Graduation Semester and Year

2011

Language

English

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Earth and Environmental Science

Department

Earth and Environmental Sciences

First Advisor

Harold Rowe

Abstract

An early-Late Pleistocene stalagmite was recovered from Buckeye Creek Cave (37°58.57'N, 80°23.98'W), southeastern West Virginia, USA. The growth axis of stalagmite BCC-025 was sampled for δ18O, δ13C, and Sr/Ca of the calcite. A crude age model was developed using two Th-230 ages, from the top (~490 kyrBP) and bottom (~630 kyrBP) of the stalagmite. A more elaborate age model for stalagmite growth was developed using established marine isotope stage (MIS 13/14, 14/15, 15/16) boundaries. Overall, the MIS boundaries approximate the locations of major hiatuses along the axis of stalagmite growth. The proxy records developed from BCC-025 reveal less covariation and overall diminished absolute ranges when compared to younger records, potentially, because the glacial/interglacial variability of the early-Late Pleistocene is less than that of the Late Pleistocene. Despite the need for better age constraints, the observations and interpretations provide an initial window into the drivers and extent of climate change before the more pronounced swings of glacial/interglacial variability of the Late Pleistocene.

Disciplines

Earth Sciences | Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Comments

Degree granted by The University of Texas at Arlington

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