Holocene tephrostratigraphy in high-latitude peatlands of the Southern Hemisphere: a link through time?

Abstract:

We present preliminary tephrostratigraphic data from south Patagonian peatlands and moss banks from the Antarctic Peninsula that provide greater chronological constraint to Holocene palaeoclimatic records and increase the potential for inter-regional correlation.

Relative to the Northern Hemisphere, there is a paucity of high-resolution, robustly dated Holocene palaeoclimate records in the Southern Hemisphere, limiting our ability to validate climate models in this region and fully understand variation in the global climate system over time. In the absence of long-term instrumental data, multi-proxy (testate amoebae, plant macrofossils, δ¹³C, δ¹⁸O and δD) palaeoclimatic records from south Patagonian peatlands can provide valuable information about the long-term variability of the southern westerlies, a key component in determining the Southern Ocean’s function as a sink or source of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Similarly, multi-proxy palaeoclimatic reconstructions from moss banks provide a unique terrestrial palaeoenvironmental archive from the Antarctic Peninsula, where records of past ecological change are rare and provide vital context for the recent, rapid biotic change recorded since the mid-20^th century.

Robust chronologies are imperative for the accurate examination of spatial and temporal patterns in Holocene climate variation. Previous work has confirmed the presence of discrete tephra horizons in south Patagonian peatlands and Antarctic Peninsula moss banks but the examination of distal, cryptotephras is currently underemployed as a geochronological tool. The chronological potential of these archives is considerable, given their high and largely continuous accumulation rates and suitability for ¹⁴C dating, presenting additional opportunities to refine the ages of major Holocene eruptions. Here, we present initial tephrostratigraphic results from both regions and explore the links between them.