Monitoring climatological, hydrological and geochemical parameters in the Père Noël cave (Belgium): implication for the interpretation of speleothem isotopic and geochemical time-series

Verheyden, Sophie; Genty, Dominique; Deflandre, Guy; Quinif, Yves; Keppens, E.

doi:10.5038/1827-806x.37.3.6

Cited by 43 publications

(49 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…This is the nearest station to record sub-daily barometric pressure and should be a reflection of any pressure changes at the surface above the cave. A negative correlation between drip rate and pressure with no (or a low) lag, would be indicative of two-phase-flow previously observed in French and British caves (Genty & Deflandre, 1998;Baker & Brunsdon, 2003;Fernández-Cortés et al, 2007;Verheyden et al, 2008). This is a direct process, whereby expansion or compression of air bubbles in the water is driven by local changes in atmospheric pressure, and either promotes or suppresses dripping (Genty & Deflandre, 1998).…”

Section: Cross Correlation Functions With Atmospheric Variablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatially dense drip hydrological monitoring and infiltration behaviour at the Wellington Caves, South East Australia

Jex¹,

Mariethoz²,

Baker³

et al. 2012

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Despite the fact that karst regions are recognised as significant groundwater resources, the nature of groundwater flow paths in the unsaturated zone of such fractured rock is at present poorly understood. Many traditional methods for constraining groundwater flow regimes in karst aquifers are focussed on the faster drainage components and are unable to inform on the smaller fracture or matrix-flow components of the system. Caves however, offer a natural inception point to observe both the long term storage and the preferential movement of water through the unsaturated zone of such fractured carbonate rock by monitoring of drip rates of stalactites, soda straws and seepage from fractures/micro fissures that emerge in the cave ceiling. Here we present the largest spatial survey of automated cave drip rate monitoring published to date with the aim of better understanding both karst drip water hydrogeology and the relationship between drip hydrology and surface climate. By the application of cross correlation functions and multi-dimensional scaling, clustered by k-means technique, we demonstrate the nature of the relationships between drip behaviour and initial surface infiltration and similarity amongst the drip rate time series themselves that may be interpreted in terms of flow regimes and cave chamber morphology and lithology.

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Section: Cross Correlation Functions With Atmospheric Variablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatially dense drip hydrological monitoring and infiltration behaviour at the Wellington Caves, South East Australia

Jex¹,

Mariethoz²,

Baker³

et al. 2012

IJS

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“…This includes detailed hydrographic studies (Bonniver et al, 2010) and extended cave-monitoring surveys (Verheyden et al, 2008;Van Rampelbergh et al, 2014), leading to successful paleoclimate reconstructions on Holocene speleothems down to seasonal scale (Verheyden et al, 2006(Verheyden et al, , 2012Van Rampelbergh et al, 2015). The elaborate cave monitoring (Fig.…”

Section: Han-sur-lesse Cave: Geology and Cave Parametersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Paleoclimate in continental northwestern Europe during the Eemian and early Weichselian (125–97 ka): insights from a Belgian speleothem

et al. 2016

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Abstract. The last interglacial serves as an excellent time interval for studying climate dynamics during past warm periods. Speleothems have been successfully used for reconstructing the paleoclimate of last interglacial continental Europe. However, all previously investigated speleothems are restricted to southern Europe or the Alps, leaving large parts of northwestern Europe undocumented. To better understand regional climate changes over the past, a larger spatial coverage of European last interglacial continental records is essential, and speleothems, because of their ability to obtain excellent chronologies, can provide a major contribution. Here, we present new, high-resolution data from a stalagmite (Han-9) obtained from the Han-sur-Lesse Cave in Belgium. Han-9 formed between 125.3 and ∼ 97 ka, with interruptions of growth occurring at 117.3-112.9 and 106.6-103.6 ka. The speleothem was investigated for its growth, morphology and stable isotope (δ 13 C and δ 18 O) composition. The speleothem started growing relatively late within the last interglacial, at 125.3 ka, as other European continental archives suggest that Eemian optimum conditions were already present during that time. It appears that the initiation of Han-9 growth is caused by an increase in moisture availability, linked to wetter conditions around 125.3 ka. The δ 13 C and δ 18 O proxies indicate a period of relatively stable conditions after 125.3 ka; however, at 120 ka the speleothem δ 18 O registered the first signs of regionally changing climate conditions, being a modification of ocean source δ 18 O linked to an increase in ice volume towards the Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5e-5d transition. At 117.5 ka, drastic vegetation changes are recorded by Han-9 δ 13 C immediately followed by a cessation of speleothem growth at 117.3 ka, suggesting a transition to significantly dryer conditions. The Han-9 record covering the early Weichselian displays larger amplitudes in both isotope proxies and changes in stalagmite morphology, evidencing increased variability compared to the Eemian. Stadials that appear to be analogous to those in Greenland are recognized in Han-9, and the chronology is consistent with other European (speleothem) records. Greenland Stadial 25 is reflected as a cold/dry period within Han-9 stable isotope proxies, and the second interruption in speleothem growth occurs simultaneously with Greenland Stadial 24.

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“…Previous studies of the Han-sur-Lesse karst system show that the cave responds seasonally to external climate factors and that it is well suited for high-resolution speleothembased climate reconstructions (Genty and Quinif, 1996;Verheyden et al, 2006Verheyden et al, , 2008a. In the Han-sur-Lesse cave, the high growth rate (up to 2.1 mm yr −1 ) and clear seasonal banding of the "Proserpine" stalagmite make it possible to reconstruct climate variations at the seasonal scale (Verheyden et al, 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Different cave-monitoring studies have been set up all over the world to better understand these seasonal and sub-seasonal processes (Genty and Deflandre, 1998;Spötl et al, 2005;Mattey et al, 2008;Riechelmann et al, 2011). Only few of them have provided answers on the isotope fractionation processes occurring between the drip water and recent precipitated calcite due to the complexity of the system and the variety of the different specific environments (Verheyden et al, 2008a;Tremaine et al, 2011;Riechelmann et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…With the increasing number of studies on cave calcite deposition dynamics (e.g., Dreybrodt, 1999Dreybrodt, , 2008Verheyden et al, 2008a;Lachniet, 2009;Scholz et al, 2009;Ruan and Hu, 2010;Oster et al, 2012) and with the help of modern analytical tools (Fairchild et al, 2006;Spötl and Mattey, 2006;Jochum et al, 2012), progress has been made to measure resolution at sub-seasonal and even bi-monthly scales. However, only a few studies, so far, have reached such high temporal resolution for the measured proxies (Treble et al, 2003;Mattey et al, 2008) mainly due to following two limitations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Monitoring of a fast-growing speleothem site from the Han-sur-Lesse cave, Belgium, indicates equilibrium deposition of the seasonal δ<sup>18</sup>O and δ<sup>13</sup>C signals in the calcite

et al. 2014

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Abstract. Speleothems provide paleoclimate information on multimillennial to decadal scales in the Holocene. However, seasonal or even monthly resolved records remain scarce. Such records require fast-growing stalagmites and a good understanding of the proxy system on very short timescales. The Proserpine stalagmite from the Han-sur-Less cave (Belgium) displays well-defined/clearly visible darker and lighter seasonal layers of 0.5 to 2 mm thickness per single layer, which allows a measuring resolution at a monthly scale. Through a regular cave monitoring, we acquired a good understanding of how δ 18 O and δ 13 C signals in modern calcite reflect climate variations on the seasonal scale. From December to June, outside temperatures are cold, inducing low cave air and water temperature, and bio-productivity in the soil is limited, leading to lower pCO 2 and higher δ 13 C values of the CO 2 in the cave air. From June to December, the measured factors display an opposite behavior.The absence of epikarst water recharge between May and October increases prior calcite precipitation (PCP) in the vadose zone, causing drip water to display increasing pH and δ 13 C values over the summer months. Water recharge of the epikarst in winter diminishes the effect of PCP and as a result the pH and δ 13 C of the drip water gradually decrease. The δ 18 O and δ 13 C signals of fresh calcite precipitated on glass slabs also vary seasonally and are both reflecting equilibrium conditions. Lowest δ 18 O values occur during the summer, when the δ 13 C values are high. The δ 18 O values of the calcite display seasonal variations due to changes in the cave air and water temperature. The δ 13 C values reflect the seasonal variation of the δ 13 C DIC of the drip water, which is affected by the intensity of PCP. This same anticorrelation of the δ 18 O versus the δ 13 C signals is seen in the monthly resolved speleothem record that covers the period between 1976 and 1985 AD. Dark layers display lower δ 18 O and higher δ 13 C values. The cave system varies seasonally in response to the activity of the vegetation cover and outside air temperature between a "summer mode" lasting from June to December and a "winter mode" from December to June. The low δ 18 O and high δ 13 C values of the darker speleothem layers indicate that they are formed during summer, while light layers are formed during winter. The darker the color of a layer, the more compact its calcite structure is, and the more negative its δ 18 O signal and the more positive its δ 13 C signal are. Darker layers deposited from summer drip water affected by PCP are suggested to contain lower Ca 2+ concentration. If indeed the calcite saturation represents the main factor driving the Proserpine growth rate, the dark layers should grow slower than the white layers.

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Monitoring climatological, hydrological and geochemical parameters in the Père Noël cave (Belgium): implication for the interpretation of speleothem isotopic and geochemical time-series

Cited by 43 publications

References 19 publications

Spatially dense drip hydrological monitoring and infiltration behaviour at the Wellington Caves, South East Australia

Spatially dense drip hydrological monitoring and infiltration behaviour at the Wellington Caves, South East Australia

Paleoclimate in continental northwestern Europe during the Eemian and early Weichselian (125–97 ka): insights from a Belgian speleothem

Monitoring of a fast-growing speleothem site from the Han-sur-Lesse cave, Belgium, indicates equilibrium deposition of the seasonal δ<sup>18</sup>O and δ<sup>13</sup>C signals in the calcite

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Monitoring climatological, hydrological and geochemical parameters in the Père Noël cave (Belgium): implication for the interpretation of speleothem isotopic and geochemical time-series

Cited by 43 publications

References 19 publications

Spatially dense drip hydrological monitoring and infiltration behaviour at the Wellington Caves, South East Australia

Spatially dense drip hydrological monitoring and infiltration behaviour at the Wellington Caves, South East Australia

Paleoclimate in continental northwestern Europe during the Eemian and early Weichselian (125–97 ka): insights from a Belgian speleothem

Monitoring of a fast-growing speleothem site from the Han-sur-Lesse cave, Belgium, indicates equilibrium deposition of the seasonal δ&lt;sup&gt;18&lt;/sup&gt;O and δ&lt;sup&gt;13&lt;/sup&gt;C signals in the calcite

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Paleoclimate in continental northwestern Europe during the Eemian and early Weichselian (125–97 ka): insights from a Belgian speleothem

Monitoring of a fast-growing speleothem site from the Han-sur-Lesse cave, Belgium, indicates equilibrium deposition of the seasonal δ<sup>18</sup>O and δ<sup>13</sup>C signals in the calcite