Signature of modern meteorological and glacial lake outburst floods in fjord sediments (Baker River, Chilean Patagonia)

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dc.contributor.authorBertrand, Sen_AU
dc.contributor.authorVandekerkhove, Een_AU
dc.contributor.authorLiu, Den_AU
dc.contributor.authorRenson, Ven_AU
dc.contributor.authorKylander, MEen_AU
dc.contributor.authorSaunders, KMen_AU
dc.contributor.authorReid, Ben_AU
dc.contributor.authorTorrejón, Fen_AU
dc.date.accessioned2024-02-27T00:48:53Zen_AU
dc.date.available2024-02-27T00:48:53Zen_AU
dc.date.issued2021-12en_AU
dc.date.statistics2023-01-27en_AU
dc.description.abstractFloods are among the most destructive natural hazards on Earth. In paleohydrology, sediments are generally considered as one of the best archives to extend flood records to pre-historical timescales. Doing so requires being able to identify flood deposits from sediment archives and decipher between flood types. The latter is particularly important in glacierized regions, where meteorological floods frequently co-occur with Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs). In Patagonia, GLOFs are particularly pronounced in the Baker River watershed (48°S), where 23 events occurred between 2008 and 2020. Since 1976, the same region experienced three intense rain-on-snow events. To identify the sedimentary signature of these flood events, ten sediment cores collected in the fjord immediately downstream of the Baker River (Martínez Channel) were investigated and compared to the recent flood history of the river. Results show that sediments accumulate on the fjord head delta at 2.0 to 3.4 cm yr-1 and that GLOF deposits can be distinguished from background sediments by their finer grain size (5.98 ± 0.82 μm) and lower organic carbon content (0.31 ± 0.06%), reflecting the release and transport in suspension of high amounts of glacial rock flour. Our results also show that the rain-on-snow events that occur in summer, and therefore primarily affect the glacierized part of the watershed, have the same sedimentary signature as GLOFs. In contrast, rain-on-snow events occurring in winter have a distinct coarse and organic-rich signature, reflecting sediment input from the non-glacierized part of the watershed. In summary, this study shows that (a) GLOF deposits in fjord sediments are distinct from typical flood turbidites and are best identified by their low grain size and total organic carbon content, and (b) the sedimentary signature of rain-on-snow floods in partially glacierized watersheds depends on the season during which they occur. We anticipate that our findings will contribute to a better interpretation of flood records from partially glacierized watersheds.en_AU
dc.identifier.articlenumberPP45E-1141en_AU
dc.identifier.booktitleAGU Fall Meeting Abstractsen_AU
dc.identifier.citationBertrand, S., Vandekerkhove, E., Liu, D., Renson, V., Kylander, M. E., Saunders, K. M., Reid., B., & Torrejón, F. (2021). Signature of modern meteorological and glacial lake outburst floods in fjord sediments (Baker River, Chilean Patagonia). Poster presented to the AGU Fall Meeting 2021, New Orleans, Louisiana and Online, 13-17 December 2021. In AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts (Vol. 2021, PP45E-1141). Retrieved from: https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm21/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/888574en_AU
dc.identifier.conferenceenddate2021-12-17en_AU
dc.identifier.conferencenameAGU Fall Meeting 2021en_AU
dc.identifier.conferenceplaceNew Orleans, Louisiana and Onlineen_AU
dc.identifier.conferencestartdate2021-12-13en_AU
dc.identifier.urihttps://agu.confex.com/agu/fm21/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/888574en_AU
dc.identifier.urihttps://apo.ansto.gov.au/handle/10238/15439en_AU
dc.identifier.volume2021en_AU
dc.language.isoenen_AU
dc.publisherAmerican Geophysical Union (AGU)en_AU
dc.subjectGlaciersen_AU
dc.subjectLakesen_AU
dc.subjectFloodsen_AU
dc.subjectChileen_AU
dc.subjectRiversen_AU
dc.subjectSedimentsen_AU
dc.subjectWatershedsen_AU
dc.titleSignature of modern meteorological and glacial lake outburst floods in fjord sediments (Baker River, Chilean Patagonia)en_AU
dc.typeConference Posteren_AU
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