Long-term Pleistocene aridification and possible linkage to high-latitude forcing: New evidence from grain size and magnetic susceptibility proxies from loess-paleosol record in northeastern China

Zeng, Lin; Lu, Huayu; Yi, Su; Stevens, Thomas; Xu, Zhiwei; Zhuo, H T; Yu, Kaifeng; Zhang, Hanzhi

doi:10.1016/j.catena.2017.02.020

Cited by 31 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 88 publications

(137 reference statements)

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“…These researches provide a chronological framework for further paleoclimatic and provenance studies of loess. Moreover, Zeng et al (2017) demonstrated that the grain-size variability of the NYZG section was characterized by a long-term coarsening upward trend since 1.0 Ma, punctuated by two significant abrupt coarsening events, at~0.65 Ma and~0.3 Ma. This grain-size variability could be the result of either a dust provenance shift, climate change, or the combination of both.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…Northeastern (NE) China is an integral part of the East Asian monsoon region, and it contains extensive and thick loess deposits which represent deposition at the eastern end of the Eurasian loess belt (Fig. 1a) (Zeng et al, 2017). Long and continuous paleoclimatic records from these deposits are extremely scarce, yet there are several reasons why such records would be of high scientific value.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Provenance of loess deposits and stepwise expansion of the desert environment in NE China since ~1.2 Ma: Evidence from Nd-Sr isotopic composition and grain-size record

Zeng

Zhang

et al. 2020

Global and Planetary Change

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The Quaternary wind-blown Chinese loess-paleosol sequence, which developed as a product of the intensification of Northern Hemisphere glacial-interglacial cycles, is a major source of information on aridification of the Asian interior. In northeastern (NE) China, extensive loess deposits occur that have great potential for reconstructing the long-term paleoclimatic evolution of the region. Despite existing geochemical data indicate that the probable major source areas for these loess deposits were the nearby Horqin and Otindag deserts, it is still unclear that whether there was a long-term change in the detrital source of these loess deposits. In addition, the aridity history and long-term desert evolution of NE China are currently poorly understood. In the present study, we measured the silicate Nd and Sr isotopic composition of the 28-45 μm grain-size fraction from multiple loess sections (NYZG, SBH, and TDJZ). The results show that the loess deposits of the three sites were dominantly sourced from the Otindag sandy desert and that this source remained constant for the past 1.2 Ma. Notably, the 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios are influenced mainly by variations in the content of clay-sized material present in the form of aggregates or adhering to the surface of coarser particles. Therefore, caution is needed in the use of 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios of the 28-45 μm fraction as a tracer of eolian dust, when the clay minerals are not completely removed during the pretreatment process. The grain-size variability of the three sections indicates that stepwise enhancement of aridification in the Otindag sandy desert occurred at 1.2 Ma, 0.9 Ma, and 0.7 Ma, which coincided respectively with the beginning of the Mid-Pleistocene transition (MPT), an extremely cold event at~0.9 Ma within the MPT, and the establishment of a full glacial climate at the termination of the MPT. This finding supports the hypothesis that the growth of high-latitude ice sheets was the major driver of the long-term aridification of Asian dust source areas.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Provenance of loess deposits and stepwise expansion of the desert environment in NE China since ~1.2 Ma: Evidence from Nd-Sr isotopic composition and grain-size record

Zeng

Zhang

et al. 2020

Global and Planetary Change

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“…The loess–paleosol record in northeastern China, and around the Nihewan Basin, indicates a long‐term drying trend since ca. 1.0 Ma, punctuated by two significant abrupt drying events at ~0.65 and ~0.3 Ma . During the Late Pleistocene, a warm and humid period was present from ca.…”

Section: Climate Vegetation and Faunamentioning

confidence: 99%

The Paleolithic in the Nihewan Basin, China: Evolutionary history of an Early to Late Pleistocene record in Eastern Asia

Yang

Deng

Zhu

et al. 2019

Evolutionary Anthropology

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The Nihewan Basin of China preserves one of the most important successions of Paleolithic archeological sites in Eurasia. Stratified archeological sites and mammalian fossils, first reported in the 1920s, continue to be recovered in large‐scale excavation projects. Here, we review key findings from archeological excavations in the Nihewan Basin ranging from ~1.66 Ma to 11.7 ka. We place particular emphasis on changes in stone tool technology over the long term. Though Pleistocene lithic industries from East Asia are often described as simple in character, re‐evaluation of the stone tool evidence from the Nihewan Basin demonstrates significant, though periodic, innovations and variability in manufacturing techniques through time, indicating adaptive and technological flexibility on the part of hominins. Synthesis of paleoenvironmental and archeological data indicate changes in hominin occupation frequency in the Nihewan Basin, with chronological gaps suggesting that continuous presence in high, seasonal latitudes was not possible prior to the Late Pleistocene.

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“…Over the past two decades, a series of researches have been carried out to study the characteristics of climate proxies in Chinese loess-paleosol sequences, such as soil grain size, CaCO 3 content, magnetic susceptibility, organic carbon isotope, clay minerals and so on, which provided a wealth of information for the reconstruction of paleoenvironment and paleoclimate changes in the Quaternary ( Verosub et al, 1994 ; Gallet, Jahn & Torii, 1996 ; Ding et al, 2002 ; Kohfeld & Harrison, 2003 ; Kaakinen, Sonninen & Lunkka, 2006 ; Torrent et al, 2007 ; Jeong, Hillier & Kemp, 2011 ; Liu et al, 2011 ; Krauß et al, 2016 ; Schulte & Lehmkuhl, 2017 ). Previous results have showed that the changes in soil grain size on a Chinese loess-paleosol profile could reflect the winter monsoon intensity and the distance between source areas and sedimentary areas ( Chen et al, 1997 ; Nugteren & Vandenberghe, 2004 ; Sun et al, 2006 ; Prins et al, 2007 ; Guan et al, 2016 ; Zeng et al, 2017 ), and the distribution of CaCO 3 could indicate the level of precipitation controlled by East Asian monsoon and reflect the weathering intensity in the loess-paleosol sequence ( Chen et al, 1997 ; Zhao, Gu & Du, 2008 ; Babeesh et al, 2017 ). Therefore, soil grain size and CaCO 3 content of loess-paleosol sequences have been widely used as the paleoclimatic proxies in the Quaternary studies.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The distribution of organic carbon fractions in a typical loess-paleosol profile and its paleoenvironmental significance

Zhang

Huang

et al. 2018

PeerJ

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BackgroundThe loess-paleosol sequence on the Loess Plateau has been considered an important paleoclimatic archive to study global climatic and environmental changes in the Quaternary. So far, little attention has been paid to the characteristics of soil organic carbon fractions in loess-paleosol sequences, which may provide valuable information for exploring the evolution of climate and environment in the Quaternary on the Loess Plateau.MethodsIn order to explore the significance of mineral-associated organic carbon to total organic carbon (MOC/TOC) ratios in the loess-paleosol sequence for reconstructing paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatic evolution in the Quaternary on the Loess Plateau, we selected a typical loess-paleosol profile in Chunhua county, Xianyang city, Shaanxi province, as the research object. The content of total organic carbon (TOC) and MOC/TOC ratio in each loess and paleosol layers of the Chunhua loess-paleosol profile were analyzed, together with the paleoclimatic proxies, such as soil grain size, CaCO3 content and their correlations with organic carbon parameters.ResultsThe main results were as follows: (1) the total content of soil organic carbon and MOC/TOC ratios were generally higher in paleosol layers than in the underlying loess layers of the Chunhua loess-paleosol profile. Compared to total organic carbon content, MOC/TOC ratios changed more obviously in soil layers below a paleosol layer S8; (2) soil clay content and median grain size (Md (ϕ)) were higher in paleosol than in the underlying loess, while CaCO3 content showed an opposite tendency. In the Chunhua profile, the distribution characteristics of the three paleoclimatic proxies showed good indications of paleoclimate changes in the Quaternary; (3) in the Chunhua loess-paleosol profile, MOC/TOC ratios were positively correlated with clay content and median grain size (ϕ), while negatively correlated with CaCO3 content, and the correlations were more significant in soil layers below S8.DiscussionOur results indicated that MOC/TOC ratios in the Chunhua loess-paleosol profile correlated with the cold dry-warm wet paleoclimatic cycle in the Quaternary. The high MOC/TOC ratios in the loess-paleosol profile might reflect warm and humid climate, while lower ratios indicated relatively cold and dry climate. That is because when the climate changed from warm-humid to cold-dry, the vegetation coverage and pedogenesis intensity decreased, which increased soil CaCO3 content and decreased soil clay content and Md (ϕ), leading to decreased MOC/TOC ratios. Compared to TOC, MOC/TOC ratios had greater significance in indicating paleoenvironmental evolution in the Quaternary on the Loess Plateau. Therefore, investigating MOC/TOC ratios in loess-paleosol profile can offer new evidence to reconstructing paleoenvironmental changes, and also provide a basis for predicting responses of soil organic carbon pools to vegetation and climate changes in the future.

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Long-term Pleistocene aridification and possible linkage to high-latitude forcing: New evidence from grain size and magnetic susceptibility proxies from loess-paleosol record in northeastern China

Cited by 31 publications

References 88 publications

Provenance of loess deposits and stepwise expansion of the desert environment in NE China since ~1.2 Ma: Evidence from Nd-Sr isotopic composition and grain-size record

Provenance of loess deposits and stepwise expansion of the desert environment in NE China since ~1.2 Ma: Evidence from Nd-Sr isotopic composition and grain-size record

The Paleolithic in the Nihewan Basin, China: Evolutionary history of an Early to Late Pleistocene record in Eastern Asia

The distribution of organic carbon fractions in a typical loess-paleosol profile and its paleoenvironmental significance

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