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Title: Little ice age evidence from a south-central North American ice core, U.S.A.

Abstract

In the past, ice-core records from mid-latitude glaciers in alpine areas of the continental United States were considered to be poor candidates for paleoclimate records because of the influence of meltwater on isotopic stratigraphy. To evaluate the existence of reliable paleoclimatic records, a 160-m ice core, containing about 250 yr of record was obtained from Upper Fremont Glacier, at an altitude of 4000 m in the Wind River Range of south-central North America. The {gamma}{sup 18}O (SMOW) profile from the core shows a -0.95{per_thousand} shift to lighter values in the interval from 101.8 to 150 m below the surface, corresponding to the latter part of the Little Ice Age (LIA). Numerous high-amplitude oscillations in the section of the core from 101.8 to 150 m cannot be explained by site-specific lateral variability and probably reflect increased seasonality or better preservation of annual signals as a result of prolonged cooler temperatures that existed in this alpine setting. An abrupt decrease in these large amplitude oscillations at the 101.8-m depth suggests a sudden termination of this period of lower temperatures which generally coincides with the termination of the LIA. Three common features in the {gamma}{sup 18}O profiles between Upper Fremont Glacier and themore » better dated Quelccaya Ice Cap cores indicate a global paleoclimate linkage, further supporting the first documented occurrence of the LIA in an ice-core record from a temperate glacier in south-central North America.« less

Authors:
 [1];  [2];  [3]
  1. Geological Survey, Salt Lake City, UT (United States)
  2. Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO (United States)
  3. Geological Survey, Menlo Park, CA (United States); and others
Publication Date:
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE
OSTI Identifier:
241248
Resource Type:
Journal Article
Journal Name:
Arctic and Alpine Research
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 28; Journal Issue: 1; Other Information: PBD: Feb 1996
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; NORTH AMERICA; PALEOCLIMATOLOGY; LITTLE ICE AGE; EVALUATION

Citation Formats

Naftz, D L, Klusman, R W, and Michel, R L. Little ice age evidence from a south-central North American ice core, U.S.A.. United States: N. p., 1996. Web. doi:10.2307/1552083.
Naftz, D L, Klusman, R W, & Michel, R L. Little ice age evidence from a south-central North American ice core, U.S.A.. United States. https://doi.org/10.2307/1552083
Naftz, D L, Klusman, R W, and Michel, R L. 1996. "Little ice age evidence from a south-central North American ice core, U.S.A.". United States. https://doi.org/10.2307/1552083.
@article{osti_241248,
title = {Little ice age evidence from a south-central North American ice core, U.S.A.},
author = {Naftz, D L and Klusman, R W and Michel, R L},
abstractNote = {In the past, ice-core records from mid-latitude glaciers in alpine areas of the continental United States were considered to be poor candidates for paleoclimate records because of the influence of meltwater on isotopic stratigraphy. To evaluate the existence of reliable paleoclimatic records, a 160-m ice core, containing about 250 yr of record was obtained from Upper Fremont Glacier, at an altitude of 4000 m in the Wind River Range of south-central North America. The {gamma}{sup 18}O (SMOW) profile from the core shows a -0.95{per_thousand} shift to lighter values in the interval from 101.8 to 150 m below the surface, corresponding to the latter part of the Little Ice Age (LIA). Numerous high-amplitude oscillations in the section of the core from 101.8 to 150 m cannot be explained by site-specific lateral variability and probably reflect increased seasonality or better preservation of annual signals as a result of prolonged cooler temperatures that existed in this alpine setting. An abrupt decrease in these large amplitude oscillations at the 101.8-m depth suggests a sudden termination of this period of lower temperatures which generally coincides with the termination of the LIA. Three common features in the {gamma}{sup 18}O profiles between Upper Fremont Glacier and the better dated Quelccaya Ice Cap cores indicate a global paleoclimate linkage, further supporting the first documented occurrence of the LIA in an ice-core record from a temperate glacier in south-central North America.},
doi = {10.2307/1552083},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/241248}, journal = {Arctic and Alpine Research},
number = 1,
volume = 28,
place = {United States},
year = {Thu Feb 01 00:00:00 EST 1996},
month = {Thu Feb 01 00:00:00 EST 1996}
}