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Hydrological changes in Yellowstone Lake (USA) during the Holocene based on the analysis of oxygen isotopes in diatoms

Cartier, Rosine LU ; Conley, Daniel LU ; Leng, Melanie J. ; Lacey, J. H. ; Zahajská, Petra LU orcid ; Brown, Sabrina R. ; Schiller, Christopher ; Withlock, Cathy ; Morgan, Lisa and Shanks, Pat , et al. (2019) AGU Fall meeting 2019
Abstract
Northern Yellowstone Lake is on the southeast edge of the 631-ka Yellowstone caldera and is an area with high heat flow, high seismicity, and an abundance of active hydrothermal features and structures. Several large hydrothermal explosions since the last glacial recession formed craters of more than 100 m in diameter. These large craters raise the question on how climate and hydrological changes have affected the hydrothermal system and the lake ecosystem at millennial timescales.

This study focuses on an 11.6-m-long core collected in 2016 in the Lake Hotel graben covering the last 9,900 cal years according to radiocarbon ages. Past hydrological changes were inferred from oxygen isotopes values of biogenic silica that comprises... (More)
Northern Yellowstone Lake is on the southeast edge of the 631-ka Yellowstone caldera and is an area with high heat flow, high seismicity, and an abundance of active hydrothermal features and structures. Several large hydrothermal explosions since the last glacial recession formed craters of more than 100 m in diameter. These large craters raise the question on how climate and hydrological changes have affected the hydrothermal system and the lake ecosystem at millennial timescales.

This study focuses on an 11.6-m-long core collected in 2016 in the Lake Hotel graben covering the last 9,900 cal years according to radiocarbon ages. Past hydrological changes were inferred from oxygen isotopes values of biogenic silica that comprises the cell wall of the diatoms. d 18O values reflect silica-lake water fractionation during diatom growth. The d 18O values vary according to changes in sources of precipitation, supply of runoff by tributaries, lake water temperature, and evaporation. Currently, precipitation occurs mainly as winter snow from weather systems originating in the Pacific.

Periods of high d 18O in diatoms (enrichment in the heavy isotope) occur from the base of the record 9900 to ca. 7500 cal years BP, from 4500 to 3000 cal years BP and ca. 1000 cal years BP. These isotopic enrichments have been interpreted as to be mostly the result of increased water evaporation and/or reduced snowmelt flowing into the lake from the Yellowstone River and other tributaries. This inference is supported by d 18O measurements from water samples showing that lake water is progressively more evaporated with increased distance from the Yellowstone River inlet . The base of the record also is characterized by lower abundance of Pinus pollen suggesting a more open Pinus contorta forest until 5800 cal years BP, with more-frequent fire than today. Additionally, a long-term decrease in d 18Odiatomin the record and a progressive increase in the duration of spring water mixing shown by diatom assemblages (i.e. higher A. subarctica/S. minutulusratio) are associated with decreased summer insolation during the Holocene. These results compare well with other paleoclimatic records from the Yellowstone region that show a transition to cool, wet conditions in the late Holocene. (Less)
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organization
publishing date
type
Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding
publication status
published
subject
host publication
Hydrological changes in Yellowstone Lake (USA) during the Holocene based on the analysis of oxygen isotopes in diatoms
conference name
AGU Fall meeting 2019
conference location
San Franscisco, United States
conference dates
2019-12-09 - 2019-12-13
project
Diatom-rich sediment formation in lakes
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
57e5f0b7-b2f7-4090-a34e-7a602a310e6e
alternative location
https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm19/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/596813
date added to LUP
2020-05-19 07:37:50
date last changed
2021-12-29 12:45:15
@inproceedings{57e5f0b7-b2f7-4090-a34e-7a602a310e6e,
  abstract     = {{Northern Yellowstone Lake is on the southeast edge of the 631-ka Yellowstone caldera and is an area with high heat flow, high seismicity, and an abundance of active hydrothermal features and structures. Several large hydrothermal explosions since the last glacial recession formed craters of more than 100 m in diameter. These large craters raise the question on how climate and hydrological changes have affected the hydrothermal system and the lake ecosystem at millennial timescales.<br/><br/>This study focuses on an 11.6-m-long core collected in 2016 in the Lake Hotel graben covering the last 9,900 cal years according to radiocarbon ages. Past hydrological changes were inferred from oxygen isotopes values of biogenic silica that comprises the cell wall of the diatoms. d 18O values reflect silica-lake water fractionation during diatom growth. The d 18O values vary according to changes in sources of precipitation, supply of runoff by tributaries, lake water temperature, and evaporation. Currently, precipitation occurs mainly as winter snow from weather systems originating in the Pacific.<br/><br/>Periods of high d 18O in diatoms (enrichment in the heavy isotope) occur from the base of the record 9900 to ca. 7500 cal years BP, from 4500 to 3000 cal years BP and ca. 1000 cal years BP. These isotopic enrichments have been interpreted as to be mostly the result of increased water evaporation and/or reduced snowmelt flowing into the lake from the Yellowstone River and other tributaries. This inference is supported by d 18O measurements from water samples showing that lake water is progressively more evaporated with increased distance from the Yellowstone River inlet . The base of the record also is characterized by lower abundance of Pinus pollen suggesting a more open Pinus contorta forest until 5800 cal years BP, with more-frequent fire than today. Additionally, a long-term decrease in d 18Odiatomin the record and a progressive increase in the duration of spring water mixing shown by diatom assemblages (i.e. higher A. subarctica/S. minutulusratio) are associated with decreased summer insolation during the Holocene. These results compare well with other paleoclimatic records from the Yellowstone region that show a transition to cool, wet conditions in the late Holocene.}},
  author       = {{Cartier, Rosine and Conley, Daniel and Leng, Melanie J. and Lacey, J. H. and Zahajská, Petra and Brown, Sabrina R. and Schiller, Christopher and Withlock, Cathy and Morgan, Lisa and Shanks, Pat and Fritz, Sherilyn Claire}},
  booktitle    = {{Hydrological changes in Yellowstone Lake (USA) during the Holocene based on the analysis of oxygen isotopes in diatoms}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  title        = {{Hydrological changes in Yellowstone Lake (USA) during the Holocene based on the analysis of oxygen isotopes in diatoms}},
  url          = {{https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm19/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/596813}},
  year         = {{2019}},
}