Tracking abrupt climatic changes of the Holocene using organic sediments from NE Australia
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Date
2019-07-30
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International Union for Quaternary Research (INQUA)
Abstract
Sediment cores recovered from Bromfield maar provide a continuous, high resolution record of climate variability through the Holocene for northeastern Australia. X-ray fluorescence (XRF-Itrax) is used in the generation of a long-term record of relative precipitation, supported by a suite of established proxies including humification, macrocharcoal and pollen. Together, these proxy data allow precise identification of wet and dry shifts in a sedimentary sequence comprised of laminated organic-rich muds, gyttja and peat. In this presentation we describe and provide new interpretations on changes in the Early Holocene as recorded at Bromfield maar, with particular emphasis on laminated organic-rich muds at 4.80m (9.2 ka) and 4.42m (8.3 ka). Additional changes are detected in the Late Holocene peat sequence at 1.37m (2.9 ka) and 1.28m (1.5 ka).
Abrupt climate change events as identified in this study are significant as they allow the correlation of sedimentary records from sites throughout the wet tropics of Australia. The detection of these abrupt climate events also signals possible correlation with records from terrestrial sites across the Southern Hemisphere and potentially, the Northern Hemisphere. Such correlations may prove useful in demonstrating teleconnections, linking climates at a global scale.
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Keywords
Climatic change, Quaternary period, Sediments, Australia, X-ray fluorescence analysis, Pollen, Data, Peat
Citation
Burrows, M., Heijnis, H., Haberle, S., & Gadd, P. (2019). Tracking abrupt climatic changes of the Holocene using organic sediments from NE Australia. Paper presented to the 20th INQUA Congress 25th - 31st July 2019, Dublin, Ireland. Retrieved from: https://virtual.oxfordabstracts.com/#/event/public/574/submission/620