Solving the paradox of conflicting glacial chronologies: reconstructing the Cordillera Darwin ice sheet (53°-55°S) during the last glacial – interglacial transition
Abstract
To better understand Patagonian glacier-climate relationships it is necessary to reconstruct the former glacier fluctuations. The Northern (NPI) and Southern (SPI) Patagonian Icefields have been the subject of many intensive studies. Comparatively, very few records exist for the glaciers of the southernmost Cordillera Darwin icefield (CDI). The reason for this lack of southernmost records is largely related to the fjord- terminating nature of the glaciers, which results in limited terrestrial evidence of glacier variability. However, the evidence for the timing and extent of the CDI glaciers during the last glacial – interglacial transition (LGIT) has produced a paradox of conflicting evidence for either a ‘larger’ ice field and associated ice dammed pro-glacial lakes or a ‘smaller’ ice field with implications for rapid glacier retreat. The aim of this project is to determine the extent and timing of glacial fluctuations in the southern Estrecho de Magallanes and Fuegian archipelago at the end of the last ice age (c. 18,000 to 10,000 years before present (18-10 ka)) to resolve this enduring paradox and to advance our understanding of the nature and timing of climate changes during the LGIT. The past extent of the CDI and associated proglacial lakes and meltwater routes has important implications for our understanding of geomorphic barriers to the dispersal of early humans in this region
keywords luminescence dating glacial chronology Patagonien Chile geomorphology
Publikationen
Project staff
Christopher Lüthgens
Assoc. Prof. Priv.-Doz. Dr. Christopher Lüthgens
christopher.luethgens@boku.ac.at
Tel: +43 1 47654-87213
Project Leader
01.12.2021 - 30.11.2024
BOKU partners
External partners
Centro de Investigación en Ecosistemas de la Patagonia
Robert Dominic McCulloch
partner