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Timing of the deglaciation in southern Patagonia: Testing the applicability of K-Feldspar IRSL

Blomdin, Robin ; Murray, Andrew ; Thomsen, Kristina J. ; Buylaert, Jan-Pieter ; Sohbati, Reza ; Jansson, Krister N. and Alexanderson, Helena LU (2012) In Quaternary Geochronology 10. p.264-272
Abstract
The timing of the ice margin retreat of the Late Glacial Patagonian Ice Sheet (PIS) in southern Patagonia has been the object of discussion for many years. In order to resolve questions about the complex response of the PIS to past climate change, any geological interpretation and data modelling need evaluation against an absolute chronology. The aim of this project is to investigate the applicability of OSL dating to sediments from southern Patagonia; in particular, we examine the dating potential of K-feldspar IRSL signals. Samples were collected from landforms interpreted as being deposited during deglaciation of the PIS, with an expected age range of 17 and 22 ka, and from recently deposited sediment. We measure small aliquots and... (More)
The timing of the ice margin retreat of the Late Glacial Patagonian Ice Sheet (PIS) in southern Patagonia has been the object of discussion for many years. In order to resolve questions about the complex response of the PIS to past climate change, any geological interpretation and data modelling need evaluation against an absolute chronology. The aim of this project is to investigate the applicability of OSL dating to sediments from southern Patagonia; in particular, we examine the dating potential of K-feldspar IRSL signals. Samples were collected from landforms interpreted as being deposited during deglaciation of the PIS, with an expected age range of 17 and 22 ka, and from recently deposited sediment. We measure small aliquots and single grain distributions using an IR50 SAR protocol with IRSL stimulation at 50 degrees C following a preheat at 250 degrees C (held for 60 s). Uncertainties are assigned to our individual dose estimates based on the over-dispersion (OD) observed in laboratory gamma dose recovery experiments (22% for small aliquots and 18% for single grains). Then the possible effects of incomplete bleaching and differential fading are examined. For our natural samples we observe environmental ODs between 30 and 130% and mean residual doses between similar to 30 and 80 Gy. Minimum age models are used to identify the part of the dose population that is most likely to have been well-bleached and results from these models are compared. The models give ages that are consistent with each other; this may imply that they successfully identified the fully-bleached grains in the distributions, although there are some discrepancies between our small aliquot and single grain data. We observe large fading rates (on average 7.9 +/- 0.6%/decade for large aliquots) but nevertheless a comparison of our fading corrected ages with the expected age range shows that 2 out of 3 ages are consistent with geological interpretation and an established radiocarbon and cosmogenic nuclide chronology. We conclude that these investigations suggest that fading corrections can be based on laboratory average small aliquot/single grain fading rates. The third age is supported by an alternative geological interpretation, and the two ages consistent with the existing chronology imply that in the Strait of the Magellan the hills of the Brunswick peninsula (>70 m.a.s.l) were deglaciated at around 22 ka. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. (Less)
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author
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organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
K-feldspar, IRSL, Small aliquot, Single grain, Dose distributions, Incomplete bleaching, Glaciofluvial
in
Quaternary Geochronology
volume
10
pages
264 - 272
publisher
Elsevier
external identifiers
  • wos:000307195300041
  • scopus:84863779704
ISSN
1871-1014
DOI
10.1016/j.quageo.2012.02.019
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
8adcde69-7168-494f-b3a4-446da150d3cb (old id 3069039)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 14:43:37
date last changed
2022-01-28 02:14:40
@article{8adcde69-7168-494f-b3a4-446da150d3cb,
  abstract     = {{The timing of the ice margin retreat of the Late Glacial Patagonian Ice Sheet (PIS) in southern Patagonia has been the object of discussion for many years. In order to resolve questions about the complex response of the PIS to past climate change, any geological interpretation and data modelling need evaluation against an absolute chronology. The aim of this project is to investigate the applicability of OSL dating to sediments from southern Patagonia; in particular, we examine the dating potential of K-feldspar IRSL signals. Samples were collected from landforms interpreted as being deposited during deglaciation of the PIS, with an expected age range of 17 and 22 ka, and from recently deposited sediment. We measure small aliquots and single grain distributions using an IR50 SAR protocol with IRSL stimulation at 50 degrees C following a preheat at 250 degrees C (held for 60 s). Uncertainties are assigned to our individual dose estimates based on the over-dispersion (OD) observed in laboratory gamma dose recovery experiments (22% for small aliquots and 18% for single grains). Then the possible effects of incomplete bleaching and differential fading are examined. For our natural samples we observe environmental ODs between 30 and 130% and mean residual doses between similar to 30 and 80 Gy. Minimum age models are used to identify the part of the dose population that is most likely to have been well-bleached and results from these models are compared. The models give ages that are consistent with each other; this may imply that they successfully identified the fully-bleached grains in the distributions, although there are some discrepancies between our small aliquot and single grain data. We observe large fading rates (on average 7.9 +/- 0.6%/decade for large aliquots) but nevertheless a comparison of our fading corrected ages with the expected age range shows that 2 out of 3 ages are consistent with geological interpretation and an established radiocarbon and cosmogenic nuclide chronology. We conclude that these investigations suggest that fading corrections can be based on laboratory average small aliquot/single grain fading rates. The third age is supported by an alternative geological interpretation, and the two ages consistent with the existing chronology imply that in the Strait of the Magellan the hills of the Brunswick peninsula (>70 m.a.s.l) were deglaciated at around 22 ka. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.}},
  author       = {{Blomdin, Robin and Murray, Andrew and Thomsen, Kristina J. and Buylaert, Jan-Pieter and Sohbati, Reza and Jansson, Krister N. and Alexanderson, Helena}},
  issn         = {{1871-1014}},
  keywords     = {{K-feldspar; IRSL; Small aliquot; Single grain; Dose distributions; Incomplete bleaching; Glaciofluvial}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  pages        = {{264--272}},
  publisher    = {{Elsevier}},
  series       = {{Quaternary Geochronology}},
  title        = {{Timing of the deglaciation in southern Patagonia: Testing the applicability of K-Feldspar IRSL}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.quageo.2012.02.019}},
  doi          = {{10.1016/j.quageo.2012.02.019}},
  volume       = {{10}},
  year         = {{2012}},
}