器学习模型进行了评估，其中RF的准确率更高（Acc = 87%, AUC = 0.93）。特征重要性分析强调TPI、表面切割深度和坡度是关键因素。不同地形类型的烧伤严重程度定量分析表明，中斜坡脊的RdNBR中值最高，而深切口峡谷和高地河源区仍处于低严重程度范围内。该研究为最佳TPI选择提供了一种可扩展的方法，显著增强了地形分类，并为复杂地形的野火风险评估和管理提供了可操作的见解。
{"title":"An optimizing dual-scale TPI framework for enhanced geomorphological classification in plateau and mountainous regions:Gaining deeper insights into topographic effects on forest fires","authors":"Zhichao Huang , Mingshan Wu , Jiangxia Ye , Ruliang Zhou , Wenlong Yang , Shenghao Li , Bingjie Han , Mengting Xue , Shuai He , Xinkun Zhu","doi":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100308","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100308","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Accurate geomorphological classification is essential for understanding complex terrains and their influence on wildfire behavior. However, conventional methods based on arbitrarily scaled Topographic Position Index (TPI) often fail to capture multi-scale topographic heterogeneity, limiting insight into terrain–fire relationships. This study introduces an optimized dual-scale TPI framework to improve geomorphological mapping and better quantify topographic controls on burn severity. Using a 30 m DEM from southwestern China's challenging plateau-mountain region, we identified optimal TPI scale pairs (21, 23) and (53, 55) via the mean change-point method. Three machine learning models—Random Forest (RF), XGBoost, and DNN—were evaluated, with RF achieving superior accuracy (Acc = 87 %, AUC = 0.93). Feature importance analysis highlighted TPI, surface cutting depth, and slope as key factors. The quantitative analysis of burn severity across landform categories shows that mid-slope ridges exhibit the highest median RdNBR values, whereas deeply incised canyons and upland river-source areas remain within the low-severity range. This research provides a scalable method for optimal TPI selection, significantly enhancing landform classification and offering actionable insights for wildfire risk assessment and management in complex terrains.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34142,"journal":{"name":"Quaternary Science Advances","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100308"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145680920","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-01DOI: 10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100307
Josep Ventura , Marc Oliva , José M. Fernández-Fernández , Marcelo Fernandes , David Palacios , Tancrède Leger , Vincent Jomelli , Aster Team
The transition from glacial to deglacial environments in mid-latitude mountains leaves a wide range of landforms of glacial, periglacial and paraglacial origin, of which the chronology and evolution are still debated. This work provides geomorphological and geochronological evidence for the last phases of deglaciation in the Ratera Valley and cirque (upper Noguera Pallaresa Valley-Central Pyrenees) by applying cosmic-ray exposure (CRE) dating to a set of 19 samples from moraine boulders, rock glaciers and glacially polished surfaces. The results indicate the occurrence of several glacial and periglacial phases between the end of Heinrich 1 (HS-1) event and the Mid-Early Holocene. The deglaciation of the Ratera area occurred between ca. 15.3 and 13.4 ka, interrupted by small glacial advances and/or standstills evidenced by the formation of moraine ridges. The moraine complex closing the Ratera Cirque was formed during the Bølling/Allerød (B-A) – Younger Dryas (YD) transition at ca. 12.6–12.4 ka. Later, during the Early Holocene, this glacier developed into a debris-covered glacier, which stabilised at ca. 9.9 ± 0.9 ka. Subsequently, this debris-covered glacier was partly fossilised by a rock glacier consisting of two differentiated units which stabilised at ca. 8.8 ± 0.8 and 5.8 ± 0.6 ka, respectively. Finally, a small debris-free glacier built a moraine ridge at the foot of the cirque wall. Thus, this spatio-temporal pattern of deglaciation of the Ratera Cirque represents a unique case spanning 10 ka, providing evidence of the major environmental changes that followed the disappearance of glaciers in the Pyrenees and demonstrates the importance of past periglacial and paraglacial dynamics in shaping the present-day mountain landscape in this range.
{"title":"Glacial - periglacial transition in the Ratera Cirque (Central Pyrenees) from the Younger Dryas to the Holocene","authors":"Josep Ventura , Marc Oliva , José M. Fernández-Fernández , Marcelo Fernandes , David Palacios , Tancrède Leger , Vincent Jomelli , Aster Team","doi":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100307","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100307","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The transition from glacial to deglacial environments in mid-latitude mountains leaves a wide range of landforms of glacial, periglacial and paraglacial origin, of which the chronology and evolution are still debated. This work provides geomorphological and geochronological evidence for the last phases of deglaciation in the Ratera Valley and cirque (upper Noguera Pallaresa Valley-Central Pyrenees) by applying cosmic-ray exposure (CRE) dating to a set of 19 samples from moraine boulders, rock glaciers and glacially polished surfaces. The results indicate the occurrence of several glacial and periglacial phases between the end of Heinrich 1 (HS-1) event and the Mid-Early Holocene. The deglaciation of the Ratera area occurred between ca. 15.3 and 13.4 ka, interrupted by small glacial advances and/or standstills evidenced by the formation of moraine ridges. The moraine complex closing the Ratera Cirque was formed during the Bølling/Allerød (B-A) – Younger Dryas (YD) transition at ca. 12.6–12.4 ka. Later, during the Early Holocene, this glacier developed into a debris-covered glacier, which stabilised at ca. 9.9 ± 0.9 ka. Subsequently, this debris-covered glacier was partly fossilised by a rock glacier consisting of two differentiated units which stabilised at ca. 8.8 ± 0.8 and 5.8 ± 0.6 ka, respectively. Finally, a small debris-free glacier built a moraine ridge at the foot of the cirque wall. Thus, this spatio-temporal pattern of deglaciation of the Ratera Cirque represents a unique case spanning 10 ka, providing evidence of the major environmental changes that followed the disappearance of glaciers in the Pyrenees and demonstrates the importance of past periglacial and paraglacial dynamics in shaping the present-day mountain landscape in this range.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34142,"journal":{"name":"Quaternary Science Advances","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100307"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145680923","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-19DOI: 10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100305
Janek Walk
Late Quaternary alluvial fans along the coast of the hyperarid Atacama Desert have been exploited as palaeoenvironmental archives by several studies. However, a regional palaeoenvironmental interpretation remains challenging as established geochronological frameworks are based on a limited number of sites where fan aggradation was constrained by numerical dating. Consequently, it is unclear to what extent fan aggradation and progradation is controlled by large-scale allogenic versus individual autogenic forcing. To therefore expand the regional alluvial fan morphochronology along the south-central coast, the applicability of cost-effective Schmidt hammer exposure dating (SHD) was explored on boulders of plutonic lithology. The independently exposure-dated coastal alluvial fan (CAF) Paposo served as regional age-calibration site for SHD of 11 telescopic CAFs between 24.25°S and 25.25°S. SHD was complemented by the assessment of the CAFs’ terrestrial and shelf morphometry and the hydromorphometric and climatic catchment properties. The results of the successfully calibrated SHD suggest that weathering in the coastal desert allows for age ranges extending over the Late Quaternary. The expanded morphochronology reveals a distinct fan evolution segmenting a synchronous morphogenesis south of 24.85°S from a diachronous one in the north. Spatial segmentation is reflected in specific catchment hydromorphometric characteristics and differences in the relationships between terrestrial fan versus shelf gradients – the latter indicating a dominant allogenic control of eustatic sea-level changes at least in the south. While spatiotemporal variability in Late Quaternary precipitation and tectonic activity may constitute additional relevant factors, diachronism of northern CAF evolution could also be the response to individual autogenic fan dynamics.
{"title":"Expanding the Late Quaternary morphochronology of Atacama's coastal alluvial fans by Schmidt hammer exposure dating reveals spatially distinct genesis","authors":"Janek Walk","doi":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100305","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100305","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Late Quaternary alluvial fans along the coast of the hyperarid Atacama Desert have been exploited as palaeoenvironmental archives by several studies. However, a regional palaeoenvironmental interpretation remains challenging as established geochronological frameworks are based on a limited number of sites where fan aggradation was constrained by numerical dating. Consequently, it is unclear to what extent fan aggradation and progradation is controlled by large-scale allogenic versus individual autogenic forcing. To therefore expand the regional alluvial fan morphochronology along the south-central coast, the applicability of cost-effective Schmidt hammer exposure dating (SHD) was explored on boulders of plutonic lithology. The independently exposure-dated coastal alluvial fan (CAF) Paposo served as regional age-calibration site for SHD of 11 telescopic CAFs between 24.25°S and 25.25°S. SHD was complemented by the assessment of the CAFs’ terrestrial and shelf morphometry and the hydromorphometric and climatic catchment properties. The results of the successfully calibrated SHD suggest that weathering in the coastal desert allows for age ranges extending over the Late Quaternary. The expanded morphochronology reveals a distinct fan evolution segmenting a synchronous morphogenesis south of 24.85°S from a diachronous one in the north. Spatial segmentation is reflected in specific catchment hydromorphometric characteristics and differences in the relationships between terrestrial fan versus shelf gradients – the latter indicating a dominant allogenic control of eustatic sea-level changes at least in the south. While spatiotemporal variability in Late Quaternary precipitation and tectonic activity may constitute additional relevant factors, diachronism of northern CAF evolution could also be the response to individual autogenic fan dynamics.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34142,"journal":{"name":"Quaternary Science Advances","volume":"21 ","pages":"Article 100305"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-11-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145747853","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-10-13DOI: 10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100304
Yingying Wei , Kang'en Zhou , En'guo Sheng , Bin Liu , Jianghu Lan
The arid Central Asia (ACA) is highly sensitive to global changes, making it critical for climate and environmental change research. Previous studies have demonstrated that the ACA experienced different hydroclimatic conditions during the late Holocene; however, the specific details remain insufficiently explored. In this study, we investigate hydroclimatic variations over the past 2300 years using End Member Modelling Analysis (EMMA) of grain size, combined with multi-proxy indices from Lake Bosten. Our results reveal distinct intervals: two wet intervals during 320–44 BCE (before the Common Era) and 1350–1935 CE (Common Era); and one dry interval during 44 BCE–1350 CE. We propose that NAO (North Atlantic Oscillation) may have influenced these hydroclimatic changes in arid Central Asia. Our findings suggest that wet conditions would favor traditional agricultural activities, thereby promoting the unity and prosperity of ancient cities. In contrast, during the dry interval, nomadic tribes expanded southward, leading to frequent wars and political instability.
{"title":"Hydroclimatic differences over the past 2300 years in arid Central Asia and their potential impacts on human activities revealed by End Member Modelling Analysis of lake sediments","authors":"Yingying Wei , Kang'en Zhou , En'guo Sheng , Bin Liu , Jianghu Lan","doi":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100304","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100304","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The arid Central Asia (ACA) is highly sensitive to global changes, making it critical for climate and environmental change research. Previous studies have demonstrated that the ACA experienced different hydroclimatic conditions during the late Holocene; however, the specific details remain insufficiently explored. In this study, we investigate hydroclimatic variations over the past 2300 years using End Member Modelling Analysis (EMMA) of grain size, combined with multi-proxy indices from Lake Bosten. Our results reveal distinct intervals: two wet intervals during 320–44 BCE (before the Common Era) and 1350–1935 CE (Common Era); and one dry interval during 44 BCE–1350 CE. We propose that NAO (North Atlantic Oscillation) may have influenced these hydroclimatic changes in arid Central Asia. Our findings suggest that wet conditions would favor traditional agricultural activities, thereby promoting the unity and prosperity of ancient cities. In contrast, during the dry interval, nomadic tribes expanded southward, leading to frequent wars and political instability.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34142,"journal":{"name":"Quaternary Science Advances","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100304"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-10-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145321506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-09-29DOI: 10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100303
Xiaoyan Liu , Sihua Yuan , Li Zhang , Kezhi Zang , Jinshuo Zhang , Chuanyong Wu
Along both the northern and southern flanks of the Tian Shan orogenic belt, a series of foreland thrust systems have been developed to accommodate N – S crustal shortening. The strikes of these foreland thrust systems are roughly parallel to the mountain range and have usually been viewed as a result of outward expansion of the Tian Shan orogenic belt. However, the NW-striking Heya fault (HYF) in the southern Tian Shan piedmont has been identified, but at present, its late Quaternary kinematics, deformation mechanism and role in regional tectonic deformation are still unclear. In this study, based on interpretations of detailed high-resolution remote sensing images, field investigations, surveys of displaced terraces with an unmanned drone, dating of late Quaternary sediments via optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and trench excavation, we quantified the structural geometry and determined the ∼0.85 mm/yr crustal shortening rate of the HYF. A survey of the displaced geomorphic surfaces implies that the HYF obeys a characteristic slip model. We suggest that the low-angle thrust HYF is a contractional horsetail structure located near the easternmost end of the Maidan fault and accommodates its left-lateral strike-slip motion.
{"title":"Late Quaternary thrust faulting along the NW-trending Heya fault in southwestern Tian Shan, NW China","authors":"Xiaoyan Liu , Sihua Yuan , Li Zhang , Kezhi Zang , Jinshuo Zhang , Chuanyong Wu","doi":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100303","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100303","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Along both the northern and southern flanks of the Tian Shan orogenic belt, a series of foreland thrust systems have been developed to accommodate N – S crustal shortening. The strikes of these foreland thrust systems are roughly parallel to the mountain range and have usually been viewed as a result of outward expansion of the Tian Shan orogenic belt. However, the NW-striking Heya fault (HYF) in the southern Tian Shan piedmont has been identified, but at present, its late Quaternary kinematics, deformation mechanism and role in regional tectonic deformation are still unclear. In this study, based on interpretations of detailed high-resolution remote sensing images, field investigations, surveys of displaced terraces with an unmanned drone, dating of late Quaternary sediments via optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and trench excavation, we quantified the structural geometry and determined the ∼0.85 mm/yr crustal shortening rate of the HYF. A survey of the displaced geomorphic surfaces implies that the HYF obeys a characteristic slip model. We suggest that the low-angle thrust HYF is a contractional horsetail structure located near the easternmost end of the Maidan fault and accommodates its left-lateral strike-slip motion.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34142,"journal":{"name":"Quaternary Science Advances","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100303"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145221636","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-09-01DOI: 10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100299
Christian Leipe , David Handfried , Tengwen Long , Ingo Heinrich , Philipp Hoelzmann , Jens Mingram , Rik Tjallingii , Johannes C. Vrijmoed , Mayke Wagner , Pavel E. Tarasov
Here, we present the first fully varve-based chronology for the deposits of the deep-water Lake Shira (Chulym-Yenisei Basin, South Siberia), derived from a new sediment core. The very well-preserved varves show typical properties of the clastic-biogenic and endogenic types that can be subdivided into four sublayers representing winter–early spring, late spring, early summer and late summer–autumn. The analysed sediment section of 147 cm length comprises 2491 varve years with a total counting error of 1.6 % (i.e. ±40 years), making the new sediment core from Lake Shira a unique high-resolution archive for multi-proxy studies of past climate/environmental change and human-environment interactions. Direct comparison of nine AMS radiocarbon (14C) dates based on sediment bulk organic fractions with an age-depth model based on varve counting made it possible to examine the 14C reservoir effect in the lake. The reservoir effect is a common issue when estimating the age of environmental proxies from lacustrine sedimentary archives in Inner Asia. Although a constant reservoir effect is commonly used to correct the 14C dates from a single core or lake basin, our results from Lake Shira demonstrate that it varies significantly over the last 2500 years, ranging from 240 ± 30 to 1045 ± 30 years. The spatiotemporal variability of the reservoir effect can considerably reduce the accuracy of age-depth models based solely on the bulk organic sediment fraction. Where varved sediment is unavailable, as is usually the case, lignin phenols, terrestrial plant remains and purified pollen concentrates should be considered as alternative dating materials.
{"title":"Microfacies analysis and varve-based chronology reveal a variable 14C reservoir effect in Lake Shira, northern Inner Asia, over the past 2500 years","authors":"Christian Leipe , David Handfried , Tengwen Long , Ingo Heinrich , Philipp Hoelzmann , Jens Mingram , Rik Tjallingii , Johannes C. Vrijmoed , Mayke Wagner , Pavel E. Tarasov","doi":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100299","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100299","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Here, we present the first fully varve-based chronology for the deposits of the deep-water Lake Shira (Chulym-Yenisei Basin, South Siberia), derived from a new sediment core. The very well-preserved varves show typical properties of the clastic-biogenic and endogenic types that can be subdivided into four sublayers representing winter–early spring, late spring, early summer and late summer–autumn. The analysed sediment section of 147 cm length comprises 2491 varve years with a total counting error of 1.6 % (i.e. ±40 years), making the new sediment core from Lake Shira a unique high-resolution archive for multi-proxy studies of past climate/environmental change and human-environment interactions. Direct comparison of nine AMS radiocarbon (<sup>14</sup>C) dates based on sediment bulk organic fractions with an age-depth model based on varve counting made it possible to examine the <sup>14</sup>C reservoir effect in the lake. The reservoir effect is a common issue when estimating the age of environmental proxies from lacustrine sedimentary archives in Inner Asia. Although a constant reservoir effect is commonly used to correct the <sup>14</sup>C dates from a single core or lake basin, our results from Lake Shira demonstrate that it varies significantly over the last 2500 years, ranging from 240 ± 30 to 1045 ± 30 years. The spatiotemporal variability of the reservoir effect can considerably reduce the accuracy of age-depth models based solely on the bulk organic sediment fraction. Where varved sediment is unavailable, as is usually the case, lignin phenols, terrestrial plant remains and purified pollen concentrates should be considered as alternative dating materials.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34142,"journal":{"name":"Quaternary Science Advances","volume":"19 ","pages":"Article 100299"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144988474","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-09-01DOI: 10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100290
Stoil Chapkanski , Gilles Brocard , Franck Lavigne , Tomy Afrizal , Ella Meilianda , Nazli Ismail , Jędrzej Majewski , Patrick Daly , Benjamin Horton , Adam Switzer , Annika Steuer , Bernhard Siemon , Darusman Darusman , Clément Virmoux , Jean-Philippe Goiran
The Aceh River delta, northern Sumatra, is a subject of interest since the coastline was struck, more than any other, by the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, the largest recorded in human history. Thereafter, significant scientific efforts focused on short-term dynamics to address the environmental effects of the tsunami, but the long-term evolution of the delta in this specific context of volcanic eruptions, megathrust earthquakes and tsunami landing, however, remains to be understood.
This study investigates the subaerial delta, based on shallow sediment borehole stratigraphies and C14 ages, in order to provide a partial reconstruction of the western and eastern fluvial and coastal evolution over the past 7 ky. It also benefits from comprehensive resistivity maps produced during recent helicopter-borne electromagnetic (HEM) surveys, and from earlier geomorphological mapping.
By prograding, the delta expanded seaward, exposure to swell increased, and a large strandplain accreted along the eastern delta front from 4 to 1 ky BCE. The delta thus evolved asymmetrically, with higher, tightly-stacked beach ridges in the east, which accreted at ∼6 km2/ky. Meanwhile, the Aceh River remained stable, along the western side of the delta, burying the western strandplain under its floodplain. After 0.5 ky BCE, delta progradation increased to ∼14 km2/ky, generating low-lying and wider spaced beach ridges to the east. A series of river avulsions between 0.2 ky BCE and 1.6 ky CE shifted the river course from the west to the center of the delta. An asymmetric cuspate promontory grew at 23 km2/ky after 0.5 ky in front of the current mouth of the river, projecting 1 km offshore of the current coastline, before undergoing erosion in the past few centuries.
Here, we discuss which combination of global and local factors, including sea level change, sediment supply, wave climate, tectonics, land use and tsunamis may explain the most salient processes during the growth of the Aceh River delta. Beyond its local interest, this study provides clues for a wider understanding of the complexity of subaerial delta development.
{"title":"Mid-to late-Holocene fluvial and coastal evolution in the Aceh River delta, Sumatra: effects of sea-level change, sediment supply, wave climate, tectonics and tsunamis","authors":"Stoil Chapkanski , Gilles Brocard , Franck Lavigne , Tomy Afrizal , Ella Meilianda , Nazli Ismail , Jędrzej Majewski , Patrick Daly , Benjamin Horton , Adam Switzer , Annika Steuer , Bernhard Siemon , Darusman Darusman , Clément Virmoux , Jean-Philippe Goiran","doi":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100290","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100290","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The Aceh River delta, northern Sumatra, is a subject of interest since the coastline was struck, more than any other, by the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, the largest recorded in human history. Thereafter, significant scientific efforts focused on short-term dynamics to address the environmental effects of the tsunami, but the long-term evolution of the delta in this specific context of volcanic eruptions, megathrust earthquakes and tsunami landing, however, remains to be understood.</div><div>This study investigates the subaerial delta, based on shallow sediment borehole stratigraphies and C<sup>14</sup> ages, in order to provide a partial reconstruction of the western and eastern fluvial and coastal evolution over the past 7 ky. It also benefits from comprehensive resistivity maps produced during recent helicopter-borne electromagnetic (HEM) surveys, and from earlier geomorphological mapping.</div><div>By prograding, the delta expanded seaward, exposure to swell increased, and a large strandplain accreted along the eastern delta front from 4 to 1 ky BCE. The delta thus evolved asymmetrically, with higher, tightly-stacked beach ridges in the east, which accreted at ∼6 km<sup>2</sup>/ky. Meanwhile, the Aceh River remained stable, along the western side of the delta, burying the western strandplain under its floodplain. After 0.5 ky BCE, delta progradation increased to ∼14 km<sup>2</sup>/ky, generating low-lying and wider spaced beach ridges to the east. A series of river avulsions between 0.2 ky BCE and 1.6 ky CE shifted the river course from the west to the center of the delta. An asymmetric cuspate promontory grew at 23 km<sup>2</sup>/ky after 0.5 ky in front of the current mouth of the river, projecting 1 km offshore of the current coastline, before undergoing erosion in the past few centuries.</div><div>Here, we discuss which combination of global and local factors, including sea level change, sediment supply, wave climate, tectonics, land use and tsunamis may explain the most salient processes during the growth of the Aceh River delta. Beyond its local interest, this study provides clues for a wider understanding of the complexity of subaerial delta development.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34142,"journal":{"name":"Quaternary Science Advances","volume":"19 ","pages":"Article 100290"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144921163","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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