Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-t5tsf Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-17T17:06:56.720Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Lake Level and Climate Changes between 42,000 and 18,000 14C yr B.P. in the Tengger Desert, Northwestern China

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Hucai Zhang ,
Bernd Wünnemann ,
Yuzhen Ma ,
Jinlan Peng ,
Hans-J. Pachur ,
Jijun Li ,
Yuan Qi ,
Guangjie Chen ,
Hongbing Fang  and
Zhaodong Feng
Hucai Zhang*
Affiliation:
National Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems, MOE, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China Institut D'astronomie et de Géophysique G. Lemaı́tre, Université Catholique de Louvain, 2 Chemin du Cyclotron, B-1348 Louvain-La-Neuve, [email protected] or [email protected]
Bernd Wünnemann
Affiliation:
Geolab, Institute of Geographical Sciences, Free University of Berlin, Malteser Strasse 74-100, 12249, Berlin, Germany
Yuzhen Ma
Affiliation:
National Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems, MOE, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
Jinlan Peng
Affiliation:
Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palentology, Academia Sinica, Nanjing, 210008, China
Hans-J. Pachur
Affiliation:
Geolab, Institute of Geographical Sciences, Free University of Berlin, Malteser Strasse 74-100, 12249, Berlin, Germany
Jijun Li
Affiliation:
National Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems, MOE, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
Yuan Qi
Affiliation:
National Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems, MOE, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
Guangjie Chen
Affiliation:
National Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems, MOE, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
Hongbing Fang
Affiliation:
National Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems, MOE, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
Zhaodong Feng
Affiliation:
National Laboratory of Western China's Environmental Systems, MOE, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Montclair State University, Upper Montclair, New Jersey, 07043
*
1To whom correspondence should be addressed.
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Multiple lines of stratigraphic, geochemical, and fossil data suggest that fresh-mesohaline paleolakes were widespread in the Tengger Desert of northwestern China and underwent major fluctuations during the late Pleistocene. The paleolakes started to develop at ca. 42,000 14C yr B.P. The lake levels were the highest between 35,000 and 22,000 14C yr B.P., during which Megalake Tengger dominated the landscape. The climatic conditions at this time were unique for this area and have no modern analogue. After an episode of decline between 22,000 and 20,000 14C yr B.P. and an episode of rebound between 20,000 and 18,600 14C yr B.P., the paleolakes started to desiccate and completely disappeared around 18,000 14C yr B.P. The environmental proxy data indicate that the Megalake Tengger formed under warm–humid climates. The reconstructed climatic variations appear to be correlative with the abrupt climatic events reconstructed for the North Atlantic.

Keywords

Tengger Desertclimate changelake levels
Type
Research Article
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 58 , Issue 1 , July 2002 , pp. 62 - 72
Copyright
University of Washington

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Agricultural Regional Commission, (1985). Agricultural Report of Minqin County. Gansu Province, Gansu Provincial Publishing House, . [in Chinese] Google Scholar
Allen, T. Particle Size Measurement. (1975). Chapman and Hall, New York.Google Scholar
An, Z.S., Kutzbach, J.E., Prell, W.L., and Porter, S.C. Evolution of Asian monsoon and phased uplift of the Himalayas-Tibetan plateau since late Miocene times. Nature 411, (2001). 62 66.Google Scholar
Bond, G.C., and Lotti, R. Iceberg discharges into the North Atlantic on Millennial time scales during the Last Glaciation. Science 267, (1995). 1005 1010.Google Scholar
Bond, G.C., Broecker, W.S., Johnsen, S., McManus, J., Labeyrie, L., Jouzel, J., and Bonani, G. Correlations between climate records from the North Atlantic sediments and Greenland ice. Nature 365, (1993). 143 147.Google Scholar
Broecker, W.S. Massive iceberg discharge as triggers for global climate change. Nature 372, (1995). 421 424.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Broecker, W.S. Future directions of Paleoclimate research. Quaternary Science Reviews 16, (1997). 821 825.Google Scholar
Cane, M.A. A role for the Tropical Pacific. Science 282, (1998). 59 61.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clement, A., and Cane, M. A. (1998). A role for the Tropical Pacific coupled Ocean-Atmosphere System on Milankovitch millennial timescales. Part I: A modeling study of Tropical Pacific variability. in Mechanisms of Global Climate Variability at Millennial Timescales Clarke, P. U., Webb, R. S., and Keigwin, L. D., Eds., pp. 243–262. American Geophysical Union Monograph 112.Google Scholar
Dansgaard, W., Johnson, S.J., Clausen, H.B., Dahjiensen, D., Gundestrup, N.S., Hammer, C.U., Hvidberg, C.S., Steffensen, J.P., Sveinbjorndottir, A.E., Jouzel, J., and Bond, G. Evidence for general instability of past climate from a 250-kya ice core record. Nature 364, (1993). 218 220.Google Scholar
Feng, Z.-D. Gobi dynamics in the northern Mongolian Plateau during the past 20,000+ yr: preliminary results. Quaternary International 76/77, (2001). 77 83.Google Scholar
Feng, Z.-D., Chen, F.-H., Tang, L.-Y., and Kang, J.-C. East Asian monsoon variations and Gobi dynamics during MIS 3 and 4. Catena 33, (1998). 29 46.Google Scholar
Fronval, T., Jansen, E., Bloemendal, J., and Johnson, S. Oceanic evidence for coherent fluctuations in Fennoscandian and Laurentide ice sheets on millennium timescales. Nature 376, (1995). 443 446.Google Scholar
Gasse, F., Arnold, M., Fontes, J.-Ch., Fort, M., Huc, A., Li, B., Liu, Q., Melieres, F., Van Campo, E., Wang, F., and Zhang, Q. A 13,000 year climate record from western Tibet. Nature 353, (1991). 742 745.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gasse, F., Fontes, J.-Ch., Van Campo, E., and Wei, K. Holocene environmental changes in Bangong Co basin (western Tibet). Part 4. Discussion and conclusions. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 120, (1996). 79 92.Google Scholar
Nature 364, (1995). 203 207.Google Scholar
Hakanson, L., and Jansson, M. Principle of the Lake Sedimentology. (1983). Springer-Verlag, Berlin. p. 95–117.Google Scholar
Heinrich, H. Origin and consequences of cyclic ice rafting in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean during the past 130,000 years. Quaternary Research 29, (1988). 142 152.Google Scholar
Huang, W.W. The prehistoric human occupation of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. Göttinger Geographische Abhandlungen, Heft 95, (1994). 201 219.Google Scholar
Johnson, S.J., Clausen, H.B., Dansgaard, W., Fuhrer, K., Gunstrup, N., Hammer, C.U., Iversen, P., Jouzel, J., Stauffer, B., and Steffensen, J.P. Irregular glacial interstadials recorded in a new Greenland ice core. Nature 359, (1992). 311 313.Google Scholar
Leuschner, D.C., and Sirocko, F. The low-latitude monsoon climate during Dansgaad-Oeschger cycles and Heinrich Events. Quaternary International 19, (2000). 243 254.Google Scholar
Li, B.Y., and Zhu, L.P. [Greatest lake period] and its palaeo-environment on the Tibetan Plateau. Journal of Geographical Sciences 11, (2001). 34 42.Google Scholar
Li, B.Y., Zhang, Q.S., and Wang, F.B. Lake evolution history in Karakulun-West Kunlun Mountains. Quaternary Sciences 1, (1991). 64 71.Google Scholar
Li, J.J., Feng, Z.-D., and Tang, L.Y. Late Quaternary monsoon patterns on the Loess Plateau of China. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 13, (1988). 125 135.Google Scholar
Ma, Y.Z., Zhang, H.C., Li, J.J., Pachur, H.-J., and Wünnemann, B. On the evolution of the palynoflora and climatic environment during Late Pleistocene in Tengger Desert. Acta Botanica Sinica 40, (1998). 871 879.Google Scholar
Pachur, H.-J., Wünnemann, B., and Zhang, H.C. Lake evolution in the Tengger Desert, Northwestern China, during the last 40,000 years. Quaternary Research 44, (1995). 171 180.Google Scholar
Peng, J.L., Zhang, H.C., and Ma, Y.Z. Late Pleistocene liminic ostracods and their environmental significance in the Tengger Desert, Northwest China. Acta Micropalaeontologica Sinica 15, (1998). 22 30.Google Scholar
Porter, S.C., and An, Z.S. Correlation between climate events in the North Atlantic and China during the Last Glaciation. Nature 375, (1995). 305 308.Google Scholar
Prell, W.L., and Kutzbach, J.E. Monsoon variability over the past 150,000 years. Journal of Geophysical Research 92, (1987). 8411 8425.Google Scholar
Qi, Y. (1999). The Character of Lacustrine Deposits and Climate Significance in Tengger Desert and Adjacent Regions since Late Pleistocene. Unpublished MSc thesis, Lanzhou University, .Google Scholar
Rasmussen, T.L., Van Weering, T.C.E., and Labeyrie, L. Climatic instability, ice sheets and ocean dynamics at high northern latitudes during the last glacial period (58–10KA BP). Quaternary Science Reviews 16, (1997). 71 80.Google Scholar
Ren, M. D, and Wang, N. L. 1980, Modern Depositional Environments, Science Press, Beijing.Google Scholar
Rhodes, T.E., Gasse, F., Lin, R., Fontes, J.-Ch., Wei, K., Bertrand, P., Gibert, E., Melieres, F., Tucholka, P., Wang, Z., and Cheng, Z. A late Pleistocene-Holocene lacustrine record from Lake Manas, Zunggar (northern Xinjiang, western China). Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 120, (1996). 105 121.Google Scholar
Sirocko, F., Leuschner, D., Staubwasser, M., Maley, J., and Heusser, L. (1999). High-frequency oscillations of the last 70,000 years in the Tropical/Subtropical and Polar Climates. in Mechanisms of Global Climate Variability at Millennial Timescales Clarke, P. U., Webb, R. S., and Keigwin, L. D., Eds., pp. 243–262. American Geophysical Union Monograph 112.Google Scholar
Thompson, L.G., Yao, T., Davis, M.E., Henderson, K.A., Mosley-Thompson, E., Lin, P.-N., Beer, J., Synal, H.-A., Cole-Dai, J., and Bolzan, J.F. Tropical climate instability: The last glacial cycle from a Qinghai-Tibetan ice core. Science 276, (1997). 1821 1825.Google Scholar
Thomson, J., Higgs, N.C., and Clayton, T. A geochemical criterion for the recognition of Heinrich events and estimation of their depositional fluxes by the (230Thexcess)0 profiling method. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 135, (1995). 41 56.Google Scholar
Veiga-Pires, C.C., and Hillarie-Marcel, C. U and Th isotope constrains on the duration of Heinrich events H0-H4 in the southeastern Labrador Sea. Paleoceanography 14, (1999). 187 199.Google Scholar
Wang, L.J., and Sarnthein, M. Millennial reoccurrence of century-scale abrupt events of East Asian monsoon: A possible heat conveyor for the global deglaciation. Paleoceanography 14, (1999). 725 731.Google Scholar
Wünnemann, B., Pachur, H.-J., and Zhang, H.C. Climatic and environmental changes in the deserts of Inner Mongolia, China, since the Late Pleistocene. Alsharhan, A.S., Glennie, K.W., Whittle, G.L., and Kendall, C.G.St.C. Quaternary Deserts and Climatic Changes. (1998). Balkema, Rotterdaman. 381 394.Google Scholar
Xiao, J.L., Porter, S.C., and An, Z.S. Grain size of quartz as an indicator of winter monsoon strength on the Loess Plateau of Central China during the last 130000 years. Quaternary Research 43, (1995). 22 29.Google Scholar
Yao, T. D., Thompson, G. L., Shi, Y. F., Qi, D. H., Jiao, K. Q., Yang, Z. H., Tian, L. D., and Mosley-Thompson, E.1997. Climatic change since last interglaciation in Gulia ice core. Science in Chinaseries D27, 447–452.Google Scholar
Zhang, H.C. The Superficial Elemental Geochemistry and Theoretical Principles. (1997). Lanzhou Univ. Press, p. 80–117.Google Scholar
Zhang, H.C., and Wünnemann, B. Preliminary study on the chronology of lacustrine deposits and determination of high palaeolake levels in Tengger Desert since Late Pleistocene. Journal of Lanzhou University 33, (1997). 87 91.Google Scholar
Zhang, H.C., Ma, Y.Z., Wünnemann, B., and Pachur, H.-J. A Holocene climatic record from arid Northwestern China. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 162, (2000). 389 401.Google Scholar
Zhang, H.C., Li, J.J., Ma, Y.Z., Li, J.J., Qi, Y., Chen, G.J., and Fang, H.B. Late Paleolake Evolution and abrupt climate changes during Last Glacial period in NW China. Geophysical Research Letters 28, (2001). 3203 3206.Google Scholar
Zhang, H.C., Li, J.J., Ma, Y.Z., Cao, J.X., Mu, D.F., Chen, G.J., Fang, H.B., Pachur, H.-J., and Wünnemann, B. Late Quaternary palaeolake levels in Tengger Desert, NW China. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology (2001). Google Scholar
Zhou, W.J., Donahue, D.J., Porter, S.C., Jule, T.A., Li, X.Q., Stuiver, M., An, Z.S., Eiji, M., and Dong, G.R. Variability of monsoon climate in East Asia at the end of the Last Glaciation. Quaternary Research 46, (1996). 219 229.Google Scholar