Browsing by Author "Sloss, CR"

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    14.30 An introduction to dating techniques: a guide for geomorphologists
    (Elsevier, 2013-01-01) Sloss, CR; Westaway, KE; Hua, Q; Murray-Wallace, CV
    This chapter provides researchers with a guide to some of the types of dating techniques that can be used in geo- morphological investigations and issues that need to be addressed when using geochronological data, specifically issues relating to accuracy and precision. This chapter also introduces the ‘types’ of dating methods that are commonly used in geomorphological studies. This includes sidereal, isotopic, radiogenic, and chemical dating methods. © 2013 Elsevier Inc.
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    Anatomy of sand beach ridges: evidence from severe Tropical Cyclone Yasi and its predecessors, northeast Queensland, Australia
    (American Geophysical Union., 2013-09-01) Nott, J; Chagué-Goff, C; Goff, JR; Sloss, CR; Riggs, N
    Four well-identified tropical cyclones over the past century have been responsible for depositing distinct units of predominantly quartzose sand and gravel to form the most seaward beach ridge at several locations along the wet tropical coast of northeast Queensland, Australia. These units deposited by tropical cyclones display a key sedimentary signature characterized by a sharp basal erosional contact, a coarser grain size than the underlying facies and a coarse-skewed trend toward the base. Coarse-skewed distributions with minimal change in mean grain size also characterize the upper levels of the high-energy deposited units at locations within the zone of maximum onshore winds during the tropical cyclone. These same coarse skew distributions are not apparent in sediments deposited at locations where predominantly offshore winds occurred during the cyclone, which in the case of northeast Australia is north of the eye-crossing location. These sedimentary signatures, along with the geochemical indicators and the degraded nature of the microfossil assemblages, have proven to be useful proxies to identify storm-deposited units within the study site and can also provide useful proxies in older beach ridges where advanced pedogenesis has obscured visual stratigraphic markers. As a consequence, more detailed long-term histories of storms and tropical cyclones can now be developed.© 2013, American Geophysical Union.
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    Contrasting sedimentation rates in Lake Illawarra and St Georges Basin, two large barrier estuaries on the southeast coast of Australia
    (Springer, 2011-12-01) Sloss, CR; Jones, BG; Brooke, BP; Heijnis, H; Murray-Wallace, CV
    Sedimentation rates over the last 100 years within two lagoons on the southeast coast of Australia, Lake Illawarra and St Georges Basin, have been quantified to determine the effects of catchment land use change and native vegetation clearance on infill rates, and spatial variations in the rate at which the estuaries have filled. Both catchments have similar lake and catchment area but have experience different degrees of modification due to land clearing for agriculture practices, urbanisation and industrialisation. Results indicate that in the heavily modified catchment of Lake Illawarra sedimentation rates close to fluvial deltas can be in excess of 16 mm/year, and between 2 and 4 mm/year in the adjacent central basin. This is approximately an order of magnitude greater than the pre-European rates. In contrast, at St Georges Basin, where the catchment has experienced much less modification, sedimentation rates in the central basin appear to have remained close to those prior to European settlement. However, sedimentation rates in the urbanized margin of St Georges Basin are relatively high (up to 4.4 mm/year). This rapid modern sedimentation in the margin of the estuarine embayments has been detected in several other estuaries in the region. However the degree of sedimentation within the bay-head deltas, and more significantly in the central basin appears proportional to the degree clearance of native vegetation (forest) in the catchment, urban expansion and development of heavy industry in the respective catchment areas. © 2011, Springer.
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    Environmental context for late holocene human occupation of the South Wellesley Archipelago, Gulf of Carpentaria, northern Australia
    (Elsevier, 2015-10-22) Moss, PT; Mackenzie, LL; Ulm, S; Sloss, CR; Rosendahl, D; Petherick, LM; Steinberger, L; Wallis, LA; Heijnis, H; Petchey, F; Jacobsen, GE
    A 2400 year record of environmental change is reported from a wetland on Bentinck Island in the southern Gulf of Carpentaria, northern Australia. Three phases of wetland development are identified, with a protected coastal setting from ca. 2400 to 500 years ago, transitioning into an estuarine mangrove forest from ca. 500 years ago to the 1940s, and finally to a freshwater swamp over the past +60 years. This sequence reflects the influence of falling sea-levels, development of a coastal dune barrier system, prograding shorelines, and an extreme storm (cyclone) event. In addition, there is clear evidence of the impacts that human abandonment and resettlement have on the island's fire regimes and vegetation. A dramatic increase in burning and vegetation thickening was observed after the cessation of traditional Indigenous Kaiadilt fire management practices in the 1940s, and was then reversed when people returned to the island in the 1980s. In terms of the longer context for human occupation of the South Wellesley Archipelago, it is apparent that the mangrove phase provided a stable and productive environment that was conducive for human settlement of this region over the past 1000 years. © 2015 Published by Elsevier Ltd.
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    Extended residence times for foraminifera in a marine-influenced terrestrial archaeological deposit and implications for palaeoenvironmental reconstruction
    (Elsevier, 2016-02-01) Nagel, T; Rosendahl, D; Hua, Q; Moss, PT; Sloss, CR; Petchey, F; Ulm, S
    Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon dating and taphonomic grading was undertaken on foraminifera preserved in the archaeological shell matrix site of Thundiy, Bentinck Island, southern Gulf of Carpentaria, Australia. Foraminifera were assigned to one of six taphonomic grades ranging from pristine to severely abraded. AMS dating demonstrates a weak relationship between preservation status and age. Foraminifera ages are inconsistent with multiple ages on marine shell from the same deposit implying significant sediment transport system residence ages (the time between death of the organism and final deposition) for foraminifera in the deposit. Results demonstrate that foraminifera cannot be assumed to be contemporary with other components of the sedimentary context in which they occur, indicating that caution is required in interpreting chronologies and palaeoenvironmental records based on foraminifera recovered from highly dynamic depositional settings. Findings point to the potential of foraminifera AMS dating of coastal archaeological deposits to contribute to evaluations of site integrity and chrono-stratigraphic analyses. © 2015, Elsevier Ltd.
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    Holocene sea-level change and coastal landscape evolution in the southern Gulf of Carpentaria, Australia
    (SAGE, 2018-09-01) Sloss, CR; Nothdurft, L; Hua, Q; O'Connor, SG; Moss, PT; Rosendahl, D; Petherick, LM; Nanson, RA; Mackenzie, LL; Sternes, A; Jacobsen, GE; Ulm, S
    A revised Holocene sea-level history for the southern Gulf of Carpentaria is presented based on new data from the South Wellesley Archipelago and age recalibration of previous research. Results confirm that rising sea levels during the most recent post-glacial marine transgression breached the Arafura Sill ca. 11,700 cal. yr BP. Sea levels continued to rise to ca. –30 m by 10,000 cal. yr BP, leading to full marine conditions. By 7700 cal. yr BP, sea-level reached present mean sea-level (PMSL) and continued to rise to an elevation of between 1.5 m and 2 m above PMSL. Sea level remained ca. + 1.5 between 7000 and 4000 cal. yr BP, followed by rapid regression to within ± 0.5 m of PMSL by ca. 3500 cal. yr BP. When placed into a wider regional context results from this study show that coastal landscape evolution in the tropical north of Australia was not only dependent on sea-level change but also show a direct correlation with Holocene climate variability. Specifically, the formation and preservation of beach-rock deposits, intertidal successions, beach and chenier ridge systems hold valuable sea-level and Holocene climate proxies that can contribute to the growing research into lower latitude Holocene sea-level and climate histories. © The Author(s) 2018
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    Holocene sea-level change and coastal landscape evolution in the southern Gulf of Carpentaria, Australia
    (International Union for Quaternary Research (INQUA), 2019-07-30) Sloss, CR; Northdurft, L; Hua, Q; O'Connor, SG; Moss, PT; Rosendahl, D; Petherick, LM; Nanson, RA; Mackenzie, LL; Sternes, A; Jacobsen, GE; Ulm, S
    A Holocene sea-level history for the southern Gulf of Carpentaria has been constructed based on a review of previously published data, combined with data collected for this study from a variety of sea-level proxies. These sea-level proxies include beach ridges, claypans, mangrove swamps, fossilized in situcoral reefs, beachrock and aeolinite deposits. Results confirm that rising sea-levels during the last Post-Glacial Marine transgression beached the Arafura Sill ca. 11,700 years ago (-53 m), resulting in a change from lacustrine to a marine environment. Sea levels continued to rise to ca. -30 m by 10,000 years ago. By 7,700 cal. yr BP sea-level reached PMSL and continued to rise an elevation of between 1.5 and 2 m above present mean sea-level by 7,000 years ago. Elevated sea levels resulted in the development of raised coral reefs, beach-rock and aeolinite deposits, and the initiation of chenier plains and beach ridges. Sea-level remained ca. +1.5 m above PMSL during the Holocene highstand, accompanied by distinct phases of beach-ridge and chenier plain development. The highstand was followed by arapid regression to within ±0.5 m of PMSL by ca. 3,500 cal. yr BP. When placed into a wider regional context results from this study show thatcoastal landscape evolution in the tropical north of Australia was not only dependenton sea-level change but also show a direct correlation with Holocene climatevariability. Specifically, the formation and preservation of beach-rock deposits,intertidal successions, beach and chenier ridge systems hold valuable sea-level and Holoceneclimate proxies that can contribute to the growing research into lowerlatitude Holocene sea-level and climate histories. ©2019 The Authors.
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    Tropical Cyclone Yasi and its predecessors
    (Australian Tsunami Research Centre, 2011-02-01) Chagué-Goff, C; Goff, JR; Dominey-Howes, D; Nott, J; Sloss, CR; Shaw, W; Law, L