pedogenic carbonate proxies for amount and seasonality of precipitation in paleosols the depth to carbonate nodular bk horizon in soils d in cm is correlated with mean annual precipitation p in mm so that bk horizons are deep in subhumid regions but shallow in semiarid regions previous quantifications of this relationship are unchanged by this new compilation of 807 soils p 137 24 6 45 d 0 013 d 2 where r 2 0 52 and standard error s e 147 mm in most north american postglacial soils the bk horizon is thin and well defined whereas in monsoonal tropical soils of pakistan and kenya the bk horizon is thick and diffuse data from 675 modern soils define the relationship between the thickness of soil with nodules t in cm and mean annual range of precipitation m in mm difference between monthly means of wettest and driest months m 0 79 t 13 71 where r 2 0 58 and s e 22 mm the relationship between carbonate nodule size s in cm and soil age a in ka is quantified by 9 radiocarbon dated soils from las cruces new mexico a 3 92 s 0 34 where r 2 0 57 and s e 1 8 k y these transfer functions are applied to reconstructing paleoclimatic change from paleocene eocene paleosols of the north horn formation and flagstaff limestone of axhandle canyon utah the terminal paleocene spike of warmth recorded by fossil plants in nearby wyoming was coincident with a brief peak in both mean annual precipitation and mean annual range of precipitation in utah

origin and distribution of carbon dioxide in the unsaturated zone of the southern high plains of texas partial pressures of co2 o2 n2 and ar were monitored at two locations in the ogallala aquifer system on the southern high plains of texas samples were collected monthly during parts of 1980 1981 from nine depths ranging from 0 6 to 36 meters below land surface pco2 was observed to be greater at depth than in the active soil zone and thus appears to contradict the normal process in which co2 is generated in the soil zone and diffuses upward to the atmosphere and downward to the water table the 13c of the co2 gas was quite uniform and averaged 17 9 per mil po2 declined with depth suggesting in situ generation of co2 by the oxidation of carbon several hypotheses were considered to explain the origin of the co2 at depth it was concluded that the most probable hypothesis was that dissolved and particulate organic carbon introduced by recharging water was oxidized to co2 by the aerobic microbial community that utilized oxygen diffusing in from the atmosphere this hypothesis is consistent with the co2 concentration profile calculated production profile of co2 13c values of co2 gas caliche soil humic acid fraction and dissolved carbonate in groundwater the abundance of co2 its concentration profile and its probable origin provide information for evaluating the observed complex sequence of caliche dissolution and precipitation known to occur in the aquifer

modern and long term evaporation of central andes surface waters suggests paleo archives underestimate neogene elevations abstract central andean paleoelevations reconstructed from stable isotope and paleofloral data imply a large magnitude 2 km miocene to modern surface uplift however the isotopic relationships between precipitation surface waters and soil waters upon which these reconstructions are based remain poorly constrained for both past and in many cases modern conditions we quantify the relationships between central andean precipitation and surface waters by measuring the isotopic composition of 249 stream water samples 18o and d collected between april 2009 and october 2012 the isotopic compositions of stream waters match precipitation along the eastern flank in contrast altiplano surface waters possess a lower d 18o slope 4 59 vs 8 for meteoric waters not observed in precipitation which signals heavy isotope evaporative enrichment in surface waters paleoclimate models indicate that highly evaporative conditions have persisted on the plateau throughout andean uplift and that conditions may have been more evaporative when the andes were lower thus more ancient proxy materials may have a greater evaporative bias than previously recognized and paleoelevation reconstructions from stable isotope based central andean plateau proxy materials likely overstate miocene to present surface uplift we propose altiplano paleoelevations of 1 2 km at 24 5 ma 1 5 2 9 km by 11 45 ma and modern elevations by 6 ma based on the lightest isotopic compositions observed in altiplano proxy materials which are least likely to be influenced by evaporation these constraints limit total late miocene to modern uplift to

systematic variations in the carbon and oxygen isotopic composition of pedogenic carbonate along elevation transects in the southern great basin united states stable carbon and oxygen isotope variations in holocene soil carbonates that formed in the unsaturated zone were examined along several elevation transects in the southern great basin united states a region with a semi arid climate our intent was to study the relationship between the stable isotopic composition of pedogenic carbonates and climate ecological variations differences in parent material and soil depth 13 c of pedogenic carbonate in three different soil profiles from different elevations decreases with soil depth indicating a decrease in the ratio of atmospheric to plantderived co 2 downprofile pedogenic carbonate at the soil air interface approaches a 13 c value in equilibrium with atmospheric co 2 in all three soils observed 13 c profiles for pedogenic carbonate can be described using a one dimensional model for 12 co 2 and 13 co 2 assuming isotopic equilibrium between soil co 2 and soil carbonate the modeled best fit to observed isotopic profiles suggests that the profile differences in part result from differing soil respiration rates at each site 13 c in deep pedogenic carbonate 50 cm varies by about 12 per mil over a 2 440 m elevation range being enriched in 13 c at the lowest elevations the slope of 13 c for these carbonates versus elevation is very similar for soils developed on carbonate and on noncarbonate parent materials depletion by 4 6 to 4 7 per mil per 1 000 m increase in altitude between 300 to 2 740 m above mean sea level for the localities studied this concordance makes it likely that there has been complete isotopic exchange between hco 3 in solution and soil co 2 prior to carbonate precipitation soil co 2 and soil respiration rates increase systematically with elevation the plantderived component of soil co 2 indicates that c 3 plants dominate the biomass at most measured sites in agreement with plant surveys calculated equilibrium fractionation factors between soil co 2 and soil carbonate are very similar to those observed again indicating complete isotopic exchange between carbon species in all the soil co 2 and soil carbonate data suggest that the 13 c variation with elevation observed in the soil carbonates results from differing soil respiration rates at each site as well as from variations in the proportion of c 3 to c 4 and cam plants in each site9s surface biomass 18 o values in pedogenic carbonates are higher at lower elevations due in part to the more positive 18 o values for meteoric waters at lower elevations the average 18 o value of deep 50 cm pedogenic carbonate at all sites however is enriched 2 4 to 3 7 per mil with respect to values we predict should be in equilibrium with the isotopic composition of local meteoric waters this suggests that evaporative isotopic enrichment of soil waters may have occurred at all elevations prior to precipitation of carbonate or that seasonal differences in the isotopic composition of meteoric waters coupled with differential infiltration may be taking place one or both of these processes also may explain the 18 o decrease in soil carbonate with depth observed in two of three soil profiles

mid holocene climatic variability reconstruction from pollen records 32 52 s argentina abstract this study reviews 42 published pollen records to gain a better understanding of holocene climate variability especially of the past displacement and location of the arid semiarid region asr between 32 and 52 s in argentina at present the asr is delimited approximately between the 500 mm isohyet in the pampa region and the 300 mm isohyet in the andean sector south of 37 s represented by arid and semiarid climate types where precipitation can be as low as 200 mm mid holocene climatic variability affected the regional vegetation patterns and the borders of the asr paleoenvironmental reconstruction is based on comparison of fossil pollen records from different depositional environments maps of distribution patterns of plant formations are reconstructed at 2000 500 year intervals from 8000 to 4000 14 c years bp vegetation changes are mainly explained by changes in the position and the seasonal amplitude of latitudinal shifts of the pacific and atlantic anticyclones and of the westerlies from 8000 to 4000 bp the eastern limit of the asr was displaced eastward the western limit reached the maximum eastward displacement in the southern extreme of patagonia at 6000 years bp at this time at the center of asr shrub steppes and the monte developed suggesting maximum dry conditions and the establishment of the arid diagonal north of 42 s while the present day espinal dry pampa ecotone became established at 4000 years bp paleodata suggest a transitional stage towards the present situation of the asr

empirical relationships between elevation and the stable isotope composition of precipitation and surface waters considerations for studies of paleoelevation change a compilation of 68 studies from throughout many of the world s mountain belts reveals an empirically consistent and linear relationship between change in elevation and change in the isotopic composition of precipitation along altitudinal transects the isotopic composition of precipitation decreases linearly with increasing elevation in most regions of the world except in the himalayas and at elevations 5000 m there are no significant differences in isotopic lapse rates from most regions of the world 0 28 permil 100 m except at the extreme latitudes where isotopic lapse rates are higher given information on past changes in the isotopic composition of precipitation preserved in pedogenic or authigenic minerals this global isotopic lapse rate can be used to place numerical constraints on the topo graphic development of some ancient mountain belts or plateaus there are many complicating factors that can confound interpretation of paleoel evation change based on stable isotopes and many of these are unique to specific mountain belts or time periods relevant to all stable isotope based paleoelevation change studies is the temperature dependent isotope fractionation between a pedo genic or authigenic mineral and the water from which it forms in cases where isotopic proxy minerals are sampled from localities where temperature will change simulta neously with elevation change the apparent change in the isotopic composition of precipitation may be dampened by several permil this suggests that samples taken from the rainshadow side of an emerging orographic barrier may be more likely to preserve isotopic changes resulting from mountain uplift than samples taken from atop a rising mountain range or plateau

influence of climate change and uplift on colorado plateau paleotemperatures from carbonate clumped isotope thermometry the elevation history of earth s surface is key to understanding the geodynamic processes responsible for the rise of plateaus we investigate the timing of colorado plateau uplift by estimating depositional temperatures of tertiary lake sediments that blanket the plateau interior and adjacent lowlands using carbonate clumped isotope paleothermometry a measure of the temperature dependent enrichment of 13 c 18 o bonds in carbonates comparison of modern and ancient samples deposited near sea level provides an opportunity to quantify the influence of climate and therefore assess the contribution of changes in elevation to the variations of surface temperature on the plateau analysis of modern lake calcite from 350 to 3300 m elevation in the southwestern united states reveals a lake water carbonate temperature lct lapse rate of 4 2 0 6 c km analysis of miocene deposits from 88 to 1900 m elevation in the colorado river drainage suggests that the ancient lct lapse rate was 4 1 0 7 c km and temperatures were 7 7 2 0 c warmer at any one elevation than predicted by the modern trend the inferred cooling is plausible in light of pliocene temperature estimates off the coast of california and the consistency of lapse rates through time supports the interpretation that there has been little or no elevation change for any of the samples since 6 ma together with previous paleorelief estimates from apatite u th he data from the grand canyon our results suggest most or all of the plateau s lithospheric buoyancy was acquired 80 60 ma and do not support explanations that ascribe most plateau uplift to oligocene or younger disposal of either the farallon or north american mantle lithosphere

clumped isotope paleotemperatures from mis 5 soil carbonates in southern hungary abstract quantitative paleotemperature reconstructions for the continents including east central europe over marine isotope stage 5 mis 5 and specifically the last interglacial lig mis 5e are scarce and mostly based on pollen assemblages here we provide soil and air temperature reconstructions for the summer season of mis 5e 5c using carbonate clumped isotope thermometry applied to soil carbonate concretions in the dunaszekcs loess paleosol record southern hungary the sediments making up the s1 pedocomplex investigated represent the mis 5 as demonstrated by bracketing k feldspar post ir irsl225 290 ages of 63 to 164 ka both the absolute ages and pedogenic susceptibility p curve indicate that all the subtages of mis 5 were found to be recorded in the sequence and soil carbonates found 1 m depth below the paleosurface of the s1 soil provide pristine undisturbed isotopic signals the soil carbonate concretions likely formed during mis 5e at a relatively shallow 20 50 cm depth but a later formation during mis 5c at 50 cm depth is also plausible clumped isotope based soil temperatures st 47sc ranged from 16 to 20 c and reconstructed summer season air temperatures sats for the lig are consistently lower than the modern values at the site by 1 5 c matching surprisingly well the soil bacteria membrane lipid based mis 5e air temperature estimates from a nearby serbian site at the same time the reconstructed sat values do not match the 2 4 c positive warm season anomalies modeled for east central europe between lig and present day in paleoclimate simulations st uncertainties of 1 6 c infiltration driven cooling of soil temperatures and the possibility of mis 5c formation of the investigated carbonates may account for this proxy model data discrepancy oxygen isotope compositions of summer season paleo rainwaters for mis 5e 5c as reconstructed using the st 47sc and 18osc data of soil carbonates were found in a range of 6 7 and 6 4 matching the modern mean summer season value of 6 2 0 94 within error

high times on the tibetan plateau paleoelevation of the thakkhola graben nepal east west extension in the tibetan plateau is generally assumed to have resulted from gravitational collapse following thickening and uplift on the basis of this assumption several studies have dated east west extensional structures to determine when the plateau attained its current high elevation however independent estimates of elevation are needed to determine whether extension occurred before during or after the plateau achieved its current elevation because the isotopic composition of meteoric water decreases with increasing elevation significant change in local elevation throughout the thakkhola graben depositional history should be recorded by change in 18 o values of fluvial and lacustrine carbonates the 18 o values of 16 to 23 of thakkhola graben carbonates reflect meteoric water values similar to modern values and suggest that the southern tibetan plateau attained its current elevation prior to eastwest extension initiation of thakkhola graben extension is constrained between 10 and 11 ma based on magnetostratigraphy of the older tetang formation the 13 c values of soil carbonates suggest an age younger than 8 ma for the base of the thakkhola formation

high resolution marine record of climatic change in mid latitude chile during the last 28 000 years based on terrigenous sediment parameters abstract marine sediment cores from the continental slope off mid latitude chile 33 s were studied with regard to grain size distributions and clay mineral composition the data provide a 28 000 yr14c accelerator mass spectrometry dated record of variations in the terrigenous sediment supply reflecting modifications of weathering conditions and sediment source areas in the continental hinterland these variations can be interpreted in terms of the paleoclimatic evolution of mid latitude chile and are compared to existing terrestrial records glacial climates 28 000 18 000 cal yr b p were generally cold humid with a cold semiarid interval between 26 000 and 22 000 cal yr b p the deglaciation was characterized by a trend toward more arid conditions during the middle holocene 8000 4000 cal yr b p comparatively stable climatic conditions prevailed with increased aridity in the coastal range the late holocene 4000 0 cal yr b p was marked by more variable paleoclimates with generally more humid conditions variations of rainfall in mid latitude chile are most likely controlled by shifts of the latitudinal position of the southern westerlies compared to the holocene the southern westerly wind belt was located significantly farther north during the last glacial maximum less important variations of the latitudinal position of the southern westerlies also occurred on shorter time scales

high temperature environments of human evolution in east africa based on bond ordering in paleosol carbonates many important hominid bearing fossil localities in east africa are in regions that are extremely hot and dry although humans are well adapted to such conditions it has been inferred that east african environments were cooler or more wooded during the pliocene and pleistocene when this region was a central stage of human evolution here we show that the turkana basin kenya today one of the hottest places on earth has been continually hot during the past 4 million years the distribution of 13c 18o bonds in paleosol carbonates indicates that soil temperatures during periods of carbonate formation were typically above 30 c and often in excess of 35 c similar soil temperatures are observed today in the turkana basin and reflect high air temperatures combined with solar heating of the soil surface these results are specific to periods of soil carbonate formation and we suggest that such periods composed a large fraction of integrated time in the turkana basin if correct this interpretation has implications for human thermophysiology and implies a long standing human association with marginal environments

co2 drawdown and cooling at the onset of the great oxidation event recorded in 2 45 ga paleoweathering crust abstract the archean atmosphere is thought to have been devoid of oxygen but instead containing high concentrations of greenhouse gases such as co2 and possibly ch4 that were required to keep the earth surface environments warm enough for maintenance of liquid water under faint young sun conditions earlier studies have suggested that the co2 concentrations must have been as high as over 1000 times present atmospheric levels pal to overcome the effects of weaker solar luminosity however more recent studies of precambrian paleosols imply existence of at least tenfold lower but still high pco2 levels the appearance of minute amounts of atmospheric o2 at the transition of archean and proterozoic is well documented however the bulk composition of the atmosphere and its dynamics at this crucial time is still widely debated different paleoclimate proxies of the 2 45 ga kuksha paleoweathering crust suggest its formation in a cool temperate climate paleoatmospheric pco2 estimates by geochemical and isotopic mass balance models suggest remarkably low paleoatmospheric co2 levels with the best guess estimates of atmospheric co2 between 1 and 10 pal we speculate that the kuksha paleoweathering crust either predates or partly overlaps with the onset of huronian glaciation and corresponds to a time interval of low co2 level during the first recorded large glaciation in earth history

the stable isotope altimeter do quaternary pedogenic carbonates predict modern elevations stable isotope altimetry is a useful tool for estimating paleoelevation in sedimentary records yet questions remain regarding how source moisture climate and local topography can influence these estimates here we present stable isotope altimetry results on late quaternary pedogenic carbonates of known elevation on both flanks of the andean orogen at 33 s we measured 18 o values of pedogenic carbonates and river water samples from small drainages at regular elevation increments within the rio aconcagua chile and rio mendoza argentina catchments the 18 o values of river waters correlate well with elevation and show similar isotopic gradients between the chilean 3 7 km and argentine 4 8 km sides of the range uncertainties associated with scatter in the river water data and assumptions about the temperature of carbonate formation indicate that elevation estimates have 1 errors of 350 450 m we estimate the isotopic composition of soil water from pedogenic carbonates on both sides of the range by assuming mean annual temperatures based the modern temperature lapse rate from meteorological station data combined our data show that stable isotope altimetry produces reasonable estimates of modern elevation with the majority of our samples 60 within the 1 uncertainties and 77 within 2

microbial precipitation of pedogenic calcite pedogenic calcite in desert soils has become increasingly important as an indicator of paleoclimate landscape stability and landscape age this study indicates that calcic and petrocalcic horizons in desert soils are not simply the result of inorganic precipitation of calcite soil microorganisms were found to be involved in calcite precipitation in a typical desert soil near las cruces new mexico fossilized remains of calcified fungal hyphae and microcodium structures are abundant in the petrocalcic horizon soil bacteria and fungi precipitated calcite when cultured on a ca rich medium in an experiment where soil columns were irrigated with ca rich solutions calcite formed in soils containing soil microorganisms but no calcite formed in sterile soils thus biomineralization of calcite by soil microorganisms appears to be an important mechanism of unknown magnitude

the clumped isotope geothermometer in soil and paleosol carbonate we studied both modern soils and buried paleosols in order to understand the relationship of temperature t c 47 estimated from clumped isotope compositions 47 of soil carbonates to actual surface and burial temperatures carbonates from modern soils with differing rainfall seasonality were sampled from arizona nevada tibet pakistan and india t c 47 obtained from these soils shows that soil carbonate forms in the warmest months of the year in the late morning to afternoon and probably in response to intense soil dewatering t c 47 obtained from modern soil carbonate ranges from 10 8 to 39 5 c on average t c 47 exceeds mean annual temperature by 10 15 c due to summertime bias in soil carbonate formation and to summertime ground heating by incident solar radiation secondary controls on t c 47 are soil depth and shading site mean annual air temperature maat across a broad range 0 30 c of site temperatures is highly correlated with t c 47 from soils following the equation maat c 1 20 t c 47 0 21 72 r 2 0 92 where t c 47 0 is the effective air temperature at the site estimated from t c 47 the effective air temperature represents the air temperature required to account for the t c 47 at each site after consideration of variations in t c 47 with soil depth and ground heating the highly correlated relationship in this equation should now permit mean annual temperature in the past to be reconstructed from t c 47 in paleosol carbonate assuming one is studying paleosols that formed in environments generally similar in seasonality and ground cover to our calibration sites t c 47 0 decreases systematically with elevation gain in the himalaya following the equation elevation m 229 t c 47 0 9300 r 2 0 95 assuming that temperature varied similarly with elevation in the past this equation can be used to reconstruct paleoelevation from clumped isotope analysis of ancient soil carbonates we also measured t c 47 from long sequences of deeply buried 5 km paleosol carbonate in the himalayan foreland in order to evaluate potential diagenetic resetting of clumped isotope composition we found that paleosol carbonate faithfully records plausible soil t c 47 down to 2 5 4 km burial depth or 90 125 c deeper than this and above this temperature t c 47 in paleosol carbonate is reset to temperatures 40 c we observe 40 c as the upper limit for t c 47 in modern soils from soil depths 25 cm and therefore that t c 47 40 c obtained from ancient soil carbonate indicates substantially warmer climate regimes compared to the present or non primary temperatures produced by resetting during diagenesis if representative this limits the use of t c 47 to reconstruct ancient surface temperature to modestly buried 3 4 km paleosol carbonates despite diagenetic resetting of 47 values 18 o and 13 c values of the same deeply buried paleosol carbonate appear unaltered we conclude that solid state reordering or recrystallization of clumping of carbon and oxygen isotopes can occur in the absence of open system exchange of paleosol carbonate with significant quantities of water or other phases

magnetic polarity stratigraphy provenance and paleoclimate analysis of cenozoic strata in the qaidam basin ne tibetan plateau

a new approach to stable isotope based paleoaltimetry implications for paleoaltimetry and paleohypsometry of the high himalaya since the late miocene the change in oxygen isotopic composition of precipitation is modeled using equilibrium fractionation during rayleigh distillation linked to the thermodynamics of atmospheric ascent and water vapor condensation the primary controllers of the vertical variation in isotopic composition with elevation are the low elevation temperature and relative humidity as these control the vertical distribution of condensation an empirical fit of precipitation versus model condensation based on alpine stations is derived this fit is represented in the model as the weighted mean composition of condensation within a 1000 m thick air parcel 1500 500 m above the ground surface and is used for all other regions comparison of model versus observed modern precipitation reveals a close fit particularly of more highly elevated sites comparison of modern waters in the himalayas and southern tibet with model predictions particularly as revealed by comparison of observed and predicted hypsometry provides additional support to the validity of the model finally application of this model to estimates of paleo waters in the himalayas and southern tibet reveals that this region had already achieved its present hypsometry by the late miocene about 10 ma ago fl 2001 published by elsevier science b v

hot or not impact of seasonally variable soil carbonate formation on paleotemperature and o isotope records from clumped isotope thermometry quantifying the timing and temperature of soil carbonate formation is important for interpreting isotopic records of earth surface temperature and soil water composition from paleosols pedogenic carbonates typically have been assumed to form at mean annual temperature but recent work suggests warm season bias in carbonate formation could impact the interpretation of d 18 o values and carbonate

refining a pedogenic carbonate co2 paleobarometer to quantify a middle miocene greenhouse spike abstract estimates of respired soil co2 concentration in paleosols are needed to calculate past atmospheric co2 levels from the difference between organic and carbonate carbon isotopic values in paleosols a new compilation of co2 concentrations late in the growing season in modern calcareous soils can be used to estimate respired soil co2 by subtracting atmospheric co2 concentrations furthermore respired co2 shows a significant relationship with depth to calcic horizon and this relationship can be used to estimate respired co2 concentrations in paleosols these values as well as estimates of 13c of atmospheric co2 from 13c of soil organic matter and of paleotemperature from bw horizon chemical composition refine the cerling co2 paleobarometer these refinements are applied to quantify the middle miocene greenhouse which has been controversial because it was not detected by marine alkenone and boron paleobarometers new estimates of middle miocene atmospheric co2 from paleosols in railroad canyon idaho reveal levels at 16 ma of 852 86 ppmv this is similar to predicted values by 2100 and 3 times pre industrial values pil 280 ppmv

quantitative paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatic reconstruction using paleosols abstract paleosols fossil soils are preserved throughout the geologic record in depositional settings ranging from alluvial systems to between basalt flows until recently paleosols were studied using primarily qualitative methods in recent years paleopedology has shifted from a largely qualitative field based on comparisons with modern analogues to an increasingly quantitative endeavor some of this change has been a result of applying existing techniques to new materials but many of the innovations have been the result of applying new techniques to new materials including thermodynamic modeling of soil formation isotope geochemistry and applications of empirical relationships derived from modern soils a variety of semi quantitative and quantitative tools has been developed to examine past weathering and pedogenesis and to reconstruct both paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatic conditions at the time that the paleosols formed though it is often not possible to achieve the same temporal resolution as with marine records for paleoclimatic reconstructions proxies based on paleosols are potentially a much more direct means of making paleoclimatic reconstructions because soils form at the earth s surface in direct contact with the atmospheric and climatic conditions at the time of their formation paleoclimatic and environmental properties that may be reconstructed using the new proxies include provenance weathering intensity mean annual precipitation and temperature during pedogenesis nutrient fluxes into and out of the paleosols the atmospheric composition of important gases including co2 and o2 the moisture balance during pedogenesis the soil gas composition reconstructed vegetative covering and paleo altitude

the pleistocene holocene transition and human occupation in the central andes of argentina agua de la cueva locality in the central andes of argentina evidences of early human occupations come from the precordillera a low mountain system which was under periglacial conditions prior to 14 000 14c yr bp when the cordillera principal and cordillera frontal were glaciated the corridors for human migration across the andes may have opened before 13 000 14c yr bp the pleistocene holocene transition gave rise to a substantial variability of environments and consequently of natural resources for early people who found in the precordillera new ecosystems with suitable conditions for living the first human groups arrived ca 11 000 14c yr bp at agua de la cueva rockshelter located at 2900 m above sea level in the western flank of the precordillera the occurrence of raw material outcrops close to the site and the archaeofaunistic record indicate a local and likely seasonal exploitation of mountain resources these early people lived in a shrub steppe environment under cooler and probably wetter conditions in which camelids were the most important food resource since 9000 14c yr bp warmer and drier conditions were dominant except for a lower intensity of human occupations the site function of agua de la cueva seems to have remained the same

thick skinned and thin skinned thrusting in the la ramada fold and thrust belt crustal evolution of the high andes of san juan argentina 32 sl abstract the cenozoic structural evolution of the la ramada fold and thrust belt in the high andes of argentina between 32 00 s and 32 30 s shows in time and space the interaction of thin skinned and thick skinned deformations based on geometric and kinematic constraints three different deformation stages have been recognized the first began with thin skinned nnw trending structures detached in upper jurassic gypsum in the second stage the basement was involved by tectonic inversion of triassic normal faults producing a thick skinned fold and thrust belt this inversion combined with the ductile rheology of the jurassic gypsum resulted in refolding of older structures the uplift of the basement by high angle reverse faults at the ramada espinacito massif produced a sticking point in the foreland propagation of the thrust belt this was responsible for the third stage of deformation characterized by thin skinned nnw out of sequence thrusts developed in the westernmost sector the total andean shortening calculated in the area was 21 24 km near 30 the structure of the la ramada fold and thrust belt was integrated into a crustal scale cross section at 32 s latitude based on gravimetric models and surface geology a crustal model is proposed for the andes of chile and argentina a shortening of 180 km was calculated between the chile trench and the sierra de pie de palo this implies a mean deformation rate of 2 8 mm year 1 during cenozoic times an initial crustal thickness of ca 33 km was computed a two layer model with a middle detachment level is proposed to explain the spatial decoupling between maximum shortening at the surface and maximum crustal thickening the upper layer was balanced based on surface structural information the lower layer is interpreted to have been constructed by an imbricate thrust system controlled by the mercedario rift master shear and the precordillera chilenia suture

clumped isotope geochemistry the study of naturally occurring multiply substituted isotopologues clumped isotope geochemistry is concerned with the state of ordering of rare isotopes in natural materials that is it examines the extent to which rare isotopes d 13 c 15 n 18 o etc bond with or near each other rather than with the sea of light isotopes in which they swim abundances of isotopic clumps in natural materials are influenced by a wide variety of factors in most cases their concentrations approach within ca 1 relative the amount expected for a random distribution of isotopes deviations from this stochastic distribution result from enhanced thermodynamic stability of heavy isotope clumps slower kinetics of reactions requiring the breakage of bonds between heavy isotopes the mass dependence of diffusive and thermo gravitational fractionations mixing between components that differ from one another in bulk isotopic composition biochemical and photochemical fractionations that may reflect combinations of these simpler physical mechanisms and in some cases other processes we do not yet understand although clumped isotope geochemistry is a young field several seemingly promising applications have already emerged most importantly it appears that proportions of 13 c 18 o bonds in carbonate minerals are sensitive to their growth temperatures independent of bulk isotopic composition thus clumped isotope analysis of ancient carbonates can be used as a quantitative paleothermometer that requires no assumptions about the 18 o of waters from which carbonates grew this approach has been used to reconstruct marine temperatures across the phanerozoic reaching back to the silurian terrestrial ground temperatures across the cenozoic thermal histories of aqueously altered meteorites among other applications clumped isotope geochemistry is also placing new constraints on the atmospheric budget and stratospheric photochemistry of co 2 and should be capable of placing analogous new constraints on the budgets of other atmospheric gases finally this field could be extended to encompass sulfates volatile hydrocarbons organic moieties and other materials

paleoelevation reconstruction using pedogenic carbonates paleoelevation reconstruction using stable isotopes although a relatively new science is making a significant contribution to our understanding of the recent growth of the world s major orogens in this review we examine the use of both light stable isotopes of oxygen and the new clumped isotope 47 carbonate thermometer in carbonates from soils globally the oxygen isotopic composition 18 o of rainfall decreases on average by about 2 8 km of elevation gain this effect of elevation will in turn be archived in the 18 o value of soil carbonates and paleoelevation can be reconstructed provided 1 temperature of formation can be estimated 2 the effects of evaporation are small 3 the effects of climate change can be accounted for and 4 the isotopic composition of the carbonate is not diagenetically altered we review data from modern soils to evaluate some of these issues and find that evaporation commonly elevates 18 o values of carbonates in deserts an effect that would lead to underestimates of paleoelevation some assessment of paleoaridity using qualitative indicators or carbon isotopes from soil carbonate is therefore useful in evaluating the oxygen isotope based estimates of paleoelevation sampling from deep 50 cm in paleosols helps reduce the uncertainties arising from seasonal temperature fluctuations and from evaporation the new clumped isotope 47 carbonate thermometer expressed as 47 offers an independent and potentially very powerful approach to paleoelevation reconstruction in contrast to the use of 18 o values nothing need be known about the isotopic composition of water from which carbonate grew in order to estimate of temperature of carbonate formation from 47 values using assumed temperature lapse rates with elevation paleoelevations can thereby be reconstructed case studies from the andes and tibet show how these methods can be used alone or in combination to estimate paleoelevation in both cases the potential for diagenetic alteration of primary carbonate values first has to be assessed clear examples of both preservation and alteration of primary isotopic values are available from deposits of varying ages and burial histories 47 values constitute a relatively straightforward test since any temperature in excess of reasonable surface temperatures points to diagenetic alteration for 18 o values preservation of isotopic heterogeneity between different carbonate phases offers a check on diagenesis results of these case studies show that one area of south central tibet attained elevations comparable to today by the late oligocene whereas 2 7 0 4 km of uplift occurred in the bolivian altiplano during the late miocene

quaternary glaciations in the rio mendoza valley argentine andes in the rio mendoza valley five pleistocene drifts and one holocene drift are distinguished by multiple relative age criteria including surface rock weathering development of rock varnish moraine morphology soil profile development and stratigraphic relationships several absolute ages suggest a preliminary chronology during the oldest uspallata glaciation a system of valley glaciers flowed 110 km from the andean drainage divide and 80 km from cerro aconcagua to terminate at 1850 m drift of this ice advance is older than a widespread tephra dated by fission track at 360 000 36 000 yr during the punta de vacas advance ice terminated at 2350 m while during the subsequent penitentes advance the glacier system ended at 2500 m a travertine layer overlying penitentes drift has u series age of 24 200 2000 yr b p the distribution of horcones drift which is inferred to represent the last glacial maximum delimits an independent ice stream that flowed 22 km down horcones valley to 2750 m a later readvance almacenes reached 3250 m confluencia drift is considered to be neoglacial in age and extends downvalley to 3300 m the moraine sequence is compared with those studied by caviedes 1972 along rio aconcagua on the chilean flank of the andes

paleoclimate reconstruction using carbonate clumped isotope thermometry carbonate clumped isotope thermometry is a relatively new paleotemperature proxy based on measurements of the degree of ordering of 13 c and 18 o into bonds with each other making the 13 c 18 o 16 o 2 2 ion group in lattices of carbonate minerals this technique has several unusual properties that complement existing methods of paleoclimate reconstruction most importantly it is based on a homogeneous isotope exchange equilibrium and thus constrains temperature independent of the isotopic composition of waters from which carbonates grew this method also appears to be generally insensitive to vital effects that compromise many other paleothermometers based on the chemical properties of biominerals or organic matter at least for those organisms that have been subjected to systematic study to date corals and foraminifera however discrepancies among some calibrations particularly at low temperatures may point toward the existence of vital effects in mollusks and other organisms this review discusses the principles and calibrations of the technique its uses in combination with conventional stable isotope measurements to constrain the 18 o of past waters preservation of paleotemperatures in ancient materials as well as current problems in our understanding of calibrations and interlaboratory data comparisons

development of asian monsoon revealed by marked ecological shift during the latest miocene in northern pakistan carbon isotopes from soil carbonate1 4 and soil organic matter5 6 yield palaeoecological information because the carbon in the soil carbonate forms in isotopic equilibrium with local soil co2 refs 1 7 the isotopic composition of which is in turn determined by local plant cover siwalik group sediments in northern pakistan contain a well exposed palaeosol record spanning the past 18 myr here we report on stable carbon isotope results from associated pedogenic carbonate which indicate a dramatic ecological shift from to dominated floodplain biomass beginning 7 4 7 0 myr ago the earlier c3 floodplain biomasses were probably mainly composed of trees and shrubs whereas c4 grasslands dominated in the plio pleistocene oxygen isotopes also exhibit a shift in the latest miocene probably corresponding to a major climate change which may have induced the forest to grassland transition this dramatic ecological shift in the latest miocene may mark the inception or a marked strengthening of the asian monsoon system

uplift of the central andes of nw argentina associated with upper crustal shortening revealed by multiproxy isotopic analyses this study contributes to the uplift history of the andes which has received increasing attention in recent years because of its implications for geodynamic models and climate feedbacks shortening resulting in crustal thickening and removal of gravitationally unstable mantle lithosphere has been proposed to control deformation and uplift of cordillera type orogenic systems such as the puna plateau of the central andes and its eastern margin the eastern cordillera we present new clumped isotope 47 18o and 2 data from carbonate nodules marlstone spring deposits and volcanic ashes from the puna plateau and eastern cordillera of nw argentina when combined with other geological evidence our data indicate that the puna plateau was near its present elevation since at least 10 ma whereas the eastern cordillera rose 1 5 km between 14 and 7 ma this history of uplift correlates with active shortening in the eastern cordillera and with incorporation of a regional foreland into the propagating orogenic wedge our study suggests that the elevation of the puna plateau changed little during the miocene pliocene whereas the margin experienced significant uplift associated with active deformation and crustal thickening

early to mid holocene aridity in central chile and the southern westerlies the laguna aculeo record 34 s abstract central chile 32 35 s lies at the northern border of strong westerly influence and thus exhibits a steep precipitation gradient therefore the palaeoclimatic archives in the region are suitable for detecting past moisture changes the study of laguna aculeo 33 50 s 70 54 w presents a multiproxy holocene lake record including sedimentology geochemistry mineralogy pollen diatoms and radiocarbon dating 17 dates results indicate an arid early to mid holocene period about 9500 5700 cal yr b p after 5700 cal yr b p effective moisture increased progressively and around 3200 cal yr b p modern humid conditions were established numerous intercalated clastic layers reflect flood deposition during rainy winters a fluvial unit was deposited shortly before 9000 cal yr b p subsequently flood events were absent until 5700 but have become frequent since 3200 cal yr b p the frequency of flood layers possibly points to weak or no el nino activity during the early and mid holocene with a subsequent increase during the late holocene during the early and mid holocene the westerlies were probably blocked and hence deflected southward by the subtropical high pressure cell higher precipitation during the last 3200 yr seems strongly related to a weakened subtropical high pressure cell with intensified westerlies and possibly increased el nino activity

fission track dating of the punta de vacas glaciation in the rio mendoza valley argentina abstract fission track dating of three tephra samples related to mappable drifts and non glacial sediments including alluvium in the rio mendoza valley argentina places limiting ages on the oldest two glacial events a tephra layer interstratified with fan alluvium that surrounds and cuts the outermost uspallata moraine has an age of 170 000 50 000 yr implying that the drift predates marine oxygen isotope stage ois 6 a tephra dated at 134 000 32 000 yr that was deposited on alluvial fan sediments underlies punta de vacas drift which is inferred to equate with isotope stage 6 the punta de vacas outwash which likely correlates with the rio colorado drift overlies another tephra unit that dates to 260 000 150 000 yr although the error limits of the dates preclude definitive correlations all three tephra units may have been deposited during an interval prior to the maximum advance of the punta de vacas glaciation during ois 6 or maybe in the stage 7 interglacial period

andean tectonics related to geometry of subducted nazca plate seismological and geological data show that tectonic segmentation of the andes coincides with segmentation of the subducted nazca plate which has nearly horizontal segments and 30 east dipping segments andean tectonics above a flat subducting segment between 28 s to 33 s are characterized by from west to east 1 a steady topographic rise from the coast to the crest of the andes 2 no significant quaternary and possibly neogene magmatism 3 a narrow belt of eastward migrating apparently thin skinned neogene to quaternary shortening of the andes and 4 plio pleistocene uplift of the crystalline basement on reverse faults in the pampeanas ranges from about 15 to 24 s over a 30 dipping subducted plate a west to east andes cross section includes 1 a longitudinal valley east of coastal mountains 2 an active neogene and holocene andesitic volcanic axis 3 the altiplano puna high plateau 4 a high neogene but inactive thrust belt eastern cordillera and 5 an active eastward migrating subandean thin skinned thrust belt tectonics above a steeply subducting segment south of 33 s are similar west of the volcanic axis but quite different to the east early cenozoic tectonics of western north america were quite similar to the neogene andes however duration of segmentation was longer and the width of deformation was greater in the western united states patterns of crustal seismicity are systematically related to plio quaternary structural provinces implying that current deformational processes have persisted since at least the pliocene horizontal compression parallel to the plate convergence direction is indicated to a distance of 800 km from the trench above flat subducting segments crustal seismicity occurs over a broad region whereas over steep segments it is confined to the narrow thrust belt strain patterns in the forearc region are complex and perhaps extensional and a broad region of the altiplano puna and eastern cordillera appears to be aseismic

palaeo altimetry of the late eocene to miocene lunpola basin central tibet the elevation history of the tibetan plateau provides direct insight into the tectonic processes associated with continent continent collisions here we present oxygen isotope based estimates of the palaeo altimetry of late eocene and younger deposits of the lunpola basin in the centre of the plateau which indicate that the surface of tibet has been at an elevation of more than 4 kilometres for at least the past 35 million years we conclude that crustal but not mantle thickening models combined with plate kinematic solutions of india asia convergence are compatible with palaeo elevation estimates across the tibetan plateau

possible regional tectonic controls on mammalian evolution in western north america abstract previous work has suggested that tectonically active regions act as speciation pumps for mammals and plant species but little is known about how fast or widespread tectonism must be in order to directly influence evolution here we use oxygen and hydrogen isotopic data from miocene sedimentary deposits to characterize the topographic evolution of the southern columbia plateau snake river plain and northern rocky mountain regions during the yellowstone hotspot passage with the ultimate goal of understanding whether topographic changes caused by the hotspot influenced mammalian evolution within those regions we conducted oxygen isotope analyses of 130 samples of lacustrine and paleosol carbonate from miocene stratigraphic sections that span much of the northern rocky mountain region and combined these data with previously published isotopic records collectively these isotopic data show that caldera formation associated with the yellowstone hotspot has modified regional topography and rearranged drainages along the track of the hotspot and that the hotspot has left a topographic depression in its wake we explore the extent to which these topographic changes influenced or are decoupled from diversity changes exhibited by the local mammal faunas and conclude that the passage of the hotspot and consequent surface uplift created rainshadows in the lee of high elevation calderas and or generated large volumes of volcanic materials influencing soils and vegetation collectively that may explain a possible rise in mammal diversity in the cp srp region at 14 ma coincident with a drop in diversity in the nrm it is still unclear however how different taphonomic pathways and sample standardization problems are influencing apparent diversity peaks at this temporal and geographic resolution

isotopic evidence for shifts in atmospheric circulation patterns during the late quaternary in mid north america wyoming is now at the eastern margin of westerlies originating in the pacific but in the pleistocene appears to have received moisture from elsewhere possibly the gulf of mexico oxygen isotope ratios of pedogenic carbonate in postglacial terraces correspond to ratios in equilibrium with present meteoric waters which show a strong relation to precipitation seasonality and storm sources in contrast the oxygen isotope ratios of all pre holocene soils are significantly more positive even though the carbon isotope composition of coexisting organic matter suggests that the carbonate formed in temperatures cooler than today the oxygen isotope ratios of paleowaters in mid north america appear to be more useful for identifying past storm sources than for estimating paleotemperatures

pedogenic carbonates archive modern and past precipitation change a transect study from soils and loess paleosol sequences from northern iran abstract stable carbon and oxygen isotope compositions in soil carbonates and in soil organic matter provide insights into paleo climatic conditions especially in arid and semiarid regions where carbonate is abundant in soils we here investigate 13c and 18o isotope composition of bulk carbonate pedogenic carbonate nodules and organic carbon from modern soils developed along a precipitation gradient entisol inceptisol mollisol and alfisol and paleosols formed within loess units in northern iran 13c values of organic carbon in the modern soils ranged from 19 5 in the arid and semiarid regions to 24 in the more humid regions with forest vegetation 13c values of bulk carbonate in the modern soils ranged from 12 1 at the wettest sites to 0 8 at the drier sites and thus a 550 mm increase in precipitation leads to a 11 decrease in 13c values of bulk carbonate in the modern soils 13c values of pedogenic carbonate nodules in the semiarid areas show higher values by 3 4 more than the regions with forest vegetation unlike 13c values of pedogenic carbonate nodules the 18o values of pedogenic carbonate nodules of modern soils in this study did not display pronounced changes across the sections the change in 13c of carbonates and organic carbon is consistent with the present above ground vegetation consisting of a mosaic of habitats with differences in the proportion of c3 and c4 vegetation tending to larger c4 contribution with increasing aridity the 13c values of carbonates coupled with climate data of the region confirm seasonal bias in the formation of carbonate nodules in the modern soils seen in studies elsewhere the 13c values of pedogenic carbonate nodules in the paleosols range from 10 in humid areas to 7 2 in semiarid areas the trends in 13c composition in modern soils are also visible in the 13c composition in the paleosols suggesting that in the foothills of the alborz and iranian loess plateau a precipitation gradient existed also in the last interglacial

seasonal bias in the formation and stable isotopic composition of pedogenic carbonate in modern soils from central new mexico usa in order to better calibrate pedogenic carbonate as a proxy for past environments we compared the stable isotopic composition of soil co 2 soil water and pedogenic carbonate in young soils from central new mexico usa seasonal changes in the 13 c value of soil co 2 the 18 o value of soil water and the soil temperature were monitored to establish the timing of isotopic equilibrium with the carbonate calcite solubility was calculated from measured temperatures and co 2 concentrations in the soil this approach allowed us to determine the conditions associated with pedogenic carbonate formation carbon isotope equilibrium oxygen isotope equilibrium and minimum calcite solubility all occurred simultaneously during warm dry conditions in may 2008 when soil co 2 concentrations were low it is therefore concluded that pedogenic carbonate forms during warm dry periods and does not record mean growing season conditions as typically assumed the seasonal bias in pedogenic carbonate formation may explain the occurrence of pedogenic carbonate in monsoon climates and its absence in regions where annual precipitation is more uniformly distributed the implications of the seasonal bias for stable isotope based paleoenvironmental reconstructions are that paleoelevations may have been previously over or underestimated paleoatmospheric co 2 concentrations likely have been signifi cantly overestimated and pedogenic carbonate provides a c 4 biased record of paleovegetation especially in dry soils

rapid uplift of the altiplano revealed through 13c 18o bonds in paleosol carbonates the elevation of earth s surface is among the most difficult environmental variables to reconstruct from the geological record here we describe an approach to paleoaltimetry based on independent and simultaneous determinations of soil temperatures and the oxygen isotope compositions of soil waters constrained by measurements of abundances of 13 c 18 o bonds in soil carbonates we use this approach to show that the altiplano plateau in the bolivian andes rose at an average rate of 1 03 0 12 millimeters per year between 10 3 and 6 7 million years ago this rate is consistent with the removal of dense lower crust and or lithospheric mantle as the cause of elevation gain

the paleoaltimetry of tibet an isotopic perspective stable isotopes provide a valuable perspective on the timing of elevation change of the tibetan plateau we begin our paper by looking in depth at isotopic patterns in modern tibet we show that the 18 o value of surface waters decreases systematically up the himalayan front in central nepal by about 2 8 km in agreement with the patterns documented and modeled by previous research on the tibetan plateau itself there is no apparent correlation between elevation and the 18 o value of flowing surface waters both surface waters and soil carbonates display a northward increase in 18 o values of about 1 5 north of the himalayan crest even though elevation increases modestly the isotopic increase with latitude reduces the isotope elevation gradient for water in the northernmost plateau to 1 to 2 km carbonates in both soils and lakes form at higher temperatures than assumed by previous studies on the plateau temperature estimates from clumped isotope 47 analyses of modern soil carbonates significantly exceed mean annual air t and modeled maximum summer soil temperatures by 15 8 2 8 and 9 7 2 5 c respectively similarly elevated temperatures best account for the 18 o values observed in modern soil and lake carbonates we recalculated paleoelevations from previous studies on the plateau using both higher formation temperatures and latitude corrected isotopic values with one notable exception our revised model produces paleoelevation estimates very close to previous estimates the exception is the reconstruction from late eocene age deposits at xoh xil for which we calculate elevations that are higher and much closer to the current elevation than previously reconstructed therefore there is no evidence for northward progression through time of tibetan elevation change instead the available but admittedly very scanty evidence suggests that much of tibet attained its modern elevation by the mid eocene a truly robust test of the various geodynamic models of uplift await expansion and replication of isotopic records all across tibet especially in the center and north and for 15 ma