Holocene environmental changes in central Inner Mongolia revealed by luminescence dating of sediments from the Sala Us River valley

Abstract

Luminescence dating of the fluvial and lacustrine sediments from the Sala Us River valley at the south edge of the Mu Us Desert, central Inner Mongolia, is reported. The study region lies in the northwestern marginal zone of the east Asian summer monsoon and is sensitive to climate change. The dating results combined with environmental proxies indicate that the Holocene Climate Optimum period, took place from 8.5 to 5 ka ago and was marked by lake development. After ~5 ka ago, the region became arid, as inferred from lake regression and fluvial activity. Deposition of fluvial sediments lasted from ~5 ka to ~2 ka ago. At about 2 ka ago, incision of the Sala Us River was initiated into the underlying sediments, with a down-cutting rate of ~3–4 cm/yr. Since 2 ka ago, human activities also played an important role in causing environmental change in the region.

Underlying causes of Eurasian midcontinental aridity in simulations of mid‐Holocene climate

“…Lake status is an index of the water balance (precipitation minus evaporation) over the lake and its catchment. Lake histories produced since the publication of the GLSDB have also been compiled and are included in our analyses—see the supporting information for details [ Bird et al ., ; Boomer et al ., ; Chen et al ., ; Chawchai et al ., ; Chen et al ., ; Ferronskii et al ., ; Fowell et al ., ; Gasse et al ., ; Grunert et al ., ; Kong et al ., ; Heinecke et al ., ; Herzschuh et al ., ; Hodell et al ., ; Huang et al ., , ; Jiang et al ., ; Jiang and Liu , ; Li and Morrill , ; Li et al ., , , ; Long et al ., ; Madsen et al ., ; Mathis et al ., ; Mingram et al ., ; Morinaga et al ., ; Morrill et al ., ; Pan et al ., ; Peck et al ., ; Penny et al ., ; Prokopenko et al ., ; Rades et al ., ; Ricketts et al ., ; Schwanghart et al ., ; Shen et al ., ; Sheng et al ., ; Wang et al ., ; Wang and Ji , ; Wünnemann et al ., , ; Xiao et al ., ; Yang et al ., ; Zhang et al ., , ; Zhao et al ., , , ; Zhou et al ., ]. BIOME 6000 provides pollen‐based reconstructions of vegetation for the MH [ Prentice et al ., ; Bigelow et al ., ], and the reconstructions for Eurasia have been updated by Binney et al .…”

“…Lake status is an index of the water balance (precipitation minus evaporation) over the lake and its catchment. Lake histories produced since the publication of the GLSDB have also been compiled and are included in our analyses-see the supporting information for details [Bird et al, 2014;Boomer et al, 2000;Chen et al, 2008;Chawchai et al, 2013;Chen et al, 2003;Ferronskii et al, 2003;Fowell et al, 2003;Gasse et al, 1996;Grunert et al, 2000;Kong et al, 2007;Heinecke et al, 2016;Herzschuh et al, 2004;Hodell et al, 1999;Huang et al, 2009Huang et al, , 2014Li and Morrill, 2010;Li et al, 2011Li et al, , 2014aLi et al, , 2014bLong et al, 2012;Madsen et al, 2008;Mathis et al, 2012;Mingram et al, 2004;Morinaga et al, 1993;Morrill et al, 2006;Pan et al, 2012;Peck et al, 2002;Penny et al, 1996;Prokopenko et al, 2007;Rades et al, 2015;Ricketts et al, 2001;Schwanghart et al, 2008;Shen et al, 2005;Sheng et al, 2017;Wang et al, 2017;Wang and Ji, 1995;Wünnemann et al, 2003Wünnemann et al, , 2006Xiao et al, 2008;Yang et ...…”

Late Quaternary faulting on the Manas and Hutubi reverse faults in the northern foreland basin of Tian Shan, China

“…sandy deposits from deserts in northeast China and loess deposits from Chinese Loess Plateau (e.g. Li et al, 2002Li et al, , 2007Li et al, , 2012Sun et al, 2006;Li and Fan, 2011;Fu et al, 2012;Gong et al, 2013). OSL dating has also been applied to study the faulting at different fault zones (e.g.…”

Landscape Response to Climate and Human Impact in Western China During the Han Dynasty

“…Here, man's impact was clearly identified. Further in the southeastern part of the Mu Us Desert, studies by Li et al (2011) and Liu and Lai (2012) implied a drastic change from long-term sediment accumulation to rapid incision of the Salawusu River by 60 m since 2000 or 1750 a BP. Other rivers on the Chinese Loess Plateau have late Pleistocene and older terraces, and apparently significantly lower erosion rates (Qiu et al 2014).…”