Holocene Glacial Variability Recorded in Lake Sediments from Nevado Huaguruncho, Peru
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Date
2012-12
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The Ohio State University
Abstract
Glaciers and lakes are recorders of high altitude climate changes, and these archives are important in our understanding of past global changes. This study aims to provide further insight into how temperature and precipitation varied in the past, and combined to drive glacial variability in the tropical Andes of South America. A percussion core was taken in the field at Lake Yanacocha located in the watershed of Nevado Huaguruncho, Peru. Bulk density was measured along the profile of core and the chronology was determined by measuring radiocarbon on macrofossil samples within the sediments. The core geochemistry was analyzed using scanning X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF), Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS), and coulometry. Changes in clastic sediment concentrations in the Yanacocha sediment core are represented by shifting values of Ti, K, bulk density, organic carbon, and residual flux. High clastic sediment values characterize the early Holocene, followed by low values during most of the early stages of the mid-Holocene, at a time the lake sediments suggest there was a period of more arid conditions. There is a notable increase in clastic sediments starting at the end of the mid-Holocene, and again during the late Holocene. This study, when paired with other similar research, further improves our knowledge of the timing and causes of climate variability in the tropical Andes, and suggests that glaciers during the Holocene advanced at times of both colder and wetter conditions.
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Keywords
Holocene, climate change, glaciers, lakes, Peru